A 1917 marriage of convenience becomes the ultimate test of patriotic duty — with a pregnancy twist.
Robert Wallace, the elder son of a rich and indulgent father, marries Margaret Christy, a spirited patriot, so that he can escape the call to war. Discovering the reason for Robert's haste to get married, Margaret is appalled and resolves to bring home to her husband a sense of his personal responsibility. In order to instill patriotism in Robert, Margaret contrasts him with John Harding, the man who gave her up to go to war. When Robert protests his wife's tactics, Margaret accuses him of being a contemptible coward. The next day a German insults the American flag, and Robert, his sense of justice aroused, makes him salute it. He then bids Margaret farewell and marches off to war. Margaret sees him off without divulging the secret that she is pregnant, thus sacrificing her own welfare for that of her country.
Production
MGM preservation rarity — surviving WWI home-front cinema.
Acting
Emily Stevens's fiery patriotic speeches without spoken dialogue.
Director
Christy Cabanne
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Christy Cabanne directed this during his brief patriotic-propaganda phase before returning to westerns; it was part of MGM's deliberate effort to compete with D.W. Griffith's war-effort films.
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