AllMovie

After a series of less-than-stellar pictures, Norma Talmadge tried something a little different with this sentimental romance, which spans a period of nearly 60 years. Mary Carlton (Talmadge) is in her seventies and her husband, John (Eugene O'Brien), is deathly ill. While writing in her diary, Mary falls asleep and dreams about her life with John, starting from their romance in 1865, when he was a clerk for her father, William Marlowe (George Nichols). Because of parental disapproval, the couple elopes, leaving England for the American West. Their ranch is attacked several years later by outlaws and their baby dies. After years of struggle the couple succeeds, has four children, and returns to England. Mary's faith in the marriage is shaken when she discovers that John has had an affair with Mrs. Manwaring (Gertrude Astor) -- and that she wasn't the only one. Mary suffers through it (it's not a Norma Talmadge film unless she suffers) and forgives her husband. When she awakens from her dreams, the doctor tells her that John has passed the crisis and will recover. Nine years later, in 1933, Mary Pickford would remake this film as a talkie with Leslie Howard. It was Pickford's last film. Frank Borzage directed both versions.