A pair of young twin sisters are in mourning for their father although they are lifted by the news that their brother, always a savvy businessman, has sold part of the estate and made them a tidy sum. This tidy sum he quickly puts in the family safe – observed only by the sisters and their slattern housekeeper. The housekeeper decides she wants this money and gets an unscrupulous acquaintance to rob the safe while she holds the girls at gunpoint through a hole in the wall (hence she is the unseen enemy). Luckily the girls are resourceful enough to use the phone to call for help and soon it is on the way – but will they get there in time?
Having seen this described as a masterpiece by another IMDb user, I was curious about the film and decided to look it up. It was interesting to me to see that it was one of the first films from Lillian Gish and also that it had been directed by DW Griffith and I was curious how it would be. As is often the way with silent shorts, the plot is simple and in this case it is mostly a dramatic scenario where the girls are in danger and help is on the way. This is fine but mostly it doesn't work that well because the delivery is rather inconsistent. The scenario is part of the problem because the drunken hand through the wall device is odd to say the least – the girls are sort of in danger but not really and if anything it looks a bit silly; this takes away from the dramatic side. Similarly the rush to help them is at once dramatic and with lots of concerned gurning but then throws in a Keystone Cops-lite moment where they get stuck on a rotating bridge. Accordingly the musical score is uneven too as it tries to take account of the various moods.
The performances are OK but of course of note are the Gish sisters – like Griffiths himself I don't know which is which, but the stronger performance came from the bravery of the two sisters. Otherwise the most noteworthy performance comes from Elmer Booth due to his intense overacting when he learns of the girl's plight! That said, it is an OK short film that delivers on the simple scenario – it is just very uneven and had me wishing that it had a bit more about it to increase the dramatic tension and thus my engagement in the short.
Having seen this described as a masterpiece by another IMDb user, I was curious about the film and decided to look it up. It was interesting to me to see that it was one of the first films from Lillian Gish and also that it had been directed by DW Griffith and I was curious how it would be. As is often the way with silent shorts, the plot is simple and in this case it is mostly a dramatic scenario where the girls are in danger and help is on the way. This is fine but mostly it doesn't work that well because the delivery is rather inconsistent. The scenario is part of the problem because the drunken hand through the wall device is odd to say the least – the girls are sort of in danger but not really and if anything it looks a bit silly; this takes away from the dramatic side. Similarly the rush to help them is at once dramatic and with lots of concerned gurning but then throws in a Keystone Cops-lite moment where they get stuck on a rotating bridge. Accordingly the musical score is uneven too as it tries to take account of the various moods.
The performances are OK but of course of note are the Gish sisters – like Griffiths himself I don't know which is which, but the stronger performance came from the bravery of the two sisters. Otherwise the most noteworthy performance comes from Elmer Booth due to his intense overacting when he learns of the girl's plight! That said, it is an OK short film that delivers on the simple scenario – it is just very uneven and had me wishing that it had a bit more about it to increase the dramatic tension and thus my engagement in the short.