- Actors: Mary Pickford, Ida Waterman, Herbert Standing, Conway Tearle, Marcia Manon
- Directors: Marshall Neilan
- Writers: Frances Marion, William J. Locke
- Format: Color, DVD-Video, Silent, NTSC
- Language: English
- Region: All Regions
- Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
- Number of discs: 1
- MPAA Rating:
- Studio: Paradox
- Release Date: Oct 1 2002
- Run Time: 84 minutes
- Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
- ASIN: B00004S89T
-
Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
#59,056 in DVD (See Top 100 in DVD)
- #17 in DVD > Classics > Silent Films > Drama
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon.com
Mary Pickford plays two roles in this film; it is a testament to her phenomenal acting talent that we really see her as two completely different characters. In the title role of Stella Maris, Pickford portrays a lovely young woman, paralyzed from childhood, whose wealthy, aristocratic parents have kept her utterly sheltered from the ugly realities of the outside world. As poor little orphan girl Unity Blake, Pickford is literally unrecognizable.
Make-up, hair, and costumes help achieve this remarkable transformation. Stella Maris is radiantly pretty, with bright eyes and lips and flowing curls, decked out in ruffled white frocks. Unity is painfully plain: sallow-skinned and dull-haired, in an orphan's homespun, shapeless shift. But it is Pickford's extraordinary facility with body language--the true sign of a great silent-film actress--that makes each character so distinct and credible. Privileged Stella Maris's movements are always graceful and dainty, whereas Unity stoops and flinches, the victim of a lifetime of want and abuse.
Both characters fall in love with the same man, journalist John Risca (Conway Tearle), who is married to the abusive drunkard Louisa (Marcia Manon, who fairly oozes wickedness). John loves the comely Stella Maris, but "he can never be free as long as that woman [his wife] is alive." An ingenious plot twist takes care of that problem while neatly resolving the question of which Pickford character "gets the guy": Stella Maris, the wealthy and beautiful, or Unity Blake, the humble and homely. --Laura Mirsky
Video Details
Stella Maris shows Mary Pickford at the height of her fame in two of her greatest roles and is, therefore, one of Hollywood's greatest films. Pickford takes on dual roles: one as Stella Maris, a beautiful and crippled young heiress raised in luxurious isolation, and the other as Unity Blake, a homely, orphaned maidservant abused by her alcoholic employer, Louise Risca. Both Stella and Unity fall in love with Risca's long suffering husband, John. Realizing she can never have John, Unity makes the ultimate sacrifice.
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items. |
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Pickford double role is dark and psychological.,
By
This review is from: Stella Maris (DVD)
Mary Pickford's skillful acting is highly evident in this exceptional film. She portrays two characters which are complete opposites. Stella is the beautiful bedridden cripple and Unity Blake is the ugly duckling of an orphanage.The character Unity gives Pickford her meatier role, requiring her to take on the villain and be harrassed and beaten. In fact, Unity steals the show. She is a character of such depth that we long to watch her next move, in contrast to the Stella character, whose indisposition, naivety and sheltered existence render her incapable of much action. No doubt the audience of the period, the unwavering Pickford fans, desired to glimpse the 'girl with the curls' and to this end the Stella character has a function beyond vying for the same man loved by Unity. The villain in the film is Louise Risca who is a violent alcoholic who gains satisfaction by making others feel pain and unhappiness. Her end is satisfying to the audience because her dark hold on others is broken.A sense of relief is evident in the film. The film comments on the theory that some characters are more expendable than others. It forces the audience to confront its own values when we do not feel a sense of loss when some characters achieve happiness through the sacrificial actions of another. 'Stella Maris' could equally have been called 'Unity Blake' due to the pivotal nature of the role played by her character.In many ways it is her film and it is her involvement which leaves a lasting effect in our memories. A film which explores the psychology of its characters, 'Stella Maris', is well worth viewing.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great intro to a different cinematic world,
By "darren_edwards" (Kings Cross, NSW Australia) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Stella Maris (DVD)
If you're not used to silent movies they can be a lot of hard work. I've spent a lot of time watching silent comedies (mainly Keaton, Harold Lloyd and L&H) but Stella Maris was my first drama.One Sunday afternoon I put it in the DVD and tied my wife to the chair to watch it with me...no problem. Within minutes we were both mesmerized and 84 minutes later had experienced a truly wonderful film. I'd read about Mary Pickford, but never seen her and really only bought this out of interest because I was reading Samuel Goldwyn's biography at the time. The end result? An good, solid introduction to silent drama and Ms. Pickford and a good quality DVD to boot. Nicely restored with an understated soundtrack. As a bonus there's some nice home movie stuff and news reels of Pickford at the height of her fame.
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Greatest Silent Star In Her Greatest Roles,
By
This review is from: Stella Maris (DVD)
Mary Pickford was not the most beautiful silent film star, but it is perhaps this fact which enables her to portray her two roles in Stella Maris so well. Her looks were somewhat unconventional. It is something else again, something indefinable which enables her to draw the viewer towards her. This film shows that she had acting ability in abundance, but by itself her acting ability cannot explain why it was that Pickford was the greatest silent star, perhaps even the greatest star who ever lived. She was a phenomenon. This DVD contains, as supplementary material, some newsreels of her selling war bonds. Pickford was the greatest draw for the crowds, greater than Fairbanks, greater even than Chaplin.Stella Maris is one of the best introductions to Pickford's films not least because the viewer gets two Marys for the price of one. Her dual role of Stella Maris, a poor little rich girl, and Unity Blake, a Cockney orphan, is astonishing not because they appear on screen together (after all we get a whole cast of Buster Keatons in The Playhouse), but because they look so unalike. Stella Maris is the familiar Pickford persona, the young 'girl with the curls'; Unity Blake is something altogether different. A title proclaims that she is Mary Pickford, but otherwise it would be easier to believe she were someone else entirely. Here is an unfamiliar Pickford, without a hint of sweetness. In the end, it is as if she has stepped out of a German expressionist horror story. We are left with an image of her eyes surrounded by shadows, which is more Murnau or Lang than Marshall Neilan. No wonder contemporary audiences found this film difficult. Today it looks like Mary Pickford's best. The picture quality of this DVD is almost perfect. The colour tinting is muted and adds immeasurably to the atmosphere. The score has some fine themes and adds to the action without overpowering it. Everyone who is a fan of silent cinema should have some Mary Pickford films and Milestone should be congratulated for their wonderful collection. It is only to be hoped that they bring out some more soon.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Want to see more reviews on this item?
|
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
