''Four Walls'' is a 1928 American silent

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super ...

directed by

William Nigh William Nigh (October 12, 1881 – November 27, 1955) was an American film Film director, director, screenwriter, writer, and actor. His film work sometimes lists him as either "Will Nigh" or "William Nye". Biography Nigh was born Emil Kreu ...

and starring John Gilbert,

Joan Crawford Joan Crawford (born Lucille Fay LeSueur; March 23, ncertain year from 1904 to 1908was an American actress. She started her career as a dancer in traveling theatrical companies before debuting on Broadway theatre, Broadway. Crawford was si ...

, and

Carmel Myers Carmel Myers (April 9, 1899 – November 9, 1980) was an American actress who achieved her greatest successes in silent film. Early life Myers was born in San Francisco, the daughter of Isidore Myers, a Russian-Jewish rabbi who was born in ...

. The film is based on the play of the same name by

George Abbott George Francis Abbott (June 25, 1887 – January 31, 1995) was an American theatre producer, director, playwright, screenwriter, film director and producer whose career spanned eight decades. Early years Abbott was born in Forestville, New Yo ...

and Dana Burnet.''Four Walls'' at silentera.com
/ref> ''Four Walls'' is now considered

lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography *Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland * Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

. The film was remade in 1934 as '' Straight Is the Way''.

Plot

Benny Horowitz ( John Gilbert), a reformed

gangster A gangster is a criminal who is a member of a gang. Most gangs are considered to be part of organized crime. Gangsters are also called mobsters, a term derived from '' mob'' and the suffix '' -ster''. Gangs provide a level of organization and ...

, proposes marriage to Bertha (

), a neighbor who had been a frequent visitor while he served his sentence. Bertha rejects his proposal because she believes that he is still in love with Freida (

), Benny's former

gun moll A gun moll or gangster moll or gangster's moll is the female companion of a male professional criminal. "Gun" was British slang for thief, derived from Yiddish ''ganef'', from the Hebrew ''gannāb'' ( גנב). "Moll" is also used as a euphemism for ...

. During a party in which Freida seeks to make Benny jealous with a former rival, Benny again takes control of the gang's leadership. After his rival's death is ruled accidental, Benny and Bertha go off together and start a new life.

Cast

* John Gilbert - Benny *

- Frieda *

Vera Gordon Vera Pogorelsky Gordon (June 11, 1886 – May 8, 1948) was a Russian-born American stage and screen actress. Early life Vera Pogorelsky was born in Ekaterinoslav, Russia, on June 11, 1886, the daughter of Boris Pogorelsky and Teigan Nemirovsky ...

- Benny's Mother *

- Bertha *

Robert Emmett O'Connor Robert Emmett O'Connor (March 18, 1885 – September 4, 1962) was an Irish-American actor. He appeared in more than 200 films between 1919 and 1950. He is probably best remembered as the warmhearted bootlegger Paddy Ryan in '' The Public En ...

- Sullivan *Louis Natheaux - Monk *Jack Byron - Duke Roma

References

External links

* * * 1928 films 1928 drama films Silent American drama films American silent feature films American black-and-white films American films based on plays Films directed by William Nigh Lost American drama films Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films 1928 lost films 1920s American films {{1920s-silent-drama-film-stub