A Christmas Accident (1912)  

A Silent Christmas

Mr. Gilton (William Wadsworth) and his wife (Mrs. William Bechtel) don't have children, which for the tight and crotchety Mr. Gilton is a good thing as children are nuisances which cost money. The thing is in the adjoining house lives Mr. and Mrs. Bilton (Augustus Phillips, Ida Williams) who are broke because they have a lot of children but they are wealthy in happiness. In fact Mr. Bilton manages to put up with the cantankerous Mr. Gilton's moaning as he has his children and they are all happy and grateful despite being poor. But as Christmas approaches something happens which causes Mr. Gilton to change his mind about his neighbours.

There is always something quite fascinating about watching really old silent movies as not only do you get a snapshot of what life was like but you also get to see what passed as entertainment back then and whether or not it still does. As such in the 1912 short "A Christmas Accident" you do get this simplistic look at two homes; one unhappy because of a miserly man who has nagged his wife all their life together and another where they take gratitude in the small things and don't worry about what they don't have. It is a pleasant little drama with a touch of "A Christmas Carol" about it with Mr. Gilton being a miser and grump who has a change of heart, yet it has its own elements which make it not feel too similar.

What I will say is that because "A Christmas Accident" features an original storyline you do need to pay attention and take some guesses when it comes to what is going on as this doesn't have many on screen prompts to tell you what is happening in a scene.

What this all boils down to is that "A Christmas Accident" is an interesting look at an old silent Christmas movie which has a charming tale but is short of on screen prompts which means you need to pay attention to follow.

Tags: Christmas Movies