Mary Pickford was one of the superstars of the silent film era. The press hyped her as “America’s Sweetheart” even though she was born in Toronto, Canada. She was in dozens of early short and feature films that her name was everywhere. She became so powerful that with her husband Douglas Fairbanks, they formed the United Artists studio. She won the second Oscar given for Best Actress for a role that featured sound. Her career is mostly thought of as part of the silent era. Stella Maris catches her at a time when her career is so huge, the only actress that can share the screen with Mary Pickford was Mary Pickford.
Stella Maris (Pickford) is confined to her bed. She is paraplegic whose rich English family has done everything to comfort her from the harsh realities of the world outside her bedroom. John Risca (A Virtuous Vamp‘s Conway Tearle) is a friend of the Maris family and often visits Stella. In order to pick up her spirits, he claims he’s single and lives in a castle. Stella develops a crush on her dreamy guest. But his life isn’t so royal. He doesn’t live in a castle, but a drab apartment. He also has a wife, Louise (A Daughter of the Wolf‘s Marcia Manon). The wife is not happy. She grabs Unity (Pickford) from a local orphanage to be their house servant. The bitter Louise goes nuts one day when Unity gets the groceries stolen. She beats the orphan so badly; she gets sentenced to prison for three years. This turns out to free up more time for John to hang out with Stella. He also keeps Unity at the home. Unity also develops a crush on John although she doesn’t know that he’s crazy about Stella. John is juggling a lot of hearts. Stella receives a miracle surgery that allows her to walk outside her room after three years of rehabilitation. What will happen when she steps outside her bedroom and gets hit with the reality of the world?
Most of the silent film that people have enjoyed over the last 30 years falls into the slapstick comedy category with Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton. Audience can remain in awe of the comedic stunts they pulled off. What about a drama? Can we handle a film where you truly expect to hear the actors talking to each other? The answer is “yes” when comes Stella Maris. The actors are able to sell the scenes with their facial emotions and gestures. Mary Pickford pulls off playing Unity and Stella as two different characters so that you might not realize she’s the same actress. Director Marshall Neilan and cinematographer Walter Stradling must have freaked out of audiences when two Mary Pickfords appeared on the screen together. This looks better than a lot of modern CGI compositing.
The film has a serious tone especially in the final act. There is a bit of comedy involving Stella’s dog Teddy. He’s a big protective dog who doesn’t appreciate it when John gives Stella a cute lap dog. The dog plots on how to restore his standing with Stella. Teddy was already a comic superstar from working in Mack Sennett shorts. Teddy proved he could pull off dramatic scenes as well as get a few laughs.
What really helps the film is the score that the Graves Brothers (Cameron and Taylor Graves) has created. Instead of giving us vamps on an upright piano or organ. They scored the film with real strings and woodwinds that you’d hear done for a modern indie film playing Sundance. They bring an emotional audio tone to the scenes that adds to the actor’s expressions.
The restoration of Stella Maris resurrects the legacy of Mary Pickford. She shows that she’s more than a sweetheart with the dual roles of Stella and Unity. If you’re curious how an audience can get drawn into a drama without hearing the actors, Stella Maris is a great place to start.
The Video is 1.33:1 full frame. The restored transfer was created with a 1967 35mm B&W Dupe Negative and an incomplete 1925 35mm Tinted Print. The inter-titles were digitally recreated. The film was made at 19fps to resemble the hand cranked nature of the silent cameras. They film gives a real presentation for the times. Things don’t look jittery. The Audio is Dolby Digital 2.0. While there is no sound from the film, you’ll get to appreciate the score by the Graves Brothers.
DVD with the movie and bonus features.
Booklet with information about the film, restoration and the score by the Graves Brothers.
Audio Commentary by Marc Wanamaker, film historian. He gives us background on the various actors and filmmakers. He talks about how Mary ended up playing both roles. We also learn what Mary did to her wardrobe to help make Unity a different character.
Stella Maris Photo Gallery (4:19) includes press photos that have Mary playing both characters and behind the scenes shots.
The Mountaineer’s Honor (15:05) is an American Biograph Short with Mary Pickford living the country life. Things start out cute and romantic on the mountain top, but there’s a dark turn. This was directed by D.W. Griffith in 1909.
VCI Entertainment presents Stella Maris (1918). Directed by Marshall Neilan. Screenplay by Frances Marion. Starring Mary Pickford, Ida Waterman and Herbert Standing. Running Time: 83 minutes. Rating: Unrated. Release Date: December 12, 2023.
