Way Down East

A young orphan girl is taken in by a kind family, as a servant. But when the father finds out she had been seduced and gave birth to a stillborn baby, he throws her out into the snow. His son, attracted to the girl, rescues her from a dramatic death in an ice-filled river, and marries her. Gripping scenes and a most touching performance by Lillian Gish, helped by the reality of the surroundings and fine camera work.