Bardelys the Magnificent (1926)

Directed by King Vidor. Starring John Gilbert, Eleanor Boardman, Roy D’Arcy, George K. Arthur, Arthur Lubin, Lionel Belmore, Emily Fitzroy, Theodore von Eltz.

Adaptation of the same-named Rafael Sabatini novel, story is set in France during the reign of Louis XIII and depicts notorious rake Bardelys (Gilbert), cuckolding married aristocrats left and right before accepting a wager from a villainous count (D’Arcy) to woo and wed noble daughter Boardman (as the count’s revenge for her rejection). An entertaining patchwork of brash bravado, speedy swordplay, swooning amid the drooping willows, and marvelous stunts; it takes time for the seedy protagonist to become likable, but dashing Gilbert plays the role like a culmination of Rudolph Valentino and Douglas Fairbanks. Mundane plotting and a poky pace during the first half can’t diminish the charm of this light, romantic adventure. The third reel is believed lost forever, and has been replaced with trailer footage, production stills, and explanatory title cards for its reissue over seventy years after the original prints were destroyed. Try to spot a nineteen year-old John Wayne as a guard in the gallows scene (just his second film appearance).

71/100