''The Battle of Bull Run'' is a 1913 American
historical drama
A historical drama (also period drama, period piece or just period) is a dramatic work set in the past, usually used in the context of film and television, which presents history, historical events and characters with varying degrees of fiction s ...
silent black-and-white film
Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white to produce a range of achromatic brightnesses of grey. It is also known as greyscale in technical settings.
Media
The history of various visual media began with black and white, a ...
directed by
Francis Ford. It portrays the
during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
.
Cast
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William Clifford as The Southern Colonel
*
Victoria Forde
Victoria Forde (April 21, 1896 – July 24, 1964) was an American silent film actress.
Biography
Born in New York City in 1897, Victoria Forde was the daughter of Broadway actress Eugenie Forde who got her into films with Biograph at age 14. ...
as May - the Colonel's Sweetheart
*
Grace Cunard
Grace Cunard (born Harriet Mildred Jeffries; April 8, 1893 – January 19, 1967) was an American actress, screenwriter and film director. During the silent era, she starred in over 100 films, wrote or co-wrote at least 44 of those productions ...
as Grace Myers
*
Ray Myers
Ray Myers (June 21, 1889 – November 4, 1956) was an American film actor and director of the silent film era. He appeared in 43 films between 1912 and 1924. He also directed five films between 1910 and 1915, including ''The Siege and Fall of ...
as Harry Myers
*
Francis Ford as
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...
Plot
The film is a historical drama that depicts the
with the plot of the movie centering around a brother and sister, Grace and Harry Myers, who are spies for the United States. The film starts with the Southern and Northern Army fighting and the South gaining an upper hand against the North. This leads to the North's defeat and the army retreating from the battle. When Abraham Lincoln hears of this defeat, he calls for the best secret service agent, Grace Myers, to be sent at once to help her brother find information about the Confederate Army. When Grace gets to the border of United States and the Confederate States, she has to hide in a wagon that is crossing the border so that none of the Confederate soldiers know that she is there. Grace then meets up with Harry and rides with him to the town that they are planning on spying on, with their main goal to be infiltrating the house of the Colonel. The Colonel's job is to handle all dispatches from the Confederate Army. Grace then meets the Colonel's sweetheart, May, at a ball by helping fix May's dress, which Grace purposely ripped. This leads to Grace meeting the Colonel and she becomes an acquaintance of his. Later, Grace has her carriage purposely crash in front of the Colonel's house so that she can get inside the house. Colonel helps her fix her carriage and Grace gets inside his house. He tries to get rid of her before May comes home, but Grace distracts the Colonel long enough so that when May gets home the Colonel has to hide Grace in his office. While Grace is in his office, May tries to warn the Colonel about Grace saying that she was dangerous, but the Colonel doesn't believe her. Grace finds the letters from the South and switches them for fake letters, but she accidentally drops one of the real letters which causes the Colonel to notice. Harry, who was hiding outside the house, is noticed by a servant who tells the Colonel about him and the Colonel believes he is the one who took the letters, so the Colonel saddles up and chases after Harry. They meet each other on the battlefield for the second Battle of Bull Run where they fight. While they fight, Grace watches on and sees Harry and the Colonel fight until the Colonel kills Harry. However, the Colonel is killed by a stray bullet which causes Harry and the Colonel to die side by side. Grace escapes to the north and gives the letters to United States and she is celebrated as a hero for the mission. Grace, filled with guilt and sadness, returns home where one night she is awoken by the spirits of the Colonel and Harry who lead her to the battlefield where they died blaming Grace for their deaths. Grace then wakes up realizing it was a nightmare, and she decides to go downstairs. When she gets to the stairs she passes out and falls down the stairs and dies.
Reception
''
The Moving Picture World
The ''Moving Picture World'' was an influential early trade journal for the American film industry, from 1907 to 1927. An industry powerhouse at its height, ''Moving Picture World'' frequently reiterated its independence from the film studios.
...
'' reviewed the movie on March 15, three days before the film release. They said the movie was overall really good and well made, but the ending was terrible because it punishes Grace for helping the north when the death of the Colonel and Harry was not her fault. The reviewer, H.C. Judson, wished the ending was happier and upbeat to fall align with the heroism of Grace.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Battle of Bull Run (film), The
American historical drama films
American silent short films
American black-and-white films
1910s historical drama films
1910s war drama films
Films directed by Francis Ford
Universal Pictures short films
Depictions of Abraham Lincoln on film
American Civil War films
1913 drama films
1913 films
1910s American films
Silent American war drama films
English-language historical drama films