Out of the Shadow (1919)

Genres - Mystery  |  
  • AllMovie Rating
    2
  • User Ratings (0)
  • Your Rating

Share on

Synopsis by Janiss Garza

The scenario for this melodrama was based on a novel, The Shadow of the Rope, written by Raffles creator, E.W. Hornung. Unfortunately, all the suspense was sucked out of it by the time it was ready to be filmed. The plot -- as shot -- involves Ruth Minchin (Pauline Frederick), who is unhappily married to her dead father's business partner. The man is a violent alcoholic who believes his wife is having an affair with Severino (Syd De Conde), a pianist who lives in their building. She leaves in the wake of an argument which results in a beating at the hands of her husband. After she is gone, Severino comes by the apartment, has a dispute with the husband and shoots him. The police believe that Ruth is guilty, but when she is tried, she is acquitted because the evidence is lacking. Richard Steel, a city official (Wyndham Standing and Edward Langholm, a reporter (Ronald Byram) take it upon themselves to find the real killer. Various plot complications transpire before that happens, including a romance between Ruth and Steel. The book was far more interesting than Paramount's filmed version of it.