I had only seen Gloria Swanson in her more mature role in Sunset Boulevard and not in her heyday. She is gorgeous downright hot and very convincing as Sadie Thompson. The version of the W. Somerset Maugham story is superior to the better know Joan Crawford version Rain. Lionel Barrymore does a fantastic job as the self serving preacher. Raoul Walsh the well know director appears here as the serviceman who is in love with Sadie.

Based on the Somerset Maugham short story "Rain," this silent film version of "Sadie Thompson" was daring for its era in the film's prurient content.An apparent "fallen women" attempting to escape her past, Miss Sadie Thompson arrives in the South Pacific only to encounter a stern cleric, Mr. Davidson (Lionel Barrymore), who attempts to save her soul.The early part of the film portrays the flighty, flirtatious Sadie, as she dances to music and starts a relationship with a sailor named O'Hara, who is played by director Raoul Walsh. But it is the repressed Davidson, who takes it upon himself to "rescue" Sadie by sending her back to San Francisco, where she faces certain imprisonment for a crime she did not commit. It doesn't matter to Davidson whether or not she is innocent. His single-minded purpose is to rob Sadie of her spirit in order to save her soul.SPOILER FOLLOWS: The closing of the film reveals the hypocrisy of Davidson, who has confessed that he has been dreaming of Sadie. He crosses the line when he calls her "radiant" and "beautiful." It is at that moment that Sadie recognizes the hypocrisy of a "pig." The film's denouement reveals that Davidson has slit his throat out of his own guilt and repressed feelings.A silent film that is eminently watchable, "Sadie Thompson" demonstrates the dangers of an overly repressive and zealous man, who succumbs to his own human frailty. Swanson is unforgettable in her character transformations and her luminous presence.

This was the first version of the W. Somerset Maugham novel "Rain," which was remade in 1932 by the original title and again in 1953 as "Miss Sadie Thompson." Gloria Swanson is amazing in the title role as a prostitute who becomes stranded on the remote Island of Pago Pago. She flirts with a soldier (Raoul Walsh, who was the director), then seduces a respected preacher played by Lionel Barrymore. This certainly can be called one of the "pre-code" films of the 1920s/1930s, before the Hays Code was in effect. For many years the final scenes were lost, so now the restored versions use still photos and new title cards to complete the picture.

What a performance - Swanson bursts out of the screen, as Somerset Maugham's prostitute heroine trapped on a tropical island with a crusading parson and a sexy sergeant. And Lionel Barrymore as the parson and the director Raoul Walsh as the sergeant are her match. This is silent acting at its best.Yes the piece is a little stagey and the action too confined for a silent picture, but when the photography is as brilliant as it is here - who cares? It deservedly won the first ever Oscar for cinematography.This is a passionate and beautiful production. What a tragedy that the last few minutes have been lost. They have been reconstructed using titles and stills - but how I would have loved to have seen the scene when Barrymore rapes Swanson. It must have been breathtaking. Don't miss this film.