Today, Annie Laurie. Though he is largely forgotten today, director John S. Robertson – who was later immortalized by The Byrds with their 1967 single “Old John Robertson” – first broke into movies with the Vitagraph Studios in 1915 before heading to Paramount Pictures, where he directed his best known film, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1920) with John Barrymore in the lead. By 1927 – after directing a few Richard Barthelmess films for First National Pictures – he was at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, where he teamed with the studio’s latest prized star acquisition Lillian Gish for the romantic period drama Annie Laurie. Once thought of as a lost film, Kino has given the film its official home video debut here.
The Production: 3.5/5
In late 17th Century Scotland, the Clan MacDonald and the Clan Campbell are engaged in an ongoing feud over land and property that has now spilled over into interpersonal violence. After Alisdair MacDonald runs off with Enid Campbell – after a Campbell killed one of the MacDonalds – the conflict breaks out into the open, prompting the King has to call a truce meeting between the Scottish clans. Meanwhile, the son of the MacDonald chieftain Ian (Norman Kerry) finds himself falling in love with Annie Laurie (Lillian Gish), the daughter of the diplomat tasked with keeping the peace. But when Donald Campbell (Creighton Hale) plots to wipe out the MacDonalds – despite the King’s truce – Annie must brave the remote Scottish Highlands to warn Ian and his brood of the betrayal.
Bearing little with the famous song & William Douglas’ poem that shares the same name, Annie Laurie is a decent historical romance from the Silent Era of Hollywood. Under the direction of John S. Robertson – who had made a solid name for himself directing romantic dramas during this period – Josephine Lovett’s script balances the romance of the story with the historical context of warring clans in Scotland during the late 17th Century; even a few of the dialogue title cards have traces of Scottish burrs! The film also has the benefit of decent performances from the cast as well as the talents of MGM’s chief art director Cedric Gibbons and cinematographer Oliver T. Marsh to bring this (fictional) historical romance to life. While the settings and techniques may appear to be modest by today’s standards, the film does have two memorable sequences: Annie braving the winter swept Highlands (and fighting off a Campbell trying to stop her) to light the torch to summon the MacDonald clan to battle – a sequence that can hold its own with the Ice Floe sequence in D.W. Griffith’s Way Down East (1920) – and the recreation of the infamous Massacre of Glencoe at the film’s climax. While it may have fallen off the radar of the public’s mind over the years, Annie Laurie is still a decent example of the then burgeoning MGM style that would come to define the studio in the decades to come: grand, yet classy with a bit of polish and star power to sell the story to the public.
Coming off of a grand 1926 in which she made both La Boheme and The Scarlet Letter for MGM, Lillian Gish has one of her last leading performances of the Silent Era as the eponymous Annie Laurie; following The Wind (1928) – and subsequent decline in box office drawing power – Gish returned to the stage before re-emerging in the Sound Era as a reliable supporting actress, later earning an Honorary Oscar in 1971. Better known for his appearances in The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923) and The Phantom of the Opera (1925), Norman Kerry appears to be channeling Douglas Fairbanks in his portrayal of Ian MacDonald; though his career declined at the advent of the Sound Era, Kerry still managed to live out an existence as a bon vivant and adventurer, and even briefly served in the French Foreign Legion during WWII before returning to California in 1941. Coming in the same year as his best known role of Paul Jones in Paul Leni’s horror/comedy The Cat and the Canary, Creighton Hale makes for a memorable presence as a duplicitous dandy wanting to wipe out the MacDonald clan; with the coming of sound in Hollywood, Hale shifted to playing character and bit parts – often uncredited – in film and television before retiring in 1959. Rounding out the cast here are Hobart Bosworth as the MacDonald chieftain, Joseph Striker as Alisdair MacDonald, Patricia Avery as Enid Campbell, Russell Simpson providing comic relief as Sandy, Brandon Hurst as the Campbell chieftain, David Torrence as Annie’s father Sir Robert Laurie, Richard Alexander as one of the MacDonalds, Mary Gordon as a midwife, Henry Kolker as a representative of the King and see if you can spot John Wayne amongst the extras; it was one of his earliest film appearances (4th film overall).
Video: 4/5
3D Rating: NA
The film is presented in a 1:33:1 aspect ratio, taken from a 4K restoration done by the Library of Congress. For the most part, film grain, fine details and gray scale – as well as the color palette in the film’s two-strip Technicolor sequence – are presented faithfully; there are cases of print damage like scratches, tears and dirt present, but given the fact that the movie has hardly seen the light of day on home video until now, this can be forgiven as the flaws don’t make the film unwatchable. Overall, this release is likely the best the movie will ever look on home video.
Audio: 5/5
Robert Israel’s score for the movie – recorded in 2023 – is presented on 2.o stereo and 5.1 surround DTS-HD Master Audio tracks for this Blu-ray release. The music – which contain themes of Scottish folk music throughout – is strong and clear on both tracks without any instance of distortion like crackling, popping and hissing present.
Special Features: 3/5
Commentary by film historian Anthony Slide – Recorded for this release, Slide goes over the background of the film as well as some tidbits of Scottish history mixed in as well.
Overall: 3.5/5
Despite a tepid reception from both critics and audiences upon first release – and falling by the wayside thereafter – Annie Laurie is still an example of Lillian Gish’s stardom during the Silent Era of Hollywood. Kino has done a solid job of rescuing this title from obscurity and the sands of time here, with a solid HD transfer of the film and an informative commentary track for this release. Very highly recommended.
Mychal has been on the Home Theater Forum’s reviewing staff since 2018, with reviews numbering close to 300. During this time, he has also been working as an assistant manager at The Cotton Patch – his family’s fabric and quilting supplies business in Keizer, Oregon. When not working at reviewing movies or working at the family business, he enjoys exploring the Oregon Coast, playing video games and watching baseball in addition to his expansive collection of movies on DVD, Blu-ray and UHD, totalling over 3,000 movies.
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