Photo Album
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Made in the USA, released on the 1st of September, 1914.
Gay: 4 out of 9 |
Lesbian: 7 out of 9 |
Trans: 9 out of 9 |
Queer: 7 out of 9 |
Lillian’s transition to Lawrence is clearly trans, Cassadene becomes an outrageous gay stereotype, though he’s likely trans as well. The banker’s page is hinted at being gay. Lovejoy and Bessie seem oddly eager to get involved in a lesbian affair.
Lillian Travers (Edith Storey), a New York heiress, is in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, there to see her fiancé, Dr. Fred Cassadene (Sidney Drew), who is the house doctor at a prominent hotel. One of the guests at the hotel, Mrs. Lovejoy (Ada Gifford), pretends to have a sprained wrist in an attempt to attract the doctor’s attentions. Lillian returns just in time to catch them together.
Lillian is Constancia Oglethorpe’s (Grace Stevens) niece and stays with her in Florida. In her parlor is a box with a note in it, from a family ancestor, a sea captain, named Hausser Oglethorpe. It’s dated 1813. The note says that the box is one half of a pair and that the other contains a secret “for all women who suffer.”
Shopping at the local curio shop, Lillian spots a box that looks very much like her aunts, the tag says it washed ashore exactly 100 years ago (1814). Inside it is a vial filled with four large seeds and a note. The note is from Hausser Oglethorpe documenting a shipwreck off the coast of Africa and his rescue by a local tribe with peculiar practices: the tribe had a plant, the seeds of which could turn women into men and men into women. The chief of the tribe gave him four seeds, the ones in the vial accompanying the letter.
Lillian and Cassadene have a date planed for that evening, but Mrs. Lovejoy intercepts him and makes him accompany her to a friend’s yacht. On the way, their rowboat is overturned and he’s delayed in his meeting with Lillian. Lillian, fed up with Cassadene, decides to swallow one of the seeds. At once, her mannerisms change, becoming decidedly masculine. The next morning, she even starts growing facial hair.
Cassadene goes to apologize to Lillian, but she wants nothing more to do with him. She’s more interested in the local women, like her aunt’s neighbor Bessie Horton (Jane Morrow). She gives back her engagement ring. Lillian decides her maid Jane (Ethel Lloyd) could do with a seed, too, and she takes one of the three remaining, with the same transformation Lillian experienced. She starts perusing another maid, Malvina (Lillian Burns), and grows jealous of her boyfriend Gustavus Duncan (Frank O'Neil).
Lillian intends to return to New York and there’s a farewell party held for her, where she dances with all the ladies and Cassadene is left dance with a similarly abandoned man. Jane sees Duncan with Malvina and in a rage attacks him. Pursued by the police, she plans to leave with Lillian.
In New York, Lillian and Jane take off their wigs (they’ve already cut their hair) and buy a new wardrobe. Lillian becomes Lawrence. He places an ad in the society newspaper, announcing Lillian Travers’s intent to take a river cruise in Florida before leaving on an extended tour of Europe. They put on their female costumes once more to return to Florida to start the cruise.
Cassadene reads the announcement and goes to meet Lillian. He finds her on the boat, where she blows him off. When he doesn’t back down, she threatens to throw him overboard to the alligators. Realizing she’s not joking, he leaves her alone. In their cabin, Lillian and Jane transform back into men and throw their old clothes into the river. They get off the boat as Lawrence Talbot and his valet. Cassadene waits to meet Lillian by the gangway, but doesn’t see her. A seaman pulls the clothes from the water and shows them to the doctor.
Talbot goes to Ft. Lauderdale and resumes his relationship with Bessie, eventually proposing to her. Cassadene goes to the police, certain that Lillian has been murdered and her body thrown to the alligators. Talbot reads in the newspaper of the suspected murder and decides to ease his aunt’s pain by writing her a letter as Lillian to say she’s all right but will never return. She gives the letter to her valet with instruction to take the train to New York and post it there. He reads the address and decides to pocket the train money and deliver it himself to Oglethorpe.
Finding the letter without a postmark, Cassadene realizes it must have been sent from the same city and that Lillian must be there. Meanwhile, his inquiries into the identity of Talbot come back with suspiciously no records. Cassadene begins to think Talbot is the one behind all this. He goes to him and makes his accusation. A fight breaks out. Major Horton (Charles Kent), Bessie’s father, separates them. He’s very fond of Talbot and takes great offence at Cassadene’s conduct towards him. A duel is arranged.
After Horton leaves, Talbot figures he can avoid all the trouble if he confesses that he and Lillian are one and the same. Cassadene doesn’t believe the seed story. To prove it, Talbot’s valet brings one of the two left and a glass of water. The doctor swallows it and turns into a mincing dandy and sprightly skips away after trying to kiss Talbot.
The day of the duel, Cassadene shows up very late, having had trouble driving his mule cart. Once there, he prances around, proclaims to Horton “I must be going, I’m so NERVOUS!” and hops away holding his coat tails. Back at the hotel, Horton and the others are present when Cassadene returns. Cassadene nuzzles up to Horton, rubbing his chest. Horton throws him off and sends for a police officer.
Talbot’s valet goes and makes the report. Soon, Cassadene is being pursued by several policemen. He ducks into a bedroom; its occupant, a woman, is asleep. Her clothes are laid out and Cassadene slips into them and walks out. He passes by unnoticed at first, but a hotel porter sees his face and the chase resumes. Eventually, the whole town is after him as he darts around on the waterfront.
Talbot observes the action from his balcony, laughing heartily at each turn. Cassadene runs out onto a pier, the crowd right behind him. With nowhere to go, he jumps into the ocean. Talbot stops laughing and looks concerned. Cassadene flails around in the water before going under.
At that moment, Lillian wakes up. She had fallen asleep with the letter and vial of seeds in her hand. Cassadene enters, back from Mrs. Lovejoy and the overturned boat. Lillian shows him the vial and letter and tells him about her dream and they laugh as the scene fades out.
Cast and crew
| Amazon.com: Available |
Amazon.co.uk: Not Available |
FranziVision: Available |
[ Gay feature | Lesbian feature | Trans feature | Queer feature ]
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