BROKEN BLOSSOMS
1919
D. W. Griffith
SYNOPSIS
Set in London’s Limehouse district, Broken Blossoms follows a gentle Chinese immigrant who seeks spiritual refuge from the violence of the world. He forms a fragile bond with a young English girl brutalized by her father. Their quiet connection offers momentary solace, yet remains overshadowed by social cruelty, cultural misunderstanding, and the ever present threat of brutality in their surroundings.
CRITIQUE
Broken Blossoms marks a significant turn in early American cinema toward emotional intimacy and pictorial refinement. Griffith tempers his grand historical impulses in favor of lyrical restraint, shaping a melodrama driven by mood and performance rather than spectacle. Lillian Gish delivers a harrowing study of vulnerability, while the film’s soft focus imagery and careful staging anticipate later poetic realism. Its racial representation reflects the prejudices of its era, yet the film’s formal ambition and tragic humanism remain historically influential.