Mary Pickford
Stella Maris (1918) – Special Blu-ray & DVD Combo
Stella Maris was a major advancement in filmmaking. Mary Pickford plays dual roles in a film that is very different from anything she had ever done before. It tells the story of two, very different young women; a beautiful, rich, but crippled Stella Maris and Unity Blake, a deformed and abused orphan. Director, Marshall Neilan, and cinematographer Walter Stradling created some trick photography for Mary to play both roles, using double exposure photography and complex editing which made it possible to present both characters on screen simultaneously.
The Mary Pickford Foundation and the Paramount Film Archive partnered to access all elements available in the Pickford collections both at the UCLA Film & Television Archive and at the Library of Congress. Even though the archives were shut down during the pandemic, all parties cooperated to send the film elements to Paramount so they could be scanned in 4K resolution and commence work on the restoration.
The two primary elements used in this restoration were a 1967 35mm B&W Dupe Negative and an incomplete 1925 35mm Tinted Print. Scans from the Dupe Negative were used for the majority of the feature, and all surviving material from the print was inserted where possible. New inter-titles were digitally recreated for the Dupe Negative to match the feel and length of the Print, as the cards in the Negative were static and much longer than originally intended. The tinting scheme of the Print was used for all evening sequences: amber for night interiors and blue for night exteriors, with the rest of the feature B&W for all daytime sequences. Lastly, all the most egregious damage was digitally repaired, the film’s printed-in jitter was stabilized, and the film’s frame-rate was digitally varisped to 19fps, mirroring a more natural, hand-cranked projection speed suitable for 1918, the year of the film’s release.
Cast Mary Pickford, Ida Waterman, Herbert Standing, Conway Tearle, Marcia Manon, Josephine Crowell
Director Marshall Neilan
Bonus Features Commentary track by Marc Wanamaker, author and film historian.
Liner Notes Pictorial Booklet by the Mary Pickford Foundation
Extensive Photo Gallery
The Mountaineer’s Honor, an American Biograph short film released November 25th, 1909. Newly mastered in HD with an original score by the Graves Brothers.
Format Blu-ray, DVD
Audio Dolby Digital Mono
Aspect Ratio 1.33:1
Rating NR
Runtime 84
Year 1918
Color BW
UPC 089859910920
SRP $29.95
SKU VCI9109
Staged under the direction of Marshall Neilan, the youthful genius of the Artcraft Producing organization, this photoplay is confidently expected to prove Miss Pickford’s greatest achievement in the cinema world. Everyone who has already seen the film, including Adolph Zuker, the motion picture king, declares it to be “Our Mary’s” crowning accomplishment.
- The Missoulian, December 23rd, 1918
Commencing tomorrow, Mary Pickford, the evening star of the firmament, outshines the brilliancy of every past cinema achievement, it is said, in her latest Artcraft photodrama, “Stella Maris.” At a private screening given recently of this production, at which most of the dramatic editors of the Los Angeles daily papers were present, “Stella Maris” was acclaimed Mary Pickford’ greatest picture.
- LA Record, January 26th, 1918
This picture packed the Strand Theater every afternoon and evening last week and was spoken of by New York newspapers as the best thing that Miss Pickford has ever done.
- – Harrisburg Telegraph, February 16th, 1919
