Broken Laws
8 /10 1 Votes
Story by Adela Rogers St. Johns Genres Silent film, Drama Language English | Director Roy William Neill Producer Dorothy Davenport Duration Country United States | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Writer Marion Jackson , Bradley King Release date November 9, 1924 (1924-11-09) Based on the short story, Broken Laws
by Adela Rogers St. Johns Similar movies Related Roy William Neill movies | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Broken Laws (1924) is an American silent dramatic film directed by Roy William Neill, remarkable for the appearance of Dorothy Davenport, who is billed as "Mrs. Wallace Reid".
Contents
Plot
Joan Allen (Davenport) is a loving mother who can't help indulging her son Bobby, spoiling him to the point where he is an irresponsible "jazz-mad" teenager on trial for vehicular manslaughter. She wakes up with a start at the end of the trial, with new resolve to provide the right amount of parental discipline.
Production background
Davenport's husband was the star Wallace Reid, who died of morphine addiction in January 1923. By June 1923, Davenport had co-produced, starred in and toured the country with Human Wreckage, a moralistic warning about the terrors of drug addiction. The film's sensational tone, and the roadshow engagement with her personal appearances, were a direct precursor to the later 1930s exploitation films of Kroger Babb and others.
Broken Laws on the topic of parental overindulgence is the second of Davenport's "social conscience" releases, followed by The Red Kimona (1925), based on a true-life story of white slavery.
Cast
Preservation status
According to the SilentEra website, a print exists in the Cinematheque Royale de Belgique.
References
Broken Laws WikipediaBroken Laws IMDb