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The Avenging Conscience

Play trailer Poster for The Avenging Conscience 1914 1h 18m Horror Play Trailer Watchlist
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Nightmarish visions plague a young man (Henry B. Walthall) who murdered his awful uncle (Spottiswoode Aitken) to clear the way for a love affair.

Critics Reviews

View All (3) Critics Reviews
Gayle Sequeira BFI Its ending is bound to be fiercely divisive, but the silent film remains strikingly original for how it extends to its protagonist what so many in Edgar Allan Poe’s stories are denied: redemption. Mar 4, 2024 Full Review Fernando F. Croce CinePassion One of Griffith's most experimental films Oct 10, 2009 Full Review Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews The first great American horror film. Rated: B- Jan 19, 2009 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Isaiah Y One of the best pre-Birth of a Nation films where at the time nobody rivaled D. W. Griffith, and the best film of 1914. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 06/06/20 Full Review Audience Member Arguably one of the first conceptual horrors made by Hollywood that takes a little to warm up but after Reel 2 it's happening. The story of a young man forced to marry a girl he doesn't love by his uncle & decides in a moment of weakness murders him & hides him in the brick of the fireplace. Then his conscience kicks in & so does the visual edge that for 1914 is quite impressive & innovative. It's technically ahead for 1914 but in many performance wise not overly convincing. Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/31/23 Full Review bill t Amusing morality tale of a young man who is enslaved by his employer! But the young man is in love! The employer doesn't care! So the young man, yes, kills him, and then it turns into a somewhat interesting ghost story, then religious salvation movie, THEN a shootout, and finally, IT WAS ALL A DREAM!! The movie goes trippy at the very end, I don't know what that was about. Just a tad bit weird for DW Griffith movies. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review Audience Member This was a huge disappointment for me. When I discovered it was a Griffith film based on the works of Edgar Allan Poe I was expecting to be thoroughly impressed. However, it is simply a trumped up version of the Telltale Heart that fails to capture any of the essence of Poe's work. Part of this is undoubtedly due to the fact that Griffith gives the story a Hollywood happy ending. Turning it into a dream in which no crime has actually been committed is criminal, especially for a professed fan of Poe. Lackluster effort from Griffith even if it was vibrant and new for audiences of the day. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/14/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Avenging Conscience

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Cast & Crew

Movie Info

Synopsis Nightmarish visions plague a young man (Henry B. Walthall) who murdered his awful uncle (Spottiswoode Aitken) to clear the way for a love affair.
Director
D.W. Griffith
Screenwriter
D.W. Griffith
Genre
Horror
Release Date (DVD)
Nov 18, 2008
Runtime
1h 18m