This is not a movie about cowboys. It is a movie about the complexity of human nature, conscience, and the choices we make that define us. This movie makes you think. It is playful yet deep, and you just don’t know whom to root for.

How far would you go to get what you need? How do you reconcile duty and independence? How much do you owe your family? These are some of the questions explored by Shoes (1916), a silent film about a young woman who has to support herself, her parents, and her siblings on a paltry shopgirl’s salary, all while desperately needing and longing for a new pair of shoes.