''Fate's Turning'' is a 1911 short 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. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

directed by

D. W. Griffith David Wark Griffith (January 22, 1875 – July 23, 1948) was an American film director. Considered one of the most influential figures in the history of the motion picture, he pioneered many aspects of film editing and expanded the art of the n ...

and produced by the

Biograph Company The Biograph Company, also known as the American Mutoscope and Biograph Company, was a motion picture company founded in 1895 and active until 1916. It was the first company in the United States devoted entirely to Filmmaking, film production an ...

. It stars Charles H. West and features Stephanie Longfellow. It survives in the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...

Plot

Young man John Lawson, Jr., has a

nervous breakdown A mental disorder, also referred to as a mental illness, a mental health condition, or a psychiatric disability, is a behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning. A mental disorder is ...

. (According to the January 23. 1911 ''Biograph Bulletin'', the breakdown is a result of taking over the family business from his ailing father, though this is not presented onscreen.) When the father recovers, John leaves his fiancée Grace for a "rest cure" at a hotel, accompanied by his valet. In the hotel's dining room, he admires his pretty waitress, Mary. He becomes so enamored with her that he soon proposes, and she accepts. Then he is notified that his father is dangerously ill. He rushes home, leaving his valet to break the news to Mary. John returns just in time to have a few moments with his father before the latter dies. After the funeral, John writes back in response to Mary's letter, breaking off their engagement due to the great disparity in social status. She goes to see him. First encountering Grace, Mary tells her about her situation. When Grace does not believe her, Mary shows her her engagement ring. Lawson appears, but is unmoved by Mary's pleadings. On the day of the wedding of John and Grace, he is puzzled by her cold reception. She sends him into the next room, where Mary is lying down ... with their child. Hostile at first, John eventually goes on his knees to her and takes her hand. (According to the ''Biograph Bulletin'', the Library of Congress entry and other sources, they are married.)

Cast

Reception

The Moving Picture News The ''Motion Picture News'' was an American film industry trade paper published from 1913 to 1930. History The publication was created through the 1913 merger of the ''Moving Picture News'' founded in 1908 and ''The Exhibitors' Times'', founded ...

'' reviewer wrote in the February 25, 1911 issue: "We've read enough of this sort of late; there's no need to put them on the screen. Aim of this production unknown."

Analysis

Russell Merritt wrote in ''The Griffith Project Volume 4: Films Produced in 1910'' that John Lawson is an example of the "effete heroes who ... became part of Griffith's trademark in the 1920s".

References

External links