Edward-Dillon-and-George-Gebhardt-in-The-Black-Viper-1908-00 

    George Gebhardt and Edward Dillon

 

Directed by                       D.W. Griffith, Wallace McCutcheon Jr.
Cinematography by         Billy Bitzer, Arthur Marvin
Starring                             Edward Dillon, George Gebhardt, Mack Sennett, D.W. Griffith, Anthony O'Sullivan
Distributed by                   Biograph Company
Release date                      July 25, 1908
Country                             United States
Running time                    10 m.

 

This film is part of our series 'Hidden Gems'. It can be watched by registered users who make a donation. For more details, please click here.

 

"The Black Viper" is a short crime drama. The film is included in our program to illustrate the work of our star cinematographer Billy Bitzer. 

 

A man saves a girl after she is attacked in the street by a thug nicknamed Viper.  Later the thug comes back with a gang, overpowers the man and takes him away on a cart. The girl organizes a pursuit with the help of friends, and they chase the gang on a rocky mountain terrain.

D.W. Griffith plays the role of one of the rescuers in addition to the director's job.

We trust that silent film lovers will not judge harshly the quality of the print.  Many early D.W. Griffith films are only available in a paper print format, and we are all very lucky that they have survived the trials of time for us to enjoy.

 

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Registration and donation are required to watch the films part of the series 'Hidden Gems'. Please complete the steps in the article 'Gems for Donation' before proceeding.

Registered users who made the required donation please click here to watch this gem.

 

Below is a short preview of the film.