Regeneration (1915)
An orphaned boy grows up amid New York's slums to lead a criminal gang, but his path bends toward redemption when a wealthy social worker takes an interest in him, culminating in a violent confrontation aboard a burning excursion boat.
Regeneration was Raoul Walsh’s first feature as director and is widely credited as one of American cinema’s earliest full-length gangster films, shot on location in New York’s Bowery for a street-level grit rare in 1915 melodrama. Long believed lost, it survived only through a rediscovered print and was added to the National Film Registry in 2000.
Background
Regeneration was Raoul Walsh’s first feature as a director and is widely cited as one of the earliest American feature-length gangster films. It was shot on location in New York’s Bowery, which gave the melodrama a street-level look unusual for its time. The film was long believed lost before a print was rediscovered, and it was added to the National Film Registry in 2000. Rockliffe Fellowes plays the lead, and Anna Q. Nilsson co-stars.
What to watch for
The film follows an orphaned boy who grows up in New York’s slums and leads a criminal gang, but his path bends toward redemption when a wealthy social worker takes an interest in him. Watch the early scenes of street life and gang activity, which were filmed on the Bowery and give the film its texture. The reform plot is handled in melodramatic terms typical of the period, and the second half turns toward the relationship between the boy and his benefactor. The climax is a violent confrontation aboard a burning excursion boat, a set piece that closes the story and shows Walsh’s early skill with action.
