Beyond The Rocks (DVD)
APPROX. 85 MINS. - PROD. YEAR: 1922 - MPA RATING: NR
" “Beyond the Rocks” is a classic tale of star-crossed lovers.
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In "Delicious Little Devil," Murray plays a hat-check girl who gets fired, then masquerades at the mistress of a disreputable duke in order to get a high-paying job as a cabaret dancer. The film works entirely because of Murray´s irresistible magnetism; Valentino is a limp noodle, and the real tragedy of this sometimes-comedy is that Mae is forced to choose between a lecherous duke and milquetoast Rudy. You may not know Mae Murray, whose most famous role was probably in Erich von Stroheim´s "The Merry Widow," but she is something special. It must be those bee-stung lips.
"Delicious Little Devil" was also recovered and preserved by the Nederlands Filmmuseum in 1991. Far more than a mere extra, it´s easily the better of the two films on the DVD.
Video
Given the circumstances, the image quality is absolutely stunning. One of the extras illustrates just how much work went into the restoration, and it sure pays off. A few shots were too badly damaged to be restored, including one exterior shot of a train which is little more than a blur on screen, but who´s complaining? The image quality on "Delicious Little Devil" is less impressive. I don´t think the restoration there was nearly as extensive. However, the main problem is the considerable flaking, rather than any loss of resolution. I´m rating this one a "10" for video in recognition of the extraordinary restoration efforts by the Nederlands Filmmuseum.
Audio
The DVD is presented in Dolby Digital Stereo. The score on "Beyond the Rocks" sounds fabulous, which is obviously all that matters for this silent film. In case you´re wondering, the Dutch intertitles from the source print have been replaced with English intertitles by Milestone.
Extras
In addition to "Delicious Little Devil," this DVD is packed with several short, but illuminating extras.
In just six minutes, Giovanna Fossati provides a concise, yet detailed description of the restoration process, which just about any viewer will learn from. The film required both digital and photochemical restoration, each of which presented its own challenges. Usually, these "about the restoration" features drag on far too long, but in this case, I could have listened to Fossati talk for another hour.
An even shorter feature (3 min.) shows Henry Vrienten at work while composing the new score for "Beyond the Rocks." This is a poetic, lovely little piece.
A Dutch TV program (20 min.) about the finding of "Beyond the Rocks" actually has two subjects: the discovery of the film, and the equally fascinating story of collector Joop van Liempd. A local eccentric and obsessive-compulsive, van Liempd sounds an awful lot like a Dutch incarnation of Henri Langlois, though without the cachet of the Cinémathèque or a cult following of cinephiles to help make him famous.
An 85-minute wire recording of Gloria Swanson from 1955 is used as a "commentary track" to "Beyond the Rocks." I only listened to a few minutes of this one, so I can´t offer an opinion on it. You also have the option of watching the film with a short (approx. 2 min.) introduction by Martin Scorsese.
The disc also includes two Valentino Trailers, and a Stills Gallery. Finally, the DVD offers a considerable amount of historical documentation which is accessible by DVD-Rom from your computer: original scripts, press kits, etc.
Film Value
"Beyond the Rocks" is more an exciting historical find than an engaging motion picture, but the opportunity to see Swanson and Valentino on screen together is certainly worth your time. Its very existence is a testament to the vital contributions that film preservationists can make, and anybody who cares about cinema should extend warm thanks to the Nederlands Filmmuseum for their tireless efforts in making this movie available today. In fact, thanks to this DVD, far more people have a chance to see "Beyond the Rocks" in 2006 than did back in 1922. The inclusion of the sharp and entertaining "Delicious Little Devil" as an extra makes this DVD worthy of a strong recommendation.
Milestone (along with New Yorker Video) has released two impressive historical finds on DVD this month. If you are interested in "Beyond the Rocks," you should also check out the Milestone release of "Electric Edwardians," an amazing selection of short films from the recently discovered and restored Mitchell and Kenyon collection.
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