Mad Whirl, The

2216. THE MAD WHIRL (1925-USA). With MAY McAVOY, JACK MULHALL. Screen treatment by LEWIS MILESTONE. This is a provocative drama of clashing beliefs and cultures. It is set during the Roaring Twenties, when young people of means suddenly found themselves enjoying freedoms that their elders had never dreamed of. Bathtub gin and the Charleston were the rage. A woman could smoke a cigarette and be in the company of a man without the nuisance of a chaperon. Those who were in middle age during the 1920s had come of age during the Victorian era; perhaps they understandably might be jealous of the Younger Generation. Such is the case with the super wealthy Herringtons. Mr. H. has been “bitten by the Jazz microbe at sixty.” Mrs. H. “does at forty what she was not allowed to do at twenty.” They condone the wild behavior of their son Jack and his reckless friends. These jazz babies pass their days idly cavorting at the beach. Even though he may not know it, Jack Herrington is looking for something more substantial in his life. You can sense this when he becomes smitten with chaste, church-going Cathleen Gillis. Cathleen’s working-class father forbids her to see him. She likes Jack and attempts to “reform” him. Will Jack and Cathleen have a future? Most important of all, how will their relationship end up impacting on the elder Herringtons? The film also is of note as a very early writing credit of Lewis Milestone, who was soon to become a top Hollywood director. “Silent” film with music score. 64 minutes. “Silent” Romance