The Eyes of Youth (Silent) (DVD)

Beautiful young socialite Gina Ashling is at a dreadful crossroads in her life, and must make a decision. Her destitute family wants her to marry a millionaire that she does not love, in order to rescue them financially. A gifted musician, she dreams of studying in Paris. Her beau, Peter Judson has proposed but accepting would mean abandoning both her family and hopes of a musical career. Fate enters when a mystic pilgrim from the East collapses in exhaustion on her doorstep. When she feeds and refreshes the exhausted traveler, he offers her crystal ball - a chance to glimpse the future that each choice will bring!

Clara Kimball Young was an established star of the silent era when, after a very public break-up with her former partner, Lewis J. Selznick, she starred in The Eyes of Youth with her new producer, Harry Garson. A first-rate production, starting with a fine script full of mystic overtones and featuring an excellent cast, The Eyes of Youth was a box office smash and possibly Young's best film. Then an unknown dancer, Rudolph Valentino plays a high profile role as a gigolo, displaying the sizzling screen presence that would rocket him to super-stardom.

• silent