The Battle Cry of Peace (1915). Vitagraph Co. of America. Produced by J. Stuart Blackton. Directed by Wilfred North. Scenario by J. Stuart Blackton. Camera by Leonard Smith and Arthur T. Quinn. Cast: Charles Richmann, L. Rogers Lytton, James Morrison, Mary Maurice, Louise Beaudret, Harold Hubert, Jack Crawford, Charles Kent, Julia Swayne Gordon, Belle Bruce, Norma Talmadge, George Stevens, Constance Talmadge? 9 reels.

Though most of this film is lost, one reel of possibly a condensed print survives at Cinemateket-Svenska Filminstitutet. Kevin Brownlow confirms that the George Eastman House has a few fragments of the battle scenes, which were at some time in the past cut out of a print and used for stock footage.

Review from Variety, August 13, 1915

In the preliminary announcement issued by the Vitagraph regarding "The Battle Cry of Peace," the opening sentence is "Once in a generation or so a book finds its way into history," so also once in the history of a picture plant a feature is turned out that really means something to the world at large, that has a mission to perform and that really tries in a small way to fulfill that mission. So it is with "The Battle Cry of Peace." This is one occasion in which the Vitagraph has come to the front and has presented the film industry with a shining mark at which producers will have to shoot for some time. It has given the exhibitor a film which will coin a lot of money, because "The Battle Cry of Peace" comes into the field at a moment when every American is faced with the realization this country is in a general state of what is termed "unpreparedness." It is a film that will come in for nation-wide discussion. In a publicity way it should be worth columns of space. Its value to Sunday editors throughout the country should be immense for it contains materials for a series of special stories that could run for weeks. Take each and every town and hamlet in the entire country and bring the question of the national defense home to them by taking their own buildings and tearing them asunder, in imagination, with the shells of the big guns of the enemy. Of course the picture as presented by the Vitagraph does not point in any way to one foreign nation, but there can be no doubt in the minds of any one who witnesses the screen presentation that Germany is pointed at. This is quite apparent in the general type of men who have been selected to represented the invading forces. Some time ago someone stated the greatest friends in the world to the United States were the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. At that time it was true, but today, with the modern floating fortresses and the giant ocean carriers, one hundred of which could easily bring an army of 300,000 invaders to our shores in less than a week, under the protection of a navy that would be far superior to our own, these natural defenses are almost valued at naught. "The Battle Cry of Peace" as part of the propaganda of the party in this country that is for peace through preparedness should perform a mission the value of which should be of immeasurable proportions. J. Stuart Blackton wrote the scenario for the picture and is also to publish the story in book form later. He took his facts and statistics from Hudson Maxim's book "Defenseless America" and gives Mr. Maxim due credit in both the literature regarding the film and in the picture itself. He has worked Mr. Maxim into the story and the aged inventor himself appears in the introductory portion. Mr. Blackton might have gone a little further and extended some credit to the author of "The Conquest of America in 1921," at present running in McClure's Magazine, for in the picture Mr. Blackton depicts the fall of New York City much after the fashion in which it is described in the magazine story, At present the film is in nine reels, but when put on the market it may be cut to about 7,500 feet. The opening shows a lecture in Carnegie Hall given by Hudson Maxim on "Defenseless America." This is rather drawn out and could be cut to advantage. Then there is the development of the story proper, which carries a tremendous dramatic punch, and which seemingly runs for about four reels. This is followed by about two reels of allegorical matter, also drawn out and too lengthy. The punch of the picture comes after the bombardment of New York, when the two Harrison boys return to their home to find the house has been wrecked by one of the shells and both their mother and their sister have been slain. The story briefly related deals with two American families. One, the Harrisons consisting of mother, daughter and two sons; the other, the Vandergriffs, comprising Mr. Vandergriff, his wife, son and two daughters. The latter is a peace advocate who favors disarmament. In his home he welcomes Emanon, who also professes to be an advocate of peace, but who in reality is a foreign spy. To give a slight idea of the ramifications of the foreign spy system, the governess employed by the Vandergriffs is also given the role of an informer. John Harrison is in love with the eldest daughter of Vandergriff. He attends a lecture by Mr. Maxim and is much impressed with the manner in which the defenseless condition of the country is denounced. He tries to convince Mr. Vandergriff later of the mistake he is making in assisting in the peace movement through disarmament, and lends himself to the work of providing a half billion dollar fund, to be a bond issue subscribed to by all of the millionaires of the country to be used in the upbuilding of our national defenses. A little later when Mr. Vandergriff is presiding at a gigantic peace meeting, a foreign fleet appears outside of New York City and while out of the range of our coast defense guns, proceeds to batter the town to pieces. This seems to have occurred without the formality of a declaration of war, but it serves its purpose for the picture story. The city capitulates and the invader is upon our shores. They swarm our streets and their hosts are innumerable. One can recall R.H. Davis' description of the great grey cloud that marched for hours through the streets of Brussels only to fade like a mist in the distance. At the home of the Vandergriffs all is in turmoil. The Harrison boys, after having been to their own home to find both mother and sister dead, rush to the home of their friends. The peace-advocate-spy has about revealed himself and as Harrison is about to pounce on him he draws a revolver and fires twice through a window. Below the invaders are marching past, the shots fell two of the soldiers and the house is at once broken into. The spy calmly informs the officer in charge the elder Vandergriff procured the revolver and that Harrison fired the shots. Both are placed under arrest and taken with a number of other men to a building where several score are lined against a wall and a machine gun turned on them. The remainder of the Vandergriff family in escaping pass the scene of the slaughter and in taking a last look at their dead discover John Harrison is still alive. They place him in the car. Before the escape from the home the Vandergriff women were in the building with the spy and his assistant, the governess. The spy tries to make love to the daughter of the banker and she takes a revolver from his coat pocket and kills him, forcing the governess into a closet and locking her there. In making their escape from the city in the car the Vandergriffs are overhauled by a squadron of cavalry the commander of which commandeers the machine. The men in the car make an effort to protect the women and are bayoneted by the troopers. The women are taken to a country house by the commander and the three are locked into a room. The mother realizes her two daughters are to become the prey of the soldiers after they have filled themselves with liquor and she takes the revolver with which the girl killed the spy and calmly shoots both of her children, becoming insane with grief immediately after. This is the close of the picture story and the allegory follows. It would seem the picture would have had greater effect if the last two reels could have been devoted to following the invading army on their course into New England, rather than the showing as it does of a lot of pretty pictures. The acting cast with which Charles Richman, who is the star of the production, has been surrounded is one of tremendous strength and the work of Mary Maurice, Miss Louise Beaudet and Norma Talmadge is particularly worthy of individual mention. From a pictorial standpoint the picture is a revelation. There are a score of panorama scenes, some of which have been taken from hydroplanes flying over New York, which are little short of wonderful. The picturing of the bombardment of the city has been worked out in a manner which will win universal admiration, and the fleets and forts in action adds much to the stirring value.

Review from the New York Times, August 7, 1915

NEW YORK SHELLED ON 'MOVIE' SCREEN
"The Battle Cry for Peace" Meant to Show the Necessity for Preparedness.
TO AID DEFENSE CAMPAIGN
Promoters Hope to Carry the Message of Need of Greater Security to Every Home in America

An animated, arresting, and sometimes lurid argument for the immediate and radical improvement of our national defenses was presented on the screen yesterday morning, when "The Battle Cry for Peace," an elaborate new photo-pageant, was shown for the first time before an invited audience at the Vitagraph Theatre. Its rapidly shifting scenes picture the bombardment and invasion of New York City and the subjection of its people to the horrors that have been the Belgians portion in the twelvemonth just come to a close. Thus is the rising propaganda for greater preparedness carried into the movies.

This new film has been devised and completed by Commodore J. Stuart Blackton of the Vitagraph Company under the inspiration of Hudson Maxim. Plus a slender plot, a modicum of "heart interest" and a great deal of flag-waving. "The Battle Cry for Peace" is the picture version of Mr. Maxim's "Defenseless America." It was Mr. Blackton's argument that, with the screens of the country at his disposal, he could reach the people with the Maxim data at a much more rapid pace than the book itself could possibly achieve. In his brief talk yesterday he said he hoped and expected to show the picture to 75,000,000 persons in the next six months.

In his scenario, Mr. Blackton deals roughly with the pacifists and generally advances his argument by bludgeon strokes. There is nothing in the least bit subtle about "The Battle Cry for Peace," None of it will go over the head even of the seventy-five millionth. And it is designed to make many a person in each audience resolve to join the National Guard, the American Legion, the National Security League, and the Navy League, forthwith, and to write to his Congressman by the next mail.

Has a Certain Accent of Authority.

And the accent of authority is given to the picture by the presence on the screen of Admiral Dewey, General Wood, and Secretary Garrison. Furthermore, the Commodore claims for his film the indorsement and co-operation of many a notable, from Theodore Roosevelt to Secretary Lansing.

It will be six weeks before this film is released to commerce. In the interval, it will be shown at militia encampments, at special meetings, and before the authorities at Washington, and in the different State capitals. It is to be shown at the Army and Navy Club in Washington next Monday night, and on the following Wednesday evening, according to the Vitagraph statement, it will be displayed on the White House lawn.

You, who attend a showing of this picture, see a good many ugly things. You see the advancing fleet of the enemy, with the projectiles from our coast guns falling short of their mark. You see the sky dotted with the oncoming air craft. You see bombs drop on the swaying crowd in Times Square, you see Long Island houses go up in flames, and the Capitol at Washington crumbling. You see the slender militia crumple up before a warfare by machinery, and see the wounded wreathing and tearing at the sod. And a great deal more.

Avowedly the invading force is of no particular nationality and the leading spy is called "Emanon," which you may spell backward if you wish. But it is difficult to escape the impression that you are expected to recognize the nationality. They are certainly not Portuguese, for instance.

Shell Scatters Doves of Peace

You see this enemy-to-be represented in New York by a secret committee waiting for the invasion and meanwhile working to cut down defense appropriations in Washington and to accelerate the peace meetings. Such a meeting is actually in progress at a hotel here and a wealthy patron of the peace propaganda is ecstatically releasing a flock of doves over the assemblage when the alarm comes and a moment later, a shell crashes through the wall. The enemy's fleet, for picture purposes, has actually come within bombardment range of the city without warning having reached the country in advance.

In the preparation of the film, a number of well known players have joined. Charles Richman, Joseph Kilgour, Lionel Brabam, Thais Lawton, and Norma Talmadge are among these. Some 25,000 National Guard Troops and 500 G.A.R. veterans help along. There are several notable novelties, one of the screen view of the disappearing guns in action, another a panorama of Manhattan and its waters taken from a hydro-aeroplane.

"The Battle Cry for Peace: is done on a large scale but it represents no advance in the motion picture art, nor indeed, does it pretend to do so. That is not what it is for.

Viewing comments

This film had long been considered entirely lost, save for some battle sequences once used as stock footage, which Kevin Brownlow included in his Hollywood series. However, the Svenska Filminstitute turned out to have a reel of unknown sequences. I viewed this and found that it seemed to be a reel from a condensed version of the film--one possibly reedited to capitalize on Norma Talmadge's appearance, as it contains her most important scenes. It begins as the country is being invaded and the women of the Harrison family are being beseiged in their home by soldiers, who leave them dead. Then the spy and his accomplice reveal themselves to the Vandergriffs and prompt the arrest of the men by firing on the foreign soldiers. The spy makes advances to Norma, who pretends to acquiesce, grabs his gun, and shoots him. She forces his accomplice into a closet while firing squads execute people outside. They escape in a car and find one of their party has survived the firing quad. Soon they are captured by soldiers and the men are bayonetted. The mother and her two daughters are taken to a house and locked in a room while soldiers drink outside. The mother asks Norma for the gun. The soldiers hear shots and come in the room, to find the mother sitting on the floor with her two dead daughers. The film has the Swedish "Slut" (The End) at this point, so this version ended here, skipping the final allegorical reels. The dramatic situations far stronger than the frankly trivial plots of most of Talmadge's films and she rises to the occasion, giving an excellent performance. She certainly showed star quality here. One of the other actresses in the film (one of the Harrison family) very much resembles Constance Talmadge. Though she is not credited in any of the reviews, one of Norma's film reminiscences articles says that Constance was in the film.
Print viewed: One 35mm reel, Cinemateket-Svenska Filminstitutet

Further Readings

More information on this film can be found in the following sources:

Magill, Frank N., ed., Magills Survey of Cinema: Silent Films. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Salem Press, c1982 (entry on The Battle Cry of Peace by Anthony Slide).

Brownlow, Kevin. The War, the West, and the Wilderness. (New York : Knopf ; distributed by Random House, 1979, c1978).

Last revised, June 12, 2008