Smuggler’s Island (1915)

movie

(18)

Country: USA
Genres: Adventure, Short
Release: 1915-01-19
Director: Francis Ford
Writers: Grace Cunard
Language: None | English
Stars: Francis Ford , Grace Cunard , Harry Schumm , Abe Mundon , John Ford (I) (1894–1973)
Runtime: 20 min
Awards: N/A
AKA: Smuggler's Island , Smuggler's Island (United States of America)
Plot: Grace and Francis are engaged and, like most engaged couples, are most sensitive regarding their own tender feelings. They go to an island to spend their holiday. Starting out early of a morning the boy, Francis, wanders down the shore alone. He has a mild flirtation with one of the summer girls who shows him some beautifully-colored shells she has picked up on the shore. Grace sees Francis talking to the strange young woman and is piqued. From a distance it appears as if Francis has his arm around the young woman and Grace stalks pettishly away from the disagreeable sight, determined never to speak to Francis again. After a few moments spent in deep thought on the hotel piazza, however, Grace decides to carry out a little plot she has evolved. Just for spite she makes the acquaintance of a handsome revenue officer in a splendid uniform. Together they stroll along the beach among the rocks with Francis, jealously, following close behind. When Grace sees that Francis has ceased to watch her little flirtation, however, she quickly lets the revenue officer go his own way, and the latter, who thinks that he is making excellent progress with her, is obviously much astonished at her quick change of front. Later Grace witnesses an assault made upon another revenue officer by a smuggler gang operating on the island. Although she thinks herself unobserved, one of the smugglers comes up behind Grace as she stands watching the cowardly assault upon the revenue officer, and binds and gags her. Fearing that she will tell on them the smugglers abduct the girl and take her, together with the unconscious revenue officer, on board their yacht. An exciting chase follows between other revenue officers and the smugglers. The revenue officers sees the smugglers hurrying away in their fast motorboat and commandeer another high-power boat to follow them. At the point of a revolver they compel the owners of the boat to give chase to the smugglers. Meanwhile the leader of the band of smugglers has imprisoned Grace in the cabin of his boat. His advances are odious and Grace struggles desperately with him as he attempts to force his attentions upon her. By brute strength the smuggler captain beats down her defense and forces Grace to her knees. During this exciting scene in the cabin Francis and the revenue officers are hurrying to Grace's aid. Mile after mile is reeled off and the boat which the revenue officers have commandeered steadily continues to gain. Just when the smuggler's craft is within pistol shot the revenue officers discover that their supply of gasoline is running low. Before they can fill the tank their boat falls rapidly astern. Grace, in her struggle with the smuggler, sees the approach of the revenue officers' motorboat and is dismayed when it suddenly begins to fall rapidly behind. Seeing a revolver in the cabin she takes advantage of the smuggler's absence to discharge the one remaining bullet in the weapon into the yacht's engine, effectually disabling it. The revenue officers meanwhile fill their gasoline tank again and overhaul the smugglers' power yacht just as the smuggler captain again is attempting to kiss Grace in the tiny cabin of the smuggling craft. A running fight between the smugglers and the revenue men follows ending in the capture of the smugglers. Grace and Francis meet again on the deck of the smugglers' yacht and banish their misunderstanding in a kiss.
IMDB:tt0211630