The Love Flower (Silent)

A man murders his wife's lover and escapes with his daughter to the South Pacific. A detective pursues him, joined by a young man who eventually falls in love with the daughter.

D.W. Griffith directed this tropical island follow-up to his drama THE IDOL DANCER made earlier the same year. It's sweeping romance and torturous morality as good-hearted ex-con Thomas Bevan (George McQuarrie) kills his wife's lover and then flees to an island in the South Seas with their daughter Stella (who's later portrayed by Carole Dempster). Years pass, and life in the tropical sun is idyllic except for the now blossoming Stella's confusion about the mystery of her past. Then there's the dogged detective on their trail (Anders Randolph) whose spent the bulk of his life tracking Bevan down. A handsome sailor (Richard Barthelmess) meanwhile stumbles onto their compound, and love blooms between him and Stella, much to her father's well-founded worry. There's an innovative underwater climax, lovely Nassau Island scenery, and lots of footage of Miss Dempster cavorting in "provocative" swimwear, or emoting in patient close-ups. Griffith's burgeoning obsession with his leading lady is obvious in this unique film, one of her first major roles.