Watch The Wicked Darling For Free

Great Film overall

Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

The acting in this movie is really good.

Like so many other silent films, THE WICKED DARLING has degraded badly over time. That's because for decades Hollywood used nitrate-based film stock and it tended to decompose quickly--in some cases turning to dust, in others becoming slimy and bubbly and in a few cases it even exploded! By the time this film was placed on DVD, there was only one print left (again, this is not too unusual) and it was the version with Dutch subtitles--which needed to be translated. Additionally, the film is a mess in many spots--with lots of Swiss cheese-like holes in the print. None of this makes the film impossible to watch--just don't expect a pristine looking film.The film begins with a nice guy, Kent (Wellington A. Playter) being dumped by his shallow rich fiancée. Why? Because he's no longer rich! Nice lady, huh?! A bit later, he meets up with Mary (Priscilla Dean) who is running from the law. This is because she's a thief. However, she is able to convince Kent that she is a nice girl. However, Mary is so taken by the very decent Kent that she really does want to be this nice girl, so she gives up her wicked ways and gets a real job. The problem is that her old cronies (including Lon Chaney in an early role) don't want her to go straight and will stop at almost nothing to keep her on the side of evil. Will she succumb to niceness or rottenness? Tune in for yourself and see.Wile this is far from a great melodrama, for 1919 it's awfully spiffy. Sure, it's a bit obvious here and there and the idea of a career criminal turning a new lead so quickly and with such small provocation is silly, but it is very entertaining and well-acted for the day. Not a great film but it sure is better than average and worth seeing--lousy print and all.

Human curiosity is one of those primal feelings that the aristocracy share with coarse people; the more bizarre and obscure the subject, the more interested are the aristocrats. Strange places are especially fascinating even if such locales are the slums, the very opposite of aristocratic neighbourhoods. But to travel to the slums is a dangerous outing so in order to satisfy aristocratic curiosity about these nether regions (while not overlooking the need for protection on these peculiar journeys) aristocrats need an expert guide to be able to take a safe walk on the wild side ( as an old German proverb says) so how can one do better than turning to Herr Tod Browning?Thanks to Herr Browning's expertise, this Herr Von recently watched (from a safe distance) slum specimens like unscrupulous pawnbrokers, greedy landladies, violent waiters, hardened criminals, ruined men and working girls, all bizarre and curious fauna for an aristocrat ( especially the working girls) that are depicted carefully in the film "The Wicked Darling" (1919).It is well-known that Herr Browning had a special likeness for those underprivileged persons who were the main characters of many of his films, works that could be great or obscure but were always astounding and unique. "The Wicked Darling" is one of his early silent films that is also one of Herr Browning's many collaborations with Herr Lon Chaney; they were a perfect team.The film is characteristic of many of Herr Browning films and also displays a sarcastic sense of humour that this Herr Graf likes specially (Surely the ending is meant as a joke with our gutter heroes finding a new and peaceful life as farmers, surrounded by impassive cows rather than dangerous criminals.And now, if you'll allow me, I must temporarily take my leave because this German Count must return to the peaceful isolation ward at the Schloss.Herr Graf Ferdinand Von Galitzien http://ferdinandvongalitzien.blogspot.com/

Wicked Darling, The (1919) *** (out of 4) Mary Stevens (Priscilla Dean) is a lifelong criminal now making her living by serving as a pickpocket for "Stoop" Connors (Lon Chaney). Mary meets a guy named Kent (Wellington Playter) and decides to turn her life around but her last gig she stole some priceless necklace and Coonors won't leave her alone until he has them. This is a very sweet romantic drama with a strong morality side to it. Director Tod Browning adds all sorts of class to the film, which is very fast paced and contains a wonderful visual style. Chaney is good as usual but it's Playter who really steals the film.

A solid melodrama in itself, "The Wicked Darling" is most noteworthy now for the supporting performance of Lon Chaney, in the kind of villainous role that he performed as well as any actor of his time (or just about any other time, for that matter). The movie has recently been restored from one badly damaged print and a few scraps of information, and the restorers have done an impressive job indeed piecing together almost all of the original feature.Priscilla Dean has the lead role, as a good-natured pickpocket caught up in a bad crowd, among them being Chaney's vicious character. A chain of events leads Mary (Dean's character) to develop a friendship with an upper class gentleman (played by Wellington Playter) who has recently lost both his fortune and his fiancée. The two of them go on to face a series of crises, tests, and menaces, many of them instigated by Chaney's character.It's a story like many others of its era, but Tod Browning's direction keeps it from being ordinary, adding some good touches and details, and getting good performances from most of the cast. Chaney, though, is the one that stands out. He has no disguises or detailed make-up this time, but he makes full use of every opportunity to portray a cold-hearted crook who forms a formidable obstacle to the happiness of the heroine and the man she loves. As a result, it's quite a bit more interesting and memorable than most movies of its kind.