A Corner in Wheat (1909)

User Rating:

6.9/10   

Director:

D.W. Griffith

Writers:

D.W. Griffith (writer)
Frank Norris (novel)
(more)

Release Date:

13 December 1909 (USA)

Genre:

Short | Drama

Plot:

A greedy tycoon decides, on a whim, to corner the world market in wheat. This doubles the price of bread...

Plot Keywords:

Morality | Farm | Social Issues | Based On Novel

Awards:

1 win

Cast

Frank Powell	...	The Wheat King
Grace Henderson	...	The Wheat King's Wife
James Kirkwood	...	Farmer
Linda Arvidson	...	Farmer's Wife
W. Chrystie Miller	...	Farmer's Father
Gladys Egan	...	Farmer's Little Daughter
Henry B. Walthall	...	Wheat King's Assistant
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Kate Bruce	...	In Store
William J. Butler	...	Ruined Wheat Trader
Charles Craig	...	On the Floor of the Exchange / Banquet Guest
Edward Dillon
Frank Evans	...	On the Floor of the Exchange / Banquet Guest / Grain Elevator Attendant
Edith Haldeman	...	In Store
Robert Harron	...	On the Floor of the Exchange
Ruth Hart	...	In Store
Arthur V. Johnson	...	Wheat Trader in Bowler Hat / Banquet Guest
Henry Lehrman	...	On the Floor of the Exchange (unconfirmed)
Jeanie Macpherson	...	Banquet Guest / Visitor to the Grain Elevator
Charles Hill Mailes
Owen Moore	...	On the Floor of the Exchange / Banquet Guest
George Nichols	...	On the Floor of the Exchange
Anthony O'Sullivan	...	On the Floor of the Exchange
Billy Quirk	...	On the Floor of the Exchange / Banquet Guest
Gertrude Robinson	...	In Store
Mack Sennett	...	On the Floor of the Exchange
Blanche Sweet	...	Woman in White Hat / Visitor to the Grain Elevator
Dorothy West	...	Visitor to the Grain Elevator

Directed by
D.W. Griffith

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
D.W. Griffith		writer
Frank Norris		novel "The Pit"
Frank E. Woods		writer

Cinematography by
G.W. Bitzer

Film Editing by
James Smith		(as Jimmy Smith)

Production Companies

• Biograph Company

Distributors

• Biograph Company (1909) (USA) (theatrical)
• American Mutoscope & Biograph (2008) (worldwide) (all media) (as Biograph Company)
• Kino Video (video)
• Reel Media International (2006) (worldwide) (all media)

Also Known As:

Le spéculateur en grains (France) [fr]
Les spéculateurs (France) [fr]

Runtime:

14 min (18 fps)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent

Certification:

USA:G

Filming Locations:

Biograph Studio, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Company:

Biograph Company

Trivia:

This film was selected to the National Film Registry, Library of Congress, in 1994.

Movie Connections:

Featured in WALL·E (2008)

A Corner in Cinema

A Corner in Wheat is one of the five or six really outstanding Biograph shorts. Here, DW Griffith draws together all the techniques he had been perfecting over his last year in the motion picture business – moving actors in depth for maximum effect, restrained, realistic performances, a consistent tempo, succinct, unobtrusive intertitles, atmosphere conveyed through setting, and the varied possibilities of the editing process.

What is most obvious here is the development that Griffith is probably best known for, which is his cross-cutting. He had already explored cross-cutting for excitement or suspense, and even to compare events going on in completely separate locations, but here he is cutting between seemingly separate narratives which, when put together tell one coherent story. He is perhaps the first filmmaker to show social cause and effect on such a grand scale.

There are plenty of other nice touches along the way. Particularly memorable are the shots of the farm family, with the wind pulling at their clothing, and the stark trees and barren landscape mirroring their situation. But what is perhaps the greatest sign of competence here is the way these images give a sense of unity to the whole, with the desolate farm scenes book-ending the short. It's this development of structure that was perhaps Griffith's most important contribution.

A Corner in Wheat is not quite perfect though. In particular, the acting performances are not amazing, and one crowd shot is simply a chaotic mess. Griffith's handling of a cast would improve in the years to come, not to mention the fact that he would later work with some of the brightest stars of the era.