Regeneration (1915 film)

Regeneration

Anna Q. Nilsson and William Sheer
Directed by Raoul Walsh
Produced by William Fox
Written by Carl Harbaugh (adaptation)
Raoul Walsh (adaptation)
Based on My Mamie Rose
by Owen Frawley Kildare
The Regeneration
by Walter C. Hackett and Owen Frawley Kildare
Starring Rockliffe Fellowes
Anna Q. Nilsson
James A. Marcus
Carl Harbaugh
Cinematography Georges Benoît
Distributed by Fox Film Corporation
Release dates
  • September 13, 1915 (1915-09-13)
Running time
 72 minutes
Country United States
Language Silent film
English intertitles
Regeneration

Regeneration is a 1915 American silent biographical crime drama co-written and directed by Raoul Walsh. The film, which was the first full-length feature film directed by Walsh,[1] stars Rockliffe Fellowes and Anna Q. Nilsson and was adapted for the screen by Carl Harbaugh and Walsh from the memoir My Mamie Rose, by Owen Frawley Kildare and the adapted play by Kildare and Walter C. Hackett.[2]

Cited as one of the first full-length gangster films,[3] Regeneration tells the story of a poor orphan who rises to control the mob until he meets a woman for whom he wants to change.

Synopsis

The story follows the life of Owen (Rockliffe Fellowes), a young Irish American boy who is forced into a life a poverty after his mother dies. As a result, Owen is forced to live on the street eventually turning to a life of crime. Owen is eventually reformed, however, by the benevolent Marie Deering (Anna Q. Nilsson). Also featured is a fire aboard an excursion ferry, much like the General Slocum disaster of 1904.

Cast

Anna Q. Nilsson

Production notes

Set in New York City, Regeneration was shot on location in New York City's Lower East Side and used real prostitutes, gangsters and homeless people as extras.[4] It is the first produced by Fox Film Corporation, a forerunner of the 20th Century Fox.[5]

Release

The film was originally released on September 13, 1915 to critical acclaim and was a box office hit.[4][6] It was re-released to theaters on January 12, 1919.[5]

Status and preservation

Regeneration was previously thought to be lost but was rediscovered in the 1970s. A copy of the film is preserved and held by the Museum of Modern Art Department of Film and the Film Preservation Associates.[5]

In 2000, Regeneration was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically or aesthetically significant".[1]

Home media

In 2001, Regeneration was released on Region 1 DVD by Image Entertainment along with the 1915 film Young Romance in 2001. The same two-film set was released on manufactured-on-demand DVD by Image Entertainment in 2012.[7] The film is currently in the public domain.[5]

References

  1. 1 2 McDannell, Colleen, ed. (2008). Catholics in the Movies. Oxford University Press. p. 38. ISBN 0-195-30656-2.
  2. ↑ Solomon, Aubrey (2011). The Fox Film Corporation, 1915-1935: A History and Filmography. McFarland. p. 229. ISBN 0-786-48610-4.
  3. ↑ Hahn Rafter, Nicole (2006). Shots in the Mirror: Crime Films and Society. Oxford University Press. p. 23. ISBN 0-195-17506-9.
  4. 1 2 Finler, Joel Waldo (1986). Movie Directors Story. Random House Value Publishing. p. 80. ISBN 0-517-48079-4.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Regeneration (1915)". silentera.com.
  6. ↑ Moss, Marilyn Ann (2013). Raoul Walsh: The True Adventures of Hollywood's Legendary Director. The University Press of Kentucky. p. 50. ISBN 0-813-14444-2.
  7. ↑ "Regeneration (1915): DVD Release Info". silentera.com.
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