The Barrier of Flames

The Barrier of Flames is a 1914 American short silent drama film, directed by Jack Harvey. It stars Shep the Dog, Helen Badgley, and Morgan Jones.[1] The film is about a "little child is saved from a fire by her devoted collie. Having rescued her he jumps from the roof of the burning building into a fire net."[1]

The Barrier of Flames
Directed by	Jack Harvey
Written by	Philip Lonergan
Starring	Shep the Dog, Helen Badgley, and Morgan Jones
Release date	December 15, 1914
Country	United States
Language	Silent

Plot

The mayor refuses to sign certain franchise bills which he believes to be dishonest, and when, unexpectedly, the political boss finds in his hands the means of coercing his superior, he determines to make the most of his opportunity. Little Helen, Mayor Southwick's child, straying away from an automobile party, gets lost in the woods. She comes to the house where the boss holds his secret conferences, and he orders his housekeeper to keep guard over the child while he motors to the city. His plan is to hold the child until her father has signed the bills. Meanwhile, the housekeeper wanders away to a neighbor's, leaving little Helen locked in an upper room. But the child's devoted collie, who misses her sorely, already is tracing her. Shep reaches the house just in time to rescue Helen. A fire has broken out while she is locked in alone. He alarms the firemen, climbs a ladder to Helen's room, and, jumping through a skylight, leads the rubber-coats to where the child is. With little Helen safe, Shep leaps from the top story of the burning house into the fire net

Reception

The film was well-received critically. The Moving Picture World wrote on December 26, 1914: "The big feature of this two-reel picture is not the story, but the incidents and especially the work of Shep, a collie, that acts in an astonishingly intelligent way and is the center of both excitement and pathos. He is the means of bringing the rescue to the Kidlet, shut up in a burning house - very well handled scenes. It is the picture in which Shep jumps out of the second story window into a fire net. The best scenes in the picture are worthy of a better story; but the offering is one that will make an especially strong appeal to all kinds of audiences. The direction is by John Harvey."[1]

References

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Reel Life, December 12, 1914

1. "The Barrier of Flames". Thanhouser.org. Archived from the original on 26 August 2014. Retrieved 23 August 2014.

External links

• The Barrier of Flames at the Internet Movie Database