Square Deal Sanderson

I saw this obscure William S. Hart Western thanks to the Newhallywood Silent Film Festival posting on YouTube for February 14th, and nothing says Valentine's Day quite like Hart shootin' up and hangin' a bunch of baddies so that he may kiss his sister. Well, OK, they're not really siblings. Square-dealer that Hart's titular "Square Deal Sanderson" is, he assumes the brother's identity after finding the estranged sister's letter on his corpse, so as to help protect the family ranch from thieves. But, even a hint of incest is the closest thing you'll find to scandalous sexuality in Hart's moralistic oeuvre. The inevitable attempted rape scene, by contrast, crosscutting rescue included, was de rigueur for the silent era.

As indicated by the presenters of the film claiming it the only "watchable" version in circulation, the print is of poor quality--I assume a 16mm reduction print. But, if you're regularly searching for long-forgotten silent films, you're happy to see them at all. Still, a better print would be welcome so as to admire what might be some nice scenery and some good close-ups of Hart's ruggedly expressive face.

Otherwise, the scenario doesn't stray from the usual formula of Hart vehicles, him protecting from baddies and falling in love with a woman and all within about an hour or so. The omniscient narration doesn't leave anything to the chance of a spectator not being able to easily follow the action. When a town's judge is honest, the title cards inform us that he is, and Sanderson inexplicably just knows that, too. When the baddies are up to no good, we're told what it is, and Sanderson figures out almost as quickly, as well. There is one surprise, but it actually doesn't matter in the least. At least, the mistaken-identity plot offers a bit more drama this time around.