True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

This film from D.W. Griffith chronicles the relationship between a guy and lady (called 'the boy' and 'the girl' throughout the film). Unfortunately for them, WWI begins and instead of marrying, they are separated. He goes off to war, she is stuck behind enemy lines after the Germans take over that portion of France where she lives. Will they lovers be reunited?As long as you don't take this film as a factual representation of WWI, you should watch it. However, please understand that it was a piece of blatant propaganda financed by the British government--designed to get the Americans to commit to the war. However, by the time the film was released, the Americans had declared war on the Central Powers (including Germany). Just keep in mind that the one-dimensional view of the war is historical nonsense. And, while folks in 1918 wouldn't agree, the US really had no reason to get involved in this as EVERYONE involved was responsible for this long and senseless war. But in the film, the Germans are mostly murderous guys bent on despoiling women and the French are 100% pure and virtuous--which clearly makes the film propaganda. Want some more examples? How about the intertitle card that reads "German militarists plan the dastardly blow against France and civilization"! Heck, the Germans in this one even want to blow up baby geese!! Overall, technically well made (with a few amazing battle scenes) and highly inaccurate and inflammatory.

I just returned from a screening of Hearts of the World at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. This screening showed a restored version of the film with live piano accompaniment by the brilliant pianist, Donald Sosin. The film itself was quite spectacular but it was made even more so by the incredible artistry of Donald Sosin. He played for the entire 2 1/2 hours, without a break, and with just a few notated markings. He presented a very operatic treatment of the story, which suited the plot perfectly. I was fascinated by his ability to improvise many musical themes and leitmotivs-all with such great flare and virtuosity. I must admit that these silent films can have very fragile plots but with the right kind of music accompanying them, they take on real substance and even nuance. MOMA should be congratulated for taking silent films so seriously and making sure that they all receive live musical accompaniment

The Great War's impact on cinema worldwide was enormous and opened the door to America's global dominance in the business as other countries were devastated by battle. Additionally, it created some interesting American films among a newly popularized genre of war pictures, including "Civilization" (1916), "Joan the Woman" (1917), "Shoulder Arms", "The Sinking of the Lusitania", "The Heart of Humanity" and this one, "Hearts of the World" (the latter four from 1918). And continuing into the silent era of the 1920s, with some distance from the war, such films as "The Four Horseman of the Apocalypse", "The Love Light" (both 1921), "The Big Parade" (1925), "Mare Nostrum", "What Price Glory" (both 1926), "Seventh Heaven" and "Wings" (both 1927) were made.D.W. Griffith was generally a pacifist; that's clear in many of his films, despite their exciting battle sequences. Not unexpectedly, however, with "Hearts of the World", he gave his support to the entente cause and with the aid of the British government called for the US entry into the war. That had already occurred by the time of completion of the film, though, and so the ending has the US army saving the day. Yet, the picture still contains a pacifist plea, or regret over the situation.The excellent war scenes, which incorporate actual footage from the front, add power and realism to the sympathetic message. Cinematographer G.W. Bitzer (or others under his influence, as he was absent from location shooting in France due to his German heritage) uses small-scale widescreen masking effects during the battle scenes, as he had in "Intolerance". It's effective, as the scenes are generally shown from a distance, more so, and surely for practical reasons, than in other Griffith films. As a result, it seemed more real to me (and much of it was real).Generally, I welcome the drama of love between Robert Harron and Lillian Gish's characters threatened against the backdrop of war. Gish's episode with insanity is especially well realized, and Dorothy Gish is delightful as "The Little Disturber". But, the drama does subvert the power and realism of the film at times. It is indeed "an old fashioned play", and there are some ludicrous moments in it, such as a rehashed scene from "The Birth of a Nation" where Gish's virginity is threatened by a German officer.The following year, Abel Gance demonstrated how a fictional story could add to the power and realism in his anti-war opus "J'Accuse!" And, that's what separates these two films. In "J'Accuse!", there is rape by a German soldier and an analogous love triangle. Its approach is considerably more downbeat, however, and much more real, rather than the old-fashioned sentimentality, theatricality and naivety that occasionally creeps up in "Hearts of the World". Yet, that's to be expected in Griffith's work, and it doesn't detract severely from the better parts of the film, or the drama. Overall, "Hearts of the World" represents and reflects an important time in both film history and world history.

Representative of all the innocent HEARTS OF THE WORLD, two American families living in a picturesque French village experience the horror & devastation of the Great War.This rarely seen film is the result of a somewhat surprising collaboration between the British government & genius American filmmaker D.W. Griffith. With the hideous World War still burning across Europe, the old men in Downing Street thought it would be well if filmed propaganda was produced which might help induce America into joining The Effort.After his tremendous achievements with THE BIRTH OF A NATION (1915) & INTOLERANCE (1916), it was obvious that Griffith was the world's foremost cinematic director. A devout pacifist, he undertook the difficult challenge of turning battlefield horrors into a story suitable for the screen. That accomplished, Griffith actually took some of his cast & crew across the dangerous Atlantic to London (and a meeting with Prime Minister David Lloyd George) and then it was on to France for some quick filming at the front lines.All of which proved unnecessary. Infuriated by Berlin's unrestricted use of submarine warfare, America declared war on Germany in April of 1917, months before HEARTS OF THE WORLD could be completed back in Hollywood.While not as innovative or groundbreaking as its two celebrated predecessors, HEARTS OF THE WORLD can stand on its own merits. Filled with Griffith's special touches, its principle value exists in its revelation of his contemporaneous feelings about the War, even as the conflict still raged. He bestowed on it sequences as poignant and harrowing as any in his oeuvre. Who can forget Lillian Gish on her wedding day, driven mad by the bombardment, preparing to spend her bridal night alongside the corpse of her betrothed? Or the sight of three little boys secretly burying their dead mother in a cellar, so her body would not be disgraced by the enemy. Griffith assures scenes such as these are not easily banished from the viewer's memory.Besides the numinous Miss Gish, appreciation should be extended to Bobby Harron as the film's stalwart hero; this fine young actor would die in 1920 of an accidental gunshot wound, not a suicide as is usually reported. Dorothy Gish plays a feisty, comedic role, giving the film a light touch at welcome intervals. Josephine Crowell & Kate Bruce are memorable as the two tragic mothers, both victims of the war.Also appearing are a couple of stars in embryo: a young Sir Noël Coward is the extra pushing the wheelbarrow containing Miss Lillian's luggage in her first scene. Technical Supervisor Erich von Stroheim is easily recognizable as a bald German officer; he would eventually dominate Hollywood's silent films of the 1920's, using the full force of his own, rather bizarre, genius.Special appreciation should be paid to the splendid cinematography of Billy Bitzer, who performed yeoman service for Griffith in several of his epics.