silentmoviefan Review of Leaves From Satan's Book

Leaves From Satan's Book (1920)

Some Mighty Dangerous Teaching in This Movie

[1/10 · 5 July 2012]

This movie...makes God out to be an obstinate Meany and Satan out to be a sympathetic character. That's not quite how it really is. I gave this movie a "1" because of that teaching. Anyone who believes that God is an obstinate Meany and Satan is a sympathetic character is in real trouble. There are some interesting elements to this film, but the teaching overshadows them. Yes, it deals with the Finnish Revolution, which I was not aware of until I saw this film. One earlier segment that I found interesting was around the time of Marie Antionette's execution. It refers to a her last letter, as if everyone should be familiar with it. I guess audiences of that time period might have been, but that's the first time I heard of it, too. Then there's Dryer. He's been made out to be a genius, but he comes across to me as an odd little man with funny ideas. Apparently, he thought God was an obstinate Meany and Satan was a sympathetic character. (I'll be he doesn't anymore!) If you must see a Dryer silent film, see The Parson's Widow (1920). Of the Dryer silent movies I've seen, it's the best of the lot.