Souls for Sale (1923)

Directed by Rupert Hughes. Starring Eleanor Boardman, Lew Cody, Richard Dix, Frank Mayo, Mae Busch, Barbara La Marr, Arthur Hoyt.

Busy, far-fetched story of a woman named Remember (called “Mem”, but still…) who gets cold feet on the day of her wedding to a man who turns out to be a Bluebeard-esque murderer(!), and she takes off into the desert(!) before stumbling into a location movie shoot(!) and ends up with a budding movie career surrounded by the likes of Charlie Chaplin and Erich von Stroheim(…I’m out of exclamation points, sorry). A modest entertainment for modern audiences, but the novelty value of getting a peek behind the scenes in Hollywood has lost its luster of naïvety; we’re just too knowledgeable and jaded now. Silent movie buffs will still get a kick out of spotting the recognizable faces, and star Eleanor Boardman has the infectious energy needed for such rollicking hogwash. Director Rupert Hughes is Howard’s uncle, the one who introduced the tycoon to Hollywood.

65/100