Everybody,
Just wanted to be sure to mention, they are running this film on TCM's Silent Sunday Nights this evening. If you want to see it, than you had better watch or record it tonight! The last time the picture was shown was in 1999, or 2000! This is a 1994 restoration, and has a Robert Israel score. It has not, and probably never will be released on DVD! The print is superb too!
The fact that this movie is one of only a Couple-Three First-National Silent's that TCM has ever taken out of the vaults, makes this an even rarer occasion than it would be otherwise! While Warner's seems to still have the rights to most of the surviving First National Silent features, including several Colleen Moore, and Richard Barthelmess films, almost none of them have been restored, and scored, let alone broadcast! This one has!
THE SEA HAWK starrs Milton Sills who was a movie giant during the Silent Days. Today He is completely forgotten, because so few of his films have survived. And those that do, are not readily available either. The lead actress is Australian born Enid Bennett. Who some of you may have seen in films like Douglas Fairbank's ROBIN HOOD (1922), as Maid Marion, and Fred Niblo's THE RED LILY (1924), opposite Ramon Novarro. Bennett, was a very popular actress in Silent films.
The supporting cast is very good as well, with handsome Lloyd Hughes, Burly Wallace Beery, and A young Lionel Barrymore. Frank Lloyd is the Director, and again a very accomplished, and famed film-maker who's name is not all that well remembered today. This film was lauded for it's epic Sea battles when it was first released. Unfortunately, most of that Battle-Footage now appears to be lost? So while the film is not in-tact, the story still holds up quite well.
