Diana of the Follies (1916)

Release Date - Sep 24, 1916 (USA - Unknown)  |   Run Time - 50 min.  |   Countries - United States  |   MPAA Rating - NR
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Synopsis by Hal Erickson

Taking a welcome break from her goody two-shoes roles, Lillian Gish pulled out all the stops as the vampish title character in Diana of the Follies. Scripted by "Granville Warwick" (a pseudonym for D.W. Griffith), the story details the decline and fall of wealthy Phillips Christy (Sam de Grasse) when he falls under the spell of the delectable Diana. Trapping Christy into marriage, Diana finds it impossible to adjust to domesticity or fidelity, even after becoming a mother. Soon she deserts her husband and returns to the Follies. When her child succumbs to a fatal illness, Diana somewhat belatedly begs her husband to take her back, but Christy isn't falling into her trap a second time. When commenting on this rare villainous portrayal years later, Lillian Gish noted "Virgins are the hardest roles to play. . .but a fallen woman or a vamp! -- 75 per cent of your work is already done."