Copyright 15 June 1920 by Mary Pickford. Released through United Artists. New York opening at the Strand: 27 June 1920. 62 minutes.
SYNOPSIS: A little Cockney laundress saves a horse from the glue factory. The original domestic version ended on a poignant note which audiences didn't like. So two alternative happy endings were filmed in both of which Amanda was re-united with "Lavender".
COMMENT: Thanks to the commendable enterprise of Image and Milestone, both domestic and foreign versions of Suds are available on their DVD. They recommend the domestic version. I do too. It's true that this version has been mastered from a beat-up 16mm print whereas the foreign release is pristine 35mm. The U.S. version, however, plays much better because the editing is much sharper and the pace rigorously controlled. It's also obvious that the director has chosen the best angles and the best player reactions from the two negatives at his disposal for the domestic copy-which is much as you'd expect because after all this is the print the critics and his peers will see. So unless you're a keen fan of Gaylord Carter, who provides the organ accompaniment, forget the European print and enjoy the native version instead. It's a wonderfully comic, fanciful and romantic (in the best literary sense) movie. Quite extraordinary really! The writers, the players (all of them brilliant) and their astute director manage the incredible feat of coaxing laughs from squalor, sublimity from the grindstone, warmth from penury, and joy from often pitiable situations. Pickford's artistry is especially engaging.
SYNOPSIS: A little Cockney laundress saves a horse from the glue factory. The original domestic version ended on a poignant note which audiences didn't like. So two alternative happy endings were filmed in both of which Amanda was re-united with "Lavender".
COMMENT: Thanks to the commendable enterprise of Image and Milestone, both domestic and foreign versions of Suds are available on their DVD. They recommend the domestic version. I do too. It's true that this version has been mastered from a beat-up 16mm print whereas the foreign release is pristine 35mm. The U.S. version, however, plays much better because the editing is much sharper and the pace rigorously controlled. It's also obvious that the director has chosen the best angles and the best player reactions from the two negatives at his disposal for the domestic copy-which is much as you'd expect because after all this is the print the critics and his peers will see. So unless you're a keen fan of Gaylord Carter, who provides the organ accompaniment, forget the European print and enjoy the native version instead. It's a wonderfully comic, fanciful and romantic (in the best literary sense) movie. Quite extraordinary really! The writers, the players (all of them brilliant) and their astute director manage the incredible feat of coaxing laughs from squalor, sublimity from the grindstone, warmth from penury, and joy from often pitiable situations. Pickford's artistry is especially engaging.