Beyond the Rocks (1922)

Alright so now to talk about the film that prompted this whole blog! Last night before I started this blog, I was watching “Beyond the Rocks,” and half-way through I wanted more than anything to write about it. I hadn’t felt inspired to write anything in a really long time, so I paused it, ran to my laptop and started what would become the backbone of this posting. My excitement over the film was probably heightened by the fact that Martin Scorsese does a really great job introducing it at the beginning. He discusses its value as a piece of silent film history; it made me feel that same “ahhh” feeling I had the first time I saw “The Searchers” in a movie theater…but that’s for another time…

“Beyond the Rocks” is the only film that Rudolph Valentino and Gloria Swanson co-star in, which was a big deal at the time, because studios usually only cast one big star in a film – something about too much star power on the screen – I don’t know; it’s crazy talk! The next crazy thing is that until 2006 the film was thought to be lost; how do you loose a movie that changed the way director’s cast their films? But then, the Netherland Film Museum found some lost footage and was able to restore almost the entire film. Bits of it are still very grainy, but it’s worth powering through and that’s really just two maybe three brief clips. The final crazy thing is that the movie basically bombed in its day (probably why it was lost); it was considered “a little unreal and hectic” (Photoplay Magazine). Unreal maybe, but how many Hollywood love stories are “real.” Yeah, lots of hookers end up with billionaires! And for that matter, I don’t think very many hookers on Sunset Blvd. probably look like Julia Roberts. And as for hectic? I didn’t think so. A friend just asked me whether or not these movies are “really good” or “esoterically good.” This one maybe could have that esoteric goodness about it, but hey this is a silent film blog, so it’s ok to be esoteric!

This film is only the second Gloria Swanson film I’ve seen. To be entirely honest, though I enjoyed “Don’t Change Your Husband,” that movie left me thinking, “I don’t quite get why she’s such a big deal.” However, “Beyond the Rocks” shows why she was a star. The initial “overacting ingénue” feeling of her character (Theodora) is quickly replaced, as the character grows-up, with a languid yet still demure character who can seemingly and without effort drape herself across the set and convey a range of very sincere and deep emotions. It’s that, every man wants her and every woman wants to know “how the heck does she pull that off” quality that makes a star luminescent on the screen. And she does it with such ease and an innocent coyness, I can’t even think of a modern star that could compare. I mean I could do without the nasty, has to be black not red, lipstick, but that’s silent movie make-up and she, well she’s a silent movie goddess. The pairing of Swanson and Valentino was inspired; and though the movie was not appreciated in it’s time, I for one am glad the Dutch saved it!

Aside from the obvious star appeal and fantastic acting on the parts of both the stars, it is also a great love story. Feels a little long in the middle; I wouldn’t recommend it as your first silent film, but it is good. The story line calls to one’s mind films like Dr. Zhivago or The Thorn birds; a love that is made in the heavens yet impossible because Fate has decided to play the role of a Greek god, reeking mischief on the lives and loves of us mere mortals. The most memorable moment of the film is about half-way through, when Hector (Valentino) enters the party at Beachleigh (somebody’s fancy 1920s mansion – oh yeah, the one thing all the critics could agree on was the “lavish” nature of the sets). Theodora turns and seeing him, their eyes lock. In that moment, Swanson’s expression captures the essence of why every girl dreams of a moment like this. The drama, of a love thought gone, and the overwhelming joy of it returning; all else falls away, the fellow revelers forgotten. It’s also a moment where the power of silent film acting shines so clearly. So much is said by their eyes, you don’t need words and as silent actors (superb ones at that) they convey a thousand emotions with one glance. It’s beautiful; it’s also the moment I ran and grabbed my laptop.
I don’t want to give away too much, but I shall end with this: in the end, love, as always, is the one thing that could defeat the mischief of the gods. Selflessness defies Fate, but will Psyche have her Eros? You’ll have to rent it and find out!

Next up: Nosferatu…enough love stories; I’m ready to be terrified!