The Woman in the Web

The Woman in the Web[1][2] is a 1918 American drama film serial directed by Paul Hurst and David Smith. It was the 9th of 17 serials released by The Vitagraph Company of America. This World War I period serial about a Russian princess and the overthrow of the Tsar introduced the concept of the Red Menace to serials.[3] The serial is now considered to be a lost film.[4]

The Woman in the Web
Newspaper advertisement
Directed by
StarringHedda Nova
Distributed byVitagraph Studios
Release date
  • April 8, 1918 (1918-04-08)
Running time
15 episodes
CountryUnited States
LanguageSilent (English intertitles)

Cast

Chapters
  1. Caught in the Web
  2. The Open Switch
  3. The Speeding Doom
  4. The Clutch of Terror
  5. The Hand of Mystery
  6. Full Speed Ahead
  7. The Crater of Death
  8. The Plunge of Horror
  9. The Fire Trap
  10. Out of the Dungeon
  11. In the Desert's Grip
  12. Hurled to Destruction
  13. The Hidden Menace
  14. The Crash of Fate
  15. Out of the Web

Reception

Like many American films of the time, A Woman in the Web was subject to cuts by city and state film censorship boards. For example, the Chicago Board of Censors cut, in Chapter 4, Reel 1, the man attacking and binding young woman on the boat, and choking scene on top of cabin;[5] in Chapter 5, Reel 1, two views of men shooting and men falling from automobile and, Reel 2, actual cutting of handbag cord and taking handbag;[6] in Chapter 7, Reel 2, binding man at point of gun and letting man down crater by rope;[7] in Chapter 8, Reel 1, the intertitle "Now talk or we'll kill you", two scenes of threatening man with knife, Reel 2, two scenes of bomb throwing from airplane and shooting at automobile;[8] in Chapter 11, Reel 1, all train holdup scenes to include scenes of passengers with hands up, shooting, man with gun, and shooting at automobile, and, Reel 2, all views of man about to be hanged from tree to include two closeups and one distant view;[9] in Chapter 12, Reel 1, four scenes of man with rope around neck, the intertitle "We all was about to have a necktie party", and two scenes of man falling from horse;[10] in Chapter 14, Reel 1, shooting scene in which man falls, and, in Chapter 15, Reel 2, binding of young woman, closeup of choking man.[11]

See also

References
  1. Slide, Anthony (February 7, 1994). Early American Cinema. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-2722-6 – via Google Books.
  2. Shull, Michael Slade (September 3, 2015). Radicalism in American Silent Films, 1909–1929: A Filmography and History. McFarland. ISBN 978-1-4766-1103-7 – via Google Books.
  3. Stedman, Raymond William (1971). "2. The Perils of Success". Serials: Suspense and Drama By Installment. University of Oklahoma Press. pp. 42–43. ISBN 978-0-8061-0927-5.
  4. "The Progressive Silent Film List". Silent Era. Retrieved January 3, 2009.
  5. "Official Cut-Outs by the Chicago Board of Censors". Exhibitors Herald. Vol. 6 no. 19. New York City: Exhibitors Herald Company. May 4, 1918. p. 31. (cuts in Chapter 4)
  6. "Official Cut-Outs by the Chicago Board of Censors". Exhibitors Herald. Vol. 6 no. 21. May 18, 1918. p. 31. (cuts in Chapter 5)
  7. "Official Cut-Outs by the Chicago Board of Censors". Exhibitors Herald. Vol. 6 no. 23. June 1, 1918. p. 31. (cuts in Chapter 7)
  8. "Official Cut-Outs by the Chicago Board of Censors". Exhibitors Herald. Vol. 6 no. 25. June 15, 1918. p. 31. (cuts in Chapter 8)
  9. "Official Cut-Outs by the Chicago Board of Censors". Exhibitors Herald. Vol. 7 no. 3. July 13, 1918. p. 31. (cuts in Chapter 11)
  10. "Official Cut-Outs by the Chicago Board of Censors". Exhibitors Herald. Vol. 7 no. 4. July 20, 1918. p. 49. (cuts in Chapter 12)
  11. "Official Cut-Outs by the Chicago Board of Censors". Exhibitors Herald. Vol. 7 no. 6. August 3, 1918. p. 41. (cuts in Chapters 14 and 15)
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