The Ace of Hearts

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Nick M A secret organization determines that an unscrupulous, ruinously greedy titan of industry must be killed for the betterment of society, but the man chosen to carry out the deed has a change of heart after getting married and must decide his priorities quickly: is love more important than duty? The ultimate message of this film is that the world can be changed for the better more efficiently through love than through death and destruction. It's a powerful message, but The Ace of Hearts didn't land the plane for me. For starters, I found the relationship between the would-be assassin and his new wife entirely unbelievable. He proposes to her before getting the assignment, and she tells him that she only cares for their cause. Then he's given the mission to kill the tyrannical businessman and all of us sudden she's willing to marry him for the cause, and the following morning she's head over heels in love. It doesn't read as genuine. We're also simply *told* that love is more powerful, but aren't given an example to prove the point. There is a sacrifice made in the spirit of love, but it results in catastrophic death and destruction, which does undercut the message by just a tad. Finally, I love Lon Chaney, but this is one of his weaker performances; I think he was miscast. All in all, it felt like a misfire. Rated 2/5 Stars •  Rated 2 out of 5 stars 01/10/25 Full Review Rich S Three strong performances in the 1920s silent-movie acting style bring this pulp novel by Gouverneur Morris to life. The story is startling when you consider the times. But Morris would go to great lengths to get his moral across in memorable ways. Lon Chaney, Leatrice Joy and John Bowers are a power trio of the Roaring 20s and their love triangle triggers the movie's ticking time bomb. Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 09/16/20 Full Review Audience Member I was not a big fan of this film. It took too long to tell the story and I thought that this film could have been edited better. This film has scenes in it which I felt did not add to the story such as a case where two characters bump each other as they are walking the streets could have been cut out because it was ill-relevant to the story plot. The ending was stupid. The sets were good but the story was not exactly clear or well told. It never made sense what this group was and why the obvious punishment was always killing. Rated 1.5/5 Stars •  Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 01/25/23 Full Review Audience Member ok silent political drama Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/21/23 Full Review Audience Member The themes of love, honor, unrequited love and self-sacrifice pervade this fine suspense thriller--Vintage Chaney...!! Rated 3.5/5 Stars •  Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Audience Member A good chance to Lon Chaney in a dramatic role before his Universal horror success. Rated 4/5 Stars •  Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review Read all reviews

The Ace of Hearts

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