The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (1921)
-
79% of users liked it
(474 ratings)
The mystical novels of Vicente Blasco-Ibanez were much prized by ambitious silent filmmaker Rex Ingram, who filmed two of them in the 1920s, both ostensibly vehicles for his actress wife Alice Terry. The first of the two, Four Horseman of the Apocalypse, was infinitely more successful than the… More The mystical novels of Vicente Blasco-Ibanez were much prized by ambitious silent filmmaker Rex Ingram, who filmed two of them in the 1920s, both ostensibly vehicles for his actress wife Alice Terry. The first of the two, Four Horseman of the Apocalypse, was infinitely more successful than the second (Mare Nostrum), a fact that can be attributed to two little words: Rudolph Valentino. The quintessential Latin Lover stars as Julio, the scion of a wealthy Argentinian family. During the years prior to World War I, Julio's relatives relocate to Germany and France, with Julio opting for the latter country, where he opens an art studio. Here he carries on a torrid affair with Alice Terry, the wife of an attorney. When World War I breaks out, Terry joins the Red Cross and her husband enlists in the army, while the carefree Julio avoids involvement in the conflict. Only when visited by the spectres of the Four Horseman--war, conquest, famine, and death--does Julio don a uniform. His death is a symbolic sacrifice on behalf of Ms. Terry, whose husband has been blinded in the war: and, in an additional symbolic grace-note, Julio dies at the hands of his own cousin, now a German officer. The film's Big Money sequence was the one in which Rudolph Valentino danced the forbidden tango in a dingy, smoke-filled Argentinian cantina. That's what made him a star, not all that mumbo-jumbo about fate, destiny, and Four Horsemen. Proof that Valentino and not Blasco-Ibanez was the principal drawing card of this film was the 1962 remake, in which Glenn Ford portrays Julio. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Directed By
- Rex Ingram
- Written By
- Vicente Blasco Ibanez, June Mathis
- Genres
- Drama
Unrated,
- In Theaters
- Mar 6, 1921 Limited
- Studio
- Metro Pictures Corporation
Critic Reviews
-
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
Has not worn well with age.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
No Featured Audience Ratings Found…
Currently unavailable on Flixster
Also available on
Other Retailers
Not Available
Not Available
Not Available
Subscription Services
Not Available
Not Available
Not Available
Cast
-
Rudolph Valentino
as Julio Desnoyers
-
Alice Terry
as Marguerite Laurier
-
Pomeroy Cannon
as Madariaga the Centaur
-
Alan Hale
as Karl von Hartrott
-
Josef Swickard
as Marcelo Desnoyers
-
Nigel De Brulier
as Tchemoff
-
Brinsley Shaw
as Celendonio
-
Jean Hersholt
as Prof. von Hartrott
-
Wallace Beery
as Lt. Col. von Richtoffen
-
Bridgetta Clark
as Dona Luisa
-
Mabel Van Buren
as Elena
-
Bowditch Turner
as Argensolo
-
John St. Polis
as Etienne
-
Mark Fenton
as Sen. Lacour
-
Virginia Warwick
as Chichi
-
Derek Ghent
as Rene Lacour
-
Stuart Holmes
as Capt. von Hartrott
-
Edward Connelly
as Lodgekeeper
-
Georgia Woodthorpe
as Lodgekeeper's Wife
-
Kathleen Key
as Georgette
-
Jacques D'Auray
as Capt. d'Aubrey
-
Curt Rehfeld
as Maj. Blumhordt
-
Bull Montana
as The French Butler
-
Isabelle Keith
as The German Woman
-
Noble Johnson
as Con quest
-
Harry S. Northrup
as The Gen.
-
Beatrice Dominguez
as A Dancer
-
Arthur Hoyt
as Lieutenant
-
Claire de Lorez
as Mile. Lucette. the Model
