"The Sheik" and "The Son of the Sheik," made Valentino a smoldering screen icon. However, "Monsieur Beaucaire" is one of his most richly faceted roles, and he shines in every aspect.
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SCREENING ROOM
ANOTHER DIMENSION OF VALENTINO'S TALENT

A tribute to Rudolph Valentino joins Cinecon and Laemmle Theaters' "Around the World in Sixty Days" series as Labor Day highlights.

Los Angeles Times
By Kevin Thomas
Times Staff Writer
August 28 2003

The Silent Movie Theatre celebrates Labor Day weekend with three Rudolph Valentino pictures, including the rarely seen "Monsieur Beaucaire."

The other two, "The Sheik" and "The Son of the Sheik," are familiar. While it's always fun to see the two films that have made Valentino a smoldering screen icon, it's a special treat to get to see one of the numerous other Valentino films still extant that rarely if ever surface — especially one as delightful as "Monsieur Beaucaire," based on the Booth Tarkington novel and play and directed by Sidney Olcott at a leisurely yet effective pace.

Valentino is perfect as the dashing, witty and carefree duke of Chartres, a great favorite at the court of his cousin Louis XV (Lowell Sherman) and the king's paramour Madame Pompadour (Paulette Duval). The duke enchants the ladies and entertains the entire court with his songs and lively personality. Louis has it in mind that the duke will be betrothed to another cousin, Princess Henriette (Bebe Daniels), freshly arrived at the court directly from the convent and so naive, prudish and loyal to Louis' neglected queen (Lois Wilson) that she dares to snub Pompadour, either not realizing or not caring that the weak Louis is dominated by his all-powerful mistress.

Since Henriette sees the duke as a Pompadour loyalist instead of the consummate court realist that he is, the betrothal is in trouble from the start. That Henriette is as attracted to the duke as all the other ladies of the court is not enough to prevent the duke from finally escaping Versailles to land in Bath in the guise of a French barber, Monsieur Beaucaire. In Bath he seeks out fresh adventures and romance.

The film affords Valentino one of his most richly faceted roles, and he shines in every aspect. He projects into the duke and his alter ego what must surely have been his own contradictory feelings about being such a potent babe magnet, while longing to be free of the thrall of his admirers. He is consistently good-natured and plays with a subtle tongue-in-cheek.

Valentino is also a good sport. By now his second wife, art director and costume designer Natacha Rambova, had become a dominant force in his career, nearly wrecking it with her artistic pretensions —

"Monsieur Beaucaire" did well enough in the cities but was nearly a dud in the sticks — and she encases her husband in silks and satins and yards of lace. Ironically, her costumes actually set off Valentino's masculinity, underlining the duke's craving for a life of more action, and one scene, in which Valentino is bare to the waist, reveals his muscular physique.

"Monsieur Beaucaire" (1924) also confirms the promise of Rambova's bold designs for Nazimova's "Salome" (1923): Her exquisite costumes and restrained, elegant sets for this production reveal her as a major talent in her own right.
 

Screenings
The Silent Movie Theatre
What: "Monsieur Beaucaire," Friday, 8 p.m.; "The Sheik," Saturday, 8 p.m.; "The Son of the Sheik," Sunday, 8 p.m.
Where: 611 N. Fairfax Ave., L.A.
Info: (323) 655-252

calendarlive.com: Another dimension of Valentino's talent
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