Brute Force (1914)

Director:

D.W. Griffith

Release Date:

25 April 1914 (USA)

Genre:

Short | Drama

Plot:

A primitive tribe are attacked by apemen and menaced by various prehistoric monsters.

Plot Keywords:

Dinosaur | Bow And Arrow | Prehistoric | Sequel | Weapon Making

Cast

Robert Harron	...	Harry Faulkner (Prologue) / Weakhands (The Old Days)
Mae Marsh	...	Lillywhite
William J. Butler	...	Priscilla's Father (Prologue)
Wilfred Lucas	...	Brute Force
Edwin Curglot	...	Caveman
Alfred Paget	...	In Club (Prologue) / Tribesman (The Old Days)
Jennie Lee	...	Cavewoman
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Edwin August
Lionel Barrymore
Harry Carey	...	In Womanless Tribe (The Old Days)
John T. Dillon	...	In Club (Prologue)
Frank Evans	...	In Club (Prologue) / Tribesman (The Old Days)
Harry Hyde	...	In Club (Prologue)
J. Jiquel Lanoe	...	In Club (Prologue) / Tribesman (The Old Days)
Elmo Lincoln	...	In Club (Prologue) / Tribesman (The Old Days)
Charles Hill Mailes	...	Valet (Prologue) / Tribesman (The Old Days)
Joseph McDermott	...	In Club (Prologue) / Tribesman (The Old Days)
W.C. Robinson	...	Valet (Prologue) / Tribesman (The Old Days)
George Siegmann	...	(unconfirmed)
Blanche Sweet	...	(unconfirmed)
Kate Toncray	...	Tribeswoman (The Old Days)

Directed by
D.W. Griffith

Produced by
D.W. Griffith	....	producer

Cinematography by
G.W. Bitzer

Production Companies

• Biograph Company

Distributors

• General Film Company (1914) (USA) (theatrical)

Also Known As:

In Prehistoric Days
Primitive Man (USA) (short title)
Primitive Man: A Psychological Comedy Founded on Darwin's Theory of the Genesis of Man (USA) (working title)
The Primitive Man (USA)
Wars of the Primal Tribes

Runtime:

32 min | 33 min (16 fps)

Country:

USA

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent | Silent

Filming Locations:

Chatsworth Park, Chatsworth, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Biograph Company

Movie Connections:

Features Man's Genesis (1912)

Great Sequel

Brute Force (1914)

**** (out of 4)

D.W. Griffith's sequel to Man's Genesis has Weakhands (Robert Harron) and Lillywhite (Mae Marsh) living with a new family but the womanless tribe led by Bruteforce (Wilfred Lucas) attacks them and kidnaps all the woman. Since Bruteforce was able to beat the tribe with sticks and rocks, Weakhands must come up with a new invention to get revenge. He then comes up with a bow and arrow. This is another highly entertaining two-reeler from Griffith who pulls out all the stops and makes a really strong film, although the opening and closing sequences set in current times was pretty useless. Once again the cavemen look great with their make up and costumes. Another added bonus is that there's a terrific fight between the two sides, which goes on for quite a while. The action is very much real as Griffith paid the extras a few more dollars if they were willing to get hit upside the head. The one silly segment is Griffith showing some dinosaurs, which are obviously fake. I could tell one was an alligator dressed up as a dino but there's also a real dino skeleton used, which Griffith was able to borrow from a museum. Future Tarzan Elmo Lincoln plays one of the cavemen and Lionel Barrymore is also on hand but I wasn't able to spot him. AKA Primitive Man and In Prehistoric Days.