Drifting (1923)

• Year: 1923
• Released: 26 Aug 1923
• Country: United States
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• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0014003/
• Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/drifting
• Metacritics:
• Available in: 720p, 1080p,
• Language: None, English
• MPA Rating: N/A
• Genre: Drama
• Runtime: 70 min
• Writer: Daisy H. Andrews, Gardner Bradford, Tod Browning
• Director: Tod Browning
• Cast: Priscilla Dean, Matt Moore, Wallace Beery
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6.7/10

Drifting Storyline

Cassie Cook is an opium smuggler in China. In Hong Kong, she meets Jules Repin, her competitor. The two agree to become partners. They move on to Shanghai, where they meet at Madam Polly Voo’s café on the Yangsti Road. Cassie argues with Repin; she has sunk her money into a big shipment that Repin said he had, but the merchandise is nowhere to be found. In addition, Repin induced her to purchase a lot of gowns that she is now unable to pay for. At Hong Chow, a small village at the edge of the poppy fields, a mining engineer arrives, ostensibly to open and work a long abandoned mine. In fact, the newcomer is really Captain Arthur Jarvis, who is there to stop the opium trade. Repin suspects the newcomer of being a government agent. He tries to persuade Cassie to go to Hong Chow to investigate, but she refuses. Cassie has befriended Lillian Morton, a girl from the States who has become addicted to opium. Cassie finally realizes the ugliness of her business, and tells Repin she is through and is going to return to the States. She decides to sell off her unpaid-for gowns, and place a bet on the races, with plans to use the winnings to take Lillian with her back to the States. However, her horse loses, and she ends up worse off. Destitute but still wishing to keep her promise to Lillian, Cassie decides to return to smuggling until she can raise enough money for the trip home. She arrives in Hong Chow and meets Dr. Li, from whom she buys her opium. The pair also plan to find out with Jarvis is up to. Cassie meets Jarvis, and poses as a novelist. Jarvis falls for the deception, and becomes interested in Cassie. Meanwhile, Dr. Li’s daughter Rose has fallen for Jarvis. But Jarvis’ assistant, Murphy, is in love with Rose. When Rose sees Cassie going to Jarvis’ cabin while he is away, she follows and watches. She sees Cassie remove a report from an envelope and hen replace it with a blank sheet. When Jarvis returns, Rose tells him what she saw, but he refuses to believe her, and mails the envelope. Now that Cassie has gained the confidence of Jarvis, he tells her what he is doing there and what he thinks of all dope peddlers. Cassie has started to fall for Jarvis, and dreads the day when he learns the truth about her. Repin and Li call on Jarvis in an attempt to get him to agree to let the opium through for a price. When he refuses, they tell him they know who he is, and that if he does not agree to help them, the whole town will be wiped out by the poppy workers. It is then that Jarvis learns the truth about Cassie. Jarvis decides to fight the attack and induces the villagers to arm themselves and resist any effort to destroy the town. A terrific battle ensues, and Cassie and Repin are prevented from leaving with their opium. Murphy fights bravely, but when he sees his side is losing, he rushes off to summon troops. The town’s missionary and his wife are killed, but their young son Bruce escapes and later returns to his cabin. Cassie, seeking refuge, locks herself in the cabin with Bruce. Rose sees Jarvis and Repin at her father’s home, locked in deadly combat. Knowing how Cassie feels about Jarvis, Rose finds her and tells her he will be killed if she doesn’t help him. After Rose leaves, Cassie tries to follow, but the workers discover her and set the cabin on fire. Returning to her home, Rose discovers her father is dead. She picks up his gun and shoots Repin just as he is about to knife Jarvis. Rose then tells Jarvis that Cassie is in jeopardy, and Jarvis rushes out to save her. Rose faints next to the body of her father. Jarvis rescues Cassie and Bruce, just before the troops arrive to quell the attack. The two pledge their love to each other. Murphy rushes to Rose’s home and revives her.

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Drifting Movie Reviews

A phenomenal, tremendously well made classic

Count this among those silent titles that have gratifyingly been very well preserved, or restored; the image quality is all but pristine. That makes ‘Drifting’ all the more pleasing to watch, as every genuinely rich detail herein is all the more vibrant as it greets our eyes. True of the era generally, and sometimes it seems of filmmaker Tod Browning’s works specifically, we see outstanding, flavorful production design and art direction, fantastic costume design, and lovely hair and makeup work, not to mention commendable cinematography; to be honest, this might be worthwhile on that basis alone. The cast give reliably strong performances such that it’s a pleasure just to watch them at work; Priscilla Dean, Wallace Beery, Matt Moore, Anna May Wong, and others should warm the cockles of any cinephile’s heart. Even before we consider the content proper there’s a great deal to enjoy still, 100 years later, in a picture that’s so well made, and frankly a feast for the eyes. I definitely was taken with it from the very start.

As to that content: the feature arguably rides a lines with its story that is set in China. Even today Hollywood has a significant problem with diversity and inclusivity, and outright racism, and in many ways this was often worse in the early years of cinema. Could it be that ‘Drifting’ also falls into the all too common trap of romanticizing an “exotic” locale and people, dabbling with stereotypes, casting white actors in non-white roles (with or without inappropriate makeup), and mishandling the setting and subject matter? Sadly, it’s not wholly without fault in this regard; its worst sin is the yellowface that adorns some of the supporting cast. In the very least, however, I think it’s safe to say that this film is mostly much better about such matters than too many of its contemporaries. In fact, keeping in mind its imperfections, I nonetheless think it’s sufficiently smarter such that one can ease off such concerns a little bit, and just sit back, relax, and enjoy the show.

And what a show it is! Like most silent films that are based on a play I can’t claim any familiarity with the source material, a drama by John Colton, but I can say without question that the adapted screenplay penned by Browning with A. P. Younger is rather terrific. At least to me it feels like the plot is decidedly more complex than we often saw in similar fare, with more facets to the tale being spun and complications beyond “so-and-so is led into a life of crime, then finds redemption.” The scene writing is marvelously strong, coming off like the cinematic equivalent of a word processor making rare use of italics, underlining, and bold typeface – robust, emphatic, and declaratory, yet still leaving sufficient room for the people involved to explore the space being made for them as it echoes the greater complexity of the overall narrative. There’s earnest, welcome depth to the characters, enabling the cast to dig deeper and find more purchase for their acting; I’m already a fan of Dean, Beery, Moore, and their co-stars, but I wonder if this doesn’t actually represent some of their best performances. Even the intertitles, whether dialogue or exposition, are written with measurable wit and intelligence, helping the title to build audience investment, propel the drama, and find its heart. True, it’s a little tiresome just how often Chinese characters pointedly speak in sage aphorisms or with Extra Smart verbiage (I did say “stereotypes”), but this isn’t so severe an issue as to detract from the experience, and still the writing impresses.

All this is more than enough to make ‘Drifting’ well worth watching; well before it’s even reached the halfway mark I’ve all but completely fallen in love. Yet then we factor in the expert direction of Browning, and the movie might actually be a must-see. Not all of Browning’s many works met with equal success, but by and large he was and should be remembered as a titan of the early film industry. He again demonstrates why here with a sharp eye for orchestrating shots and scenes, and a delicate hand with which to guide his cast throughout. It’s quite worth reiterating: almost every aspect of this feature is strong enough in and of itself to deserve if not demand viewership, recognition, and remembrance. That applies to the craftsmanship of those behind the scenes, to the fine acting of everyone in front of the camera, to the excellent writing, and just as much to the dependably skilled direction. Even Errol Taggart’s editing and sequencing is surprisingly keen, illustrating finer capability than could often be said of the timeframe, and any stunts or effects are just plain swell. The climactic sequence is surely just as magnificent as some of the biggest and best the silent era had to offer! The end result of all this grand effort is a superbly engaging, entertaining, satisfying viewing experience, one that I rather think stands noticeably taller than no few of its silent siblings and even films of subsequent years.

Though opening myself up for the possibility of disappointment I assumed I would enjoy this, and still my expectations have been readily surpassed. Hats off to playwright Colton, by all means, but extra special congratulations to everyone participating in this production in particular, for their work is all-around tremendous. Though early movies broadly deserve to be preserved as part of our cultural heritage, some pictures are distinctly better than others. There’s no doubt in my mind that ‘Drifting’ very much stands apart from many other examples with value that means it’s fully entitled to such treatment. It may not be entirely free of the flaws that have characterized other features of the era, but I think it does do better, and in any event its quality far outshines any weaknesses. Even with a slight dent in its armor, ultimately I’m inclined to believe this is so well done that it becomes one of the premier underappreciated classics of the 1920s. Watch with awareness of where it stumbles, but do watch: ‘Drifting’ is altogether kind of brilliant, so good it might even withstand the stubbornness of those who have difficulty abiding the silent era, and worth far more than the mere 80 minutes it requires of our time. Bravo!

And The Title?

Priscilla Dean wants to get out of China, so she agrees to go to a small village with Wallace Beery and smuggle out some opium. Matt Moore is present, supposedly to reopen the local mine, but really to crack down singlehandedly on the opium trade. And everyone knows it.

There are several things about the movie I don’t care for, among them the sense-free title, and Bruce Guerin as the little kid who rushes in during the final battle, seemingly expressly to stop Miss Dean from destroying the opium and to strangle her while she is trying to shoot murderous opium dealers who are trying to burn the building she has taken refuge in, and to shoot her. In fact, the movie looks to have been chopped down somewhere along the way; while the opening sequence in Shanghai is well paced, the village sequence seems to lose most of its cohesion.

Still, there are pleasures in this example of Tod Browning directing Miss Dean as a shady lady. There’s Wallace Beery in his villainous phase; there’s J. Farrell McDonald as a drunken Irishman, making fun of the toupee he wears; and 18-year-old Anna May Wong gives a performance that seems sedate most of the time, but reveals passion.

The excellence of the print made it clear why they used to tint and tone so much in the silent era: it makes the scenes pop out, like the red in the battle-and-fire scenes, and the green in the night scenes; apparently there were other choices than blue to show the world was dark.

For a major production, this one has not aged particularly well, with its yellowface performers, and characters, like Master Guerin’s parents, who simply disappear from the film. Still, it has its pleasures.

Even with some strings dangling, really decent crime/mystery/thriller; great last few minutes!!

Watched “Drifting” (1923) with Priscilla Dean, Matt Moore, Wallace Beery, J. Farrell MacDonald, Anna May Wong, Rose Dione, Edna Tichenor, William V. Mong, Bruce Guerin, and others. My print is the new Blu-Ray release from Kino Lorber, and it is a nice clean and clear copy pretty much throughout. The print runs 84 minutes according to the back cover of the Blu-Ray, even though the IMDb notes a 70 minute running time. The print seemed wholly accurate at 84 minutes. This one takes place in Shanghai where a group of opium growers, another of opium smugglers and sellers (to which Dean and Beery belong), and a government agent (Moore) in the guise (or disguise) of a mining engineer who’s trying to rid the opium problem from Shanghai, all are playing out the plot in a very dangerous cat-and-mouse game. Dean falls in love eventually with Moore and her lack of compunction shifts… The finale is a rip-rousing battle scene with fire and fights and the army and, and, and… The scene of the village on fire and all the fighting occurring is extremely well staged, fairly long, too, so the climax is the kind of thing that in 1923 must have been heart-pounding to an audience. All the time, young Anna May Wong, playing the daughter of a smuggler, and who’s fallen in love with Moore also, is compounding the plot time after time with her presence. Her death near the end, according to one contemporaneous critic at the film’s release, was considered the high point of the film. She’s supposedly 15 in the film (she was only 18 in real life), and her histrionics are so natural as to make the viewer feel she is genuinely the part. The film is very exciting, especially from the beginning of the second half, though the exposition is well done. There are some plot strings that are left to dangle at the end which I found slightly disconcerting, but overall I really enjoyed the film and would definitely watch this one again soon. Discovering Priscilla Dean in her early films has been rather a revelation. She’s SO good at being bad. There’s an attitude about her that fits her looks at that time…and it plays on film in a wondrous manner. Of course, Beery in these early days was almost never a good guy in features. When he crooks that eye of his and looks like the snake he’s playing, he’s fierce. Moore is a little less, but he’s still fine here. Kept reminding me of John Howard playing Bulldog Drummond in the 30s. This new release is very highly recommended.