The Purple DawnAll contemporaneous reviews and advertising for the film include "The" in the title. is a 1923 American silent romantic drama film that was produced, written, and directed by Charles R. Seeling. It stars Bessie Love, Bert Sprotte, and William E. Aldrich.
The film is presumed lost.
Plot In San Francisco's Chinatown, Mui Far (Love), a Chinese American girl, falls in love with a young white sailor (Aldrich), who is robbed when he attempts to deliver a package of opium. The sailor meets a white girl in the country, and falls in love with her. The original owners of the opium think that the sailor stole the opium, and kidnap him and his new sweetheart. Mui Far is heartbroken, but rescues the sailor and his new sweetheart. She then commits suicide by walking into San Francisco Bay at dawn.
Cast
Production Per the film's title, the final 100 feet of film were tinted light purple for dramatic effect.
Reception The film received good reviews, although the scene where the hero receives a beating was deemed "far too brutal to please the eye." Bessie Love's performance received positive reviews.
See also Examples of yellowface Racism in early American film Whitewashing in film
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