Dustin Farnum stars as Kentuckian Samson South, whose family has been engaged in a blood feud with another clan since the time he was a youngster. When his true love Sally finds an injured landscape painter, Samson demonstrates his skill with the canvas. The painter invites Samson to study with him in New York City, where the mountain man becomes "civilized." It's not all smooth sailing, and there are hints of a romantic entanglement with the painter's sister. For those interested in this sort of thing, there is some brief nudity as Samson paints female models. Samson is eventually summoned back to the mountains when the feud heats up again.
The film is a decent adaptation of the novel, but with a running time of just over an hour, most of the characters can only walk in and out of the movie. The novel provides plenty of backstory, and deeper relationships, which are sorely missing from the film. There is a brief scene showing that Samson got a haircut (although it's not obvious at all), but the significance is lost here. The conclusion, while dramatic, fails to show how the feud is actually settled (both clans eventually unite).
Still, this is a well-made film, despite some deterioration of the print. Farnum is very good in his role and knows how to act without the histrionics that his brother William often displayed. Winifred Kingston, as Sally, is a revelation, and definitely needed more screen time.
