The Best Films of 1920, According to Photoplay Magazine
Movies Silently
Once movies hit the mainstream as popular and respectable middle class entertainment, it was inevitable that someone would start rounding them up into "Best of" lists. Photoplay magazine launched its own award, the Photoplay Medal of Honor, and asked readers to vote via mail-in ballot. Since we're celebrating the films of 1920 this month, I…
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Movies Silently
Once movies hit the mainstream as popular and respectable middle class entertainment, it was inevitable that someone would start rounding them up into “Best of” lists. Photoplay magazine launched its own award, the Photoplay Medal of Honor, and asked readers to vote via mail-in ballot.

Since we’re celebrating the films of 1920 this month, I thought it would be nice to provide you with a handy viewing list of what Photoplay’s editors thought were the best the movies had to offer. It was an American publication and so the selections were based on what was released in the USA. Also, release dates were a bit fluid back in the silent era so some films may be listed with different years attached to them in reference materials.

These films were not formal nominees but suggested titles that Photoplay published alongside the ballot. While readers were encouraged to write in whatever they liked, this list surely had some influence and so we are going to study it a but.

For easy reference, I have divided the list into three sections: on home media, surviving but not yet available to the public, and missing and presumed lost. All films are listed in alphabetical order.

But first, let’s start with the eventual winner. Two million ballots were cast but only one film could win.

The Photoplay Medal of Honor went to: Humoresque!

Pathos was big and so the choice of Humoresque is perfectly in keeping with the taste of the era. It was given a full melodramatic remake in 1946 with Joan Crawford in the lead but this version leans deeply into American Jewish culture. An early hit for Frank Borzage, who had pivoted from acting to directing, and an example of the continued success of screenwriter Frances Marion.

Released on DVD.

The Survivors

They’re here, they survive, we can see them any time we want.

Behind the Door is a lean, mean, nasty piece of work with a justly famous finale that still shocks with its brutality. I won’t give the game away entirely but the hero is a taxidermist and his wife was murdered by his enemy. You do the math.

Read my review here.

Released on DVD and Bluray.

Dinty follows the adventures of the young son of an Irish immigrant as he tries to support his mother (Colleen Moore) and also bust a Tong smuggling ring, as one does.

Available on DVD and Bluray.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is, well, you know. It was actually one of two adaptations released in 1920 but the Barrymore version is renowned for its innovative makeup and Barrymore’s enthusiastic performance.

Read my review here.

Released on DVD and Bluray.

Eyes of Youth was a vehicle for star Clara Kimball Young but most people know it today as an early showcase for Rudolph Valentino, who played a ruthless gigolo.

Released on DVD and Bluray.

The Garage was a two-reel comedy from Arbuckle and Keaton and is one of the rare shorts on this list.

Released on DVD and Bluray.

Heart o’ the Hills was a rural drama starring Mary Pickford and a young John Gilbert.

Released on DVD.

The Idol Dancer… I think my only response to this nomination is “lol, no.” While Clarine Seymour is an appealing star and Richard Barthelmess tries his best, the film is absolutely ridiculous and sloppily made to boot.

Read my review here.

Released on DVD.

The Love Flower… Double lol here. You’re pulling my chain, Photoplay magazine. I mean, as an example of accidental hilarity, this is a masterpiece. But best of 1920?

Read my review here.

Available on DVD.

The Mollycoddle was the second-last of Douglas Fairbanks’ modern adventure-comedies. He next film was The Mark of Zorro and after one more modern picture, he dedicated the rest of his silent career to the costumed swashbuckler. Ironically, Zorro didn’t make the cut on this shortlist.

Released on DVD.

Passion is an interesting one. It is technically the American release of Madame du Barry, the Ernst Lubitsch epic, but it was extensively cut and re-titled for the American audience and can almost be considered its own film. Both versions survive.

You can get the American release here and the original German cut here.

Pollyanna was another Mary Pickford vehicle and an adaptation of the popular story.

Available on an out-of-print DVD.

Something to Think About was written around leading man Elliott Dexter’s recovery from a stroke. Cecil B. DeMille directed and Gloria Swanson was the leading lady.

Released on DVD.

Suds is another Mary Pickford film, this one about a laundress who falls for a wealthy customer. Pickford was on fire in 1920, wasn’t she?

Released on DVD.

The Toll Gate was a return to form for William S. Hart. He had been experimenting with settings and pathos but this one was a dark tale of bloody revenge. Vengeful Hart is the best Hart and this is one of his finest pictures.

Read my review here.

Available on DVD.

Trumpet Island was a late release from the once-dominant Vitagraph film company. An abridgement intended for home viewing survives.

Available for digital purchase.

Way Down East was another return to form with D.W. Griffith abandoning the South Seas in favor of ice floes.

Read my review here.

Released on DVD and Bluray.

Why Change Your Wife? was a saucy bedroom farce from Cecil B. DeMille and it is an utter delight from beginning to end. The costumes, particularly the lingerie and swimwear, are worth the price of admission by themselves.

Read my review here.

Released on DVD.

Those are the films available for viewing. For your convenience, I will now list the unreleased and lost movies. Here’s hoping more of them are released to the public or found!

The Vaulties

They survive and may be screened at festivals but there’s no home media release. Still, they exist so here’s hoping!

(I’ve had this issue come up before, so I should note that I do not link to online videos unless the channel is operated by an archive or a reputable collector. I don’t need to have my site flagged as an aggregator for pirated content. While a film may be in the public domain, music and some aspects of a restoration may not be and I don’t have time to vet every link. This isn’t personal, it’s simple self-preservation.)

The Copperhead

A Cumberland Romance

The Dancin’ Fool

Dollars and the Woman

Earthbound

Huckleberry Finn

In Search of a Sinner

Jes’ Call Me Jim

Jubilo

Madame X

The Overland Red

Over the Hill to the Poorhouse

The River’s End

The Scoffer

Scratch My Back

The Virgin of Stamboul

The Lost

Check your attics and local Soviet archives.

The Branding Iron

The Devil’s Pass Key

The Gay Old Dog

Great Redeemer

Luck of the Irish

Man Who Lost Himself

On With the Dance

The Prince Chap

Remodelling Her Husband

The Right of Way

Romance

Thirteenth Commandment

39 East

Treasure Island

The Wonder Man

The World and His Wife

So, what do you think? Of the surviving films of 1920, which one deserved the medal in your opinion?

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