9 The Avenging Conscience ( 1914 )

This  is  another  D  W  Griffith  adaptation  of  an  Edgar  Allan  Poe  story  and  the  first  film   we've  come  to  that's  feature   length. It  concerns  a  young  man  (  Henry  B  Walthall  ) who murders  his  uncle  and  benefactor ( Spottiswoode  Aitken )  after   being  forbidden  to  see  his rather  full-figured  girlfriend  ( Blanche  Sweet ). He  then  starts  to  suffer  visions  and  come  apart under  the  strain  of  his  guilty  conscience.

You  do  get  a  bit  aggravated  by  Griffith's  arch  captions  particularly  as  he  autographs   each one for  self-advertisement  ( egomaniac ? Moi ? )  but  there  is  a  strong  vision  behind  the  film with  its  odd  digressions, the  camera  tricks  and  the  visions  of  hell  the  protagonist  suffers.

Blanche  Sweet  ( The  Sweetheart )

Sex : No  but  she  does  start  to  undress  at  one  point

Death : Throws   herself  off  a  cliff  except  it's  all  a  dream  really

Buxom  Blanche  was  a  big  star  throughout  the  silent  era  but  only  made  three  talkies. She   died  in  1986  aged  90.

Mae  Marsh  ( The  Maid )

Sex : No, just  a  bit  of  flirting

Death : Survives

Though  her  role  in  this  one  is  small, Mae also  had  a  successful  career  which  carried  over  into  the  talkies  where  she  often  worked  with  John  Ford.