Intercutting (cross-cutting) between still tableaux of the poor in the bread line and the lavish, active parties of the wealthy speculator somewhat anticipates the collision montage which became a hallmark of the politically charged Soviet cinema a decade or so later.
In 1994, A Corner in Wheat was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".[2][3]
The film was released on December 13, 1909. Because of an upsurge in political populism, audiences reacted to the film positively. Before A Corner in Wheat, Griffith avoided making political statements in his work. After the film's success, he began to make bolder statements about society and politics, such as famously championing white supremacy in The Birth of a Nation (1915).[4]
^Woods, Frank E., Writing, G. W Bitzer, Frank E Powell, Grace Henderson, James Kirkwood, Linda Arvidson, W. Christy Miller, et al. A Corner in Wheat. United States: Biograph, 1909. Video. https://www.loc.gov/item/2012600307/
^Eagan, Daniel (2010). America's film legacy: the authoritative guide to the landmark movies in the National Film Registry. National Film Preservation Board (U.S.). New York: Continuum. p. 20. ISBN9781441116475. OCLC676697377.