Silent film fans take note. Image has recently released on DVD the Killiam Collection version of The Eagle (1925) starring Rudolph Valentino. A swashbuckling period piece, the story opens with Czarina Catherine II ("the Great") becomes romantically infatuated with a dashing young Cossack lieutenant named Vladimir Dubrovsky. But he rejects her advances, thus incurring her wrath. Vladimir returns to his barracks to learn that his father has sent him a letter informing him that the Dubrovsky family estate is about to be seized by Kyrilla Troekouroff. Returning home, he finds his father a shattered man. Out of favor with the imperial court and devastated by his father's ignoble death, Dubrovsky vows revenge against Troekouroff and disguises himself as "The Eagle," the Robin Hood-like masked leader of a gang of bandits. Complications ensue when Dubrovsky falls in love with Mascha, Troekouroff's daughter. He is eventually captured by the imperial guard, leaving him utterly at the Czarina's mercy.

By 1925, Rudolph Valentino was badly in need of a hit. In spite of his considerable fan base, none of his recent films had lived up to the commercial success of The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (1921) and The Sheik (1921); Monsieur Beaucaire (1924), in particular, was criticized for making Valentino too much of a primping dandy. Much to her dismay, Valentino's wife Natacha Rambova was banned from the set of The Eagle (1925) by his new contract with United Artists; the producers apparently felt that her undue influence had caused Valentino to make poor career choices and weighed down the productions. This sudden intervention was likely one of the factors contributing to the couple's subsequent separation and divorce. However, critics and audiences responded well to Valentino's more active, masculine persona in The Eagle, which was hailed as his comeback vehicle. The film also displays Valentino's gift for comedy. Mordaunt Hall of the New York Times wrote: "In this production, which might suit several male celebrities, including the agile Douglas Fairbanks, Mr. Valentino acquits himself with distinction."

Hungarian-born leading lady Vilma Banky (1898-1991), born Vilma Lonchit, was popularly known as "The Hungarian Rhapsody." She made films in Austria, Hungary and France before Samuel Goldwyn brought her to Hollywood to play opposite Valentino. The Eagle was her first American film; she appeared once more with the actor in his last film, The Son of the Sheik (1926). On her appearance in The Eagle Mordaunt Hall wrote, "...Miss Banky is so lovely to look upon that her beauty makes the hero's gallantry all the more convincing." Unfortunately, her heavy accent made her a casualty of the transition to sound; upon her retirement from films in the early 1930s, her withdrawal from public life was so complete that she even requested that her death not be publicized.

Clarence Brown (1890-1987) was one of Hollywood's most versatile directors during the studio era; his films ranged from the 1920 adaptation of The Last of the Mohicans (which he finished when Maurice Tourneur was injured) to the family classics National Velvet (1944) and The Yearling (1946). Brown's sure hand as a director, especially in set pieces such as the banquet sequence, confirms The Eagle's reputation as one of the silent era's most entertaining costume adventures as well as an ideal vehicle for Valentino's talents.

The Image DVD of The Eagle looks much better than any previous transfer of this title on 16mm, VHS or any other format. Except for a few brief seconds of frame weaving here and there, the black and white balance looks great, image clarity is sharp and there isn't that much noticeable print damage to a film made 77 years ago. The restoration is credited to Karl Malkames and the theatre organ score is by Lee Erwin.

For more information on The Eagle and other Valentino films, visit Image Entertainment.To purchase a copy of The Eagle, visit Movies Unlimited.

By James Steffen