THE DEVIL’S CLAIM – Sessue Hayakawa
The Devil’s Claim (1920)
Direction: Charles Swickard
Screenplay: J. Grubb Alexander
Cast: Sessue Hayakawa, Rhea Mitchell, Colleen Moore, William Buckley
In The Devil’s Claim, Sessue Hayakawa plays an Indian (!) novelist who uses his experiences with women as inspiration for his novels. Next, he encounters a young American woman (Rhea Mitchell) who tells him a story about Satan-worshipping societies and evil talismans. Her real motive, however, is to reunite the novelist with Indora (future 1920s superstar Colleen Moore), a young Persian girl whom he had abandoned.
Directed by Charles Swickard from a screenplay by J. Grubb Alexander, The Devil’s Claim is an excellent drama — and so is Hayakawa’s performance. Much of the plot is told in the "story within a story" mode, [...]
by James Bazen | October 28, 2009
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Tags: Charles Swickard, Cinesation 2009, Classic Movies, Colleen Moore, Film Reviews, J. Grubb Alexander, Sessue Hayakawa, Silent Films, The Devil's Claim
Colleen Moore Research Project
Colleen Moore in The Desert Flower. Photo: Courtesy of Jeff Codori
Those who truly know film history know Colleen Moore: the quintessential 1920s flapper whose bobbed hair was the fashion plate for millions of young women everywhere. What most people do not know is that there was far more to the actress than the fun-loving, zany image she left behind — an image that is mainly the product of a few surviving films of which hardly any are readily available.
In reality, Colleen Moore was a talented actress, equally accomplished in both drama and comedy. When I began researching Moore’s life, I found that there is a dearth of information available on her. Worse yet, much of what [...]
by Jeff Codori | February 21, 2007
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Tags: Book Research, Classic Movies, Colleen Moore, Silent Films
