After building his reputation on Hollywood "spectaculars," director
Herbert Brenon returned to his native British Isles, where he made several modest, intimate silent dramas. 12.10 was a bit faster-paced than most of these, but the subject matter called for a quicker approach. The story involves a British lord (Ben Webster) who takes a life-suspending drug to save the life of a child. The lord's feigned death somehow foils the wicked schemes of a Spanish secretary. Stage and film favorite
Marie Doro is atypically cast as the villainess. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide