The moment had to come eventually. I can't watch silent movies and leave out Rudolph Valentino forever. You might expect I'd start with "The Sheik" (which was the only movie of his I had heard of before starting my project), but instead I chose "The Eagle" from 1925 without knowing much about either film. Let's see if it was a good choice.
This is the plot (with spoilers).
We dive right in with Lieutenant Vladimir Doubrovsky from the Imperial Guard saving a runaway carriage with a lovely young lady (and her aunt) in it.
He has been watched by Czarina Catherine the Great whose favorite horse he has unknowingly taken. She's more than impressed by the handsome lieutenant, she even hints at making him a general ... but there's a price Vladimir isn't prepared to pay.
He declines and leaves when Catherine goes off to slip into something more comfortable. Understandable ... maybe. Smart? Not so much. The snubbed empress puts a price on his head.
To make things even worse, he learns from a letter that his father has been tricked out of his estate by the new neighbor Kyrilla and wants him to appeal to the Czarina. Bad timing.
Coming home to find his father dying, Vladimir swears vengeance against Kyrilla and his kin and becomes The Black Eagle (just look at that clever mask).
One day his gang brings back Kyrilla's daughter Mascha. She's the young lady from the carriage, but she doesn't recognize him and lets him know that "she doesn't associate with masked men as a rule". Of course he lets her go.
At the post station, Vladimir meets Monsieur Le Blanc, the new French tutor for Kyrilla's daughter. He decides to pose as the new tutor himself, and just when he wants to stab Kyrilla, Mascha comes in. When they shake hands, Mascha notices the signet ring she has seen on The Black Eagle before, but Vladimir says that he had been held up by the bandit who gave him the ring to pass it on to her.
After a "little dinner", Kyrilla asks Vladimir to go to his wine cellar to get a bottle. It's a cruel trick he plays on guests as there's a bear on a chain in the cellar. Mascha is outraged and goes in there. The chain snaps, the bear turns on her and Vladimir shoots him.
At night, Mascha notices how The Black Eagle goes into her father's room carrying a pistol and she follows him. Despite her father imploring her to shoot him, however, she tells him to go.
Her father appoints the "French tutor" to be his bodyguard and Mascha doesn't know what to do knowing who he really is.
Finally she threatens to give away his identity, but can't do it. Meanwhile Kyrilla's cossacks have found The Black Eagle's second in command, but before he gets whipped, Vladimir admits who he is.
Mascha confesses her love to him and they escape through a secret passage, but they get caught between the Czarina's and Kyrilla's cossacks and Vladimir is imprisoned.
The death warrant is signed and Vladimir's last wish - to marry Mascha - is fulfilled.
The Czarina is not willing to forgive Vladimir even if General Kuschka (who was not as averse to Catherine's suggestions as Vladimir) tries to convince her to let him go. When hearing about his execution, however, she's overcome with grief - and when Kuschka asks her to sign the passport for a "Monsieur Le Blanc" and she finds out that the shots she has heard were just a demonstration, she graciously waves to the young couple driving off into their future.
I really didn't know much at all about Rudolph Valentino. I knew he was born in Italy, that he became the first "Latin Lover", that he had a lot of female fans, and that he died young, with only 31 years (100 years ago on August 23th). In fact, this was one of his last movies. And what a fun one it was!
After a Hollywood hiatus and studio change in the early 20s, "The Eagle" was an attempt to bring Valentino back, not only for his female fan base, but also male viewers.
We know how successful Douglas Fairbanks was with his mix of adventure, stunts, and humor, and "The Eagle" has all of that as well. I had expected the adventure and stunts, but I was surprised at all the chuckles right from the start.
Vilma Bánky as Mascha and Valentino had a great chemistry, also because she's not just the helpless lady who needs saving, but stands up to The Black Eagle. I think I'll have to look up some of her other films as I really liked her a lot in this one.
Louise Dresser was wonderful as Catherine, especially in the scene with Vladimir. That scene is particularly funny to me because it puts Valentino on the other side, not being the one seducing the woman, but being shocked by her trying to seduce him. His looks were hilarious.
The adventure may not offer much new - think "Robin Hood" or "Zorro" - but it's very well done (the only scenes I didn't like were those with the bear and I don't think I have to explain that).
The production design was beautiful and the costumes were amazing!
I enjoyed the movie immensely, so to reply to myself - yes, it was a very good choice! (Sorry, Doug, I still love you.)
This is the plot (with spoilers).
We dive right in with Lieutenant Vladimir Doubrovsky from the Imperial Guard saving a runaway carriage with a lovely young lady (and her aunt) in it.
He has been watched by Czarina Catherine the Great whose favorite horse he has unknowingly taken. She's more than impressed by the handsome lieutenant, she even hints at making him a general ... but there's a price Vladimir isn't prepared to pay.
He declines and leaves when Catherine goes off to slip into something more comfortable. Understandable ... maybe. Smart? Not so much. The snubbed empress puts a price on his head.
To make things even worse, he learns from a letter that his father has been tricked out of his estate by the new neighbor Kyrilla and wants him to appeal to the Czarina. Bad timing.
Coming home to find his father dying, Vladimir swears vengeance against Kyrilla and his kin and becomes The Black Eagle (just look at that clever mask).
One day his gang brings back Kyrilla's daughter Mascha. She's the young lady from the carriage, but she doesn't recognize him and lets him know that "she doesn't associate with masked men as a rule". Of course he lets her go.
At the post station, Vladimir meets Monsieur Le Blanc, the new French tutor for Kyrilla's daughter. He decides to pose as the new tutor himself, and just when he wants to stab Kyrilla, Mascha comes in. When they shake hands, Mascha notices the signet ring she has seen on The Black Eagle before, but Vladimir says that he had been held up by the bandit who gave him the ring to pass it on to her.
After a "little dinner", Kyrilla asks Vladimir to go to his wine cellar to get a bottle. It's a cruel trick he plays on guests as there's a bear on a chain in the cellar. Mascha is outraged and goes in there. The chain snaps, the bear turns on her and Vladimir shoots him.
 |
| The camera started at the end and then traveled backwards along the middle of the long table, an amazing shot! |
At night, Mascha notices how The Black Eagle goes into her father's room carrying a pistol and she follows him. Despite her father imploring her to shoot him, however, she tells him to go.
Her father appoints the "French tutor" to be his bodyguard and Mascha doesn't know what to do knowing who he really is.
Finally she threatens to give away his identity, but can't do it. Meanwhile Kyrilla's cossacks have found The Black Eagle's second in command, but before he gets whipped, Vladimir admits who he is.
Mascha confesses her love to him and they escape through a secret passage, but they get caught between the Czarina's and Kyrilla's cossacks and Vladimir is imprisoned.
The death warrant is signed and Vladimir's last wish - to marry Mascha - is fulfilled.
The Czarina is not willing to forgive Vladimir even if General Kuschka (who was not as averse to Catherine's suggestions as Vladimir) tries to convince her to let him go. When hearing about his execution, however, she's overcome with grief - and when Kuschka asks her to sign the passport for a "Monsieur Le Blanc" and she finds out that the shots she has heard were just a demonstration, she graciously waves to the young couple driving off into their future.
 |
| General Kuschka, you sly old fox. |
I really didn't know much at all about Rudolph Valentino. I knew he was born in Italy, that he became the first "Latin Lover", that he had a lot of female fans, and that he died young, with only 31 years (100 years ago on August 23th). In fact, this was one of his last movies. And what a fun one it was!
After a Hollywood hiatus and studio change in the early 20s, "The Eagle" was an attempt to bring Valentino back, not only for his female fan base, but also male viewers.
We know how successful Douglas Fairbanks was with his mix of adventure, stunts, and humor, and "The Eagle" has all of that as well. I had expected the adventure and stunts, but I was surprised at all the chuckles right from the start.
Vilma Bánky as Mascha and Valentino had a great chemistry, also because she's not just the helpless lady who needs saving, but stands up to The Black Eagle. I think I'll have to look up some of her other films as I really liked her a lot in this one.
Louise Dresser was wonderful as Catherine, especially in the scene with Vladimir. That scene is particularly funny to me because it puts Valentino on the other side, not being the one seducing the woman, but being shocked by her trying to seduce him. His looks were hilarious.
The adventure may not offer much new - think "Robin Hood" or "Zorro" - but it's very well done (the only scenes I didn't like were those with the bear and I don't think I have to explain that).
The production design was beautiful and the costumes were amazing!
I enjoyed the movie immensely, so to reply to myself - yes, it was a very good choice! (Sorry, Doug, I still love you.)
 |
| A selection of funny scenes 1. The horse balks just when Catherine wants to get up. 2. Vladimir is disappointed when he finds Mascha hasn't waved at him, but her aunt. 3. Catherine tries to get Vladimir drunk, but they both pour their vodka into plant pots. 4. When Mascha is abducted by the Black Eagle gang, her aunt tries to sic Caesar on them. 5. Distracted by Mascha's beauty, Vladimir has put much too much pepper in his soup. 6. Mascha thinks Vladimir is trying to strangle her father, but it was just a massage for his headache (the most violent one I've ever seen!). |
P.S. If you want to read my reviews on two talkies about Catherine the Great, by the way, you can find them here: "The Scarlet Empress" with Marlene Dietrich and "The Rise of Catherine the Great" with Elisabeth Bergner.
Sources and further reading:
1. Gwenda Young: The Eagle. Essay for A Day of Silents 2023. On: San Francisco Silent Film Festival
2. Fritzi Kramer: The Eagle (1925) - A Silent Film Review. On: Movies Silently, February 4, 2013
3. Lea Stans: Rudolph Valentino - The Man Behind the Image. On: Silent-ology, March 12, 2019
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