Listonixio Fresh and Exciting

WillSushyMedia This movie was so-so. It had it's moments, but wasn't the greatest.

ThrillMessage There are better movies of two hours length. I loved the actress'performance.

Mathilde the Guild Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

thinbeach Heyst is a man who lives in isolation and peace on a secluded Island, but while doing business at a hotel on the mainland encounters Alma, an attractive violinist who is being abused in her profession. He takes pity on her, and as she wishes to escape, steals her back to the Island with him. Schomberg, the owner of the hotel, desired Alma for himself, and teams up with a group of criminals in order to win her back. The criminals travel to the Island, and once there it is one betrayal after another. The girl tries to please both Ricardo and Heyst in order to save herself. Ricardo, desiring the girl for himself, turns against their criminal leader Mr. Jones, as does Pedro who suddenly sees an opportunity to avenge Mr. Jones for murdering his brother some years ago. A couple of these characters die, one survives, and Heyst and Alma suddenly realise they love each other. For some reason we never get closure on what happens to Pedro or Schomberg, and the film ends with a few plot threads hanging.It is essentially an early pirate film, violence and adventure, and of course, sex appeal, with Alma spending much of the third act in a dress with her shoulders bare, which was fairly raunchy for the time. It was perhaps quite a spectacle in 1919, but pales in comparison to the achievements of modern films. And while the winding plot keeps us engaged, it all unravels in the end. Mr. Jones, leader of a criminal gang, can not hit his target with a pistol from five metres, nor can Ricardo, expert knife thrower, hit his, but Heyst, peaceful man who has never held a gun before in his life, can hit his target from a greater distance. Actually, not much in the third act makes a great deal of sense. I guess they were hoping the gunfights would distract you from that, but that trick won't work in 2018!Thematically, it is about the strong allure of women, and how their very nature can turn men from their peaceful ways, and against each other into wickedness. To the films credit, the scenery was nice, as was the use of the smoking volcano as both metaphor and potential hazard.

MartinHafer Axel Heyst (Jack Holt) is a strange would-be author. Instead of the usual way of writing a book, he movies to a Pacific island and lives the life of a hermit to get inspiration. My wife is a very successful writer, though she has never needed such inspiration (thank goodness)! One day, he has to take a trip to civilization and goes to another island. There, quite unexpectedly, the hermit comes upon a beleaguered lady (Seena Owen) who is being abused by a band leader (Wallace Beery--hiding under a lot of fake hair and a beard) and his nasty wife. While Holt wanted to remain alone on his island paradise, he can't stand to see the lady being treated this way and helps her sneak off to his refuge.The reaction of Beery didn't make a whole lot of sense. Sure, he might have been mad that this lady ran off and left his band, but it was just one lady--yet he vows vengeance and goes to incredible lengths to find her. Later, when he learns where she is, he sends a gang of scum (which included Bull Montana and Lon Chaney) to get her by lying to them about a treasure on the island--saying they should torture the man and woman to learn where it is! The problem is that Holt is an avowed pacifist and he cannot bring himself to fight these ruffians when they arrive. What will happen? What will become of the love that is blossoming between Owen and Holt? Tune in and find out--though I will say that part of the ending (having to do with a fire) was 100% unexpected and shocking! This is an agreeable little adventure film-romance. While it's not one that will change your life, it is worth seeing for its odd plot, a chance to see Chaney playing a Hispanic man and to see Holt, who was quite the matinée idol in the 1920s--though by the 30s he'd become more of a supporting actor as his hair thinned. Decent acting, a decent script and a nice tropical look make this a winner considering it was made in 1919.By the way, this is bundled with THE WICKED DARLING (also 1919) on DVD, though fortunately the print of VICTORY is much better.

Randy Byers I had to watch this movie three times before I finally started to catch the plot details, because it's just so beautiful to look at that I don't really care about the story. All of the Maurice Tourneur films I've seen are visually fascinating to one degree or another, but this one takes the cake, even over THE BLUE BIRD (which is admittedly a far different kind of movie). I can imagine Josef von Sternberg studying this movie for clues on how to create an exotic look out of papier mache and shadows. (Okay, that papier mache volcano looks pretty silly, but that's about the only major lapse I've noticed.) Griffith may have taught people how to edit, but I'm beginning to think Tourneur taught them how to compose the frame for depth effects and complex texture. The tinting is very beautiful, too, and I love the effect when Heyst blows out the lamp.But once I focused on the plot, I was impressed on how well-constructed it was. The story moves along at a smooth, smart pace, and the tension builds very nicely. This is a pretty generic thriller in many ways, with a generic romance at the heart of it, but it's put together so effortlessly and with such visual charm that it seems fresh. Still, the real dramatic motor is the bad boys, particularly Lon Chaney as the psychopathic but strangely good-natured Ricardo and Ben Deeley as the cold, creepy Mr. Jones (looking like he stepped out of a Fritz Lang movie). There's also a good twist in the history and brute plan of Bull Montana's Pedro. Seena Owen's role is underwritten, but her weary, vulnerable resolve is beginning to grow on me.Maybe this is where the movies start for me. Certainly it's the earliest movie to hold me entranced from stem to stern, although the German classics begin full-bore within a year of this. But there's still a lot more to see from the era.

fred3f Minor Spoilers ahead. Maurice Troureur is one of the great directors of early cinema, and one of the least well known. He was particularly adept at creating atmosphere and composing his sets and shots (this skill is called "mise-en-scene"). Many of his films are lost and many others are simply unavailable except on bad bootleg VHS copies. "Victory," is an exception. The film, has many interesting elements, but one of the most interesting is how it foreshadows both film noir and Hitchcock. With deft touches of mise-en-scene, Tourneur, creates a steamy, sordid atmosphere in this creepy film. The three villains are perfectly cast. There is the cold emotionless intellectual criminal who kills as a means to an end (Ben Deeley), the strong brute, who has deep loyalties and deeper hatreds (Bull Montana), and finally the sadistic, killer who loves to see his victims squirm (Lon Chaney). The first shot of this charming threesome shows them looking down from the deck of a ship. The camera hangs on them, giving us time to study their personalities written so plainly on their faces. You won't see another scene like this until the 30's. Lon Chaney appears here in one of his early roles. This film was a bit of a break for Chaney. Prior to this, his roles were not as interesting, but in this film Tournour brought the best in him and from here on out he would develop his famous acting persona. The malevolent atmosphere and suspense builds in a way that is so Hitchcockian that you have to recheck the date of the film to decide who influenced whom. The lecherous, cowardly and vindictive innkeeper is perfectly played by Wallace Beery, but it is Lon Chaney who stands out as he sadistically plays mind games with anyone who has the misfortune to be around. You feel as if he might suddenly kill someone for no better reason than to improve his boredom. The other major player is Seena Owen. Largely forgotten today, probably because she made so few films. She shows herself to be a noir heroine that is easily the equal to Lon Chaney in this film. Beautiful, sensuous and knowing, the scenes between her and Chaney are priceless. In one, Chaney attempts to rape her. She successfully fights him off. As they look at each other from different parts of the room, panting from the fight, Chaney compliments her on being able to resist him. She smiles, as she adjusts her clothing, and thanks him for the compliment. A scene like that in 1919! You wouldn't see another to match it until the mid 1930's. Is it the first film noir? Did the film influence Hitchcock? Who can say? But one thing is certain, the film is well worth watching.