New-York tribune., 1921-03-07
On the Screen
"The Four Horsemen of the
Apocalypse" Makes Appeal
as Spectacle

In attempting to transfer the story
apocalypse to the screen, the Metro
Pictures Corporation had no easy task,
since the book takes in much Of the
world with generous sweep, and there
is no regard for continuity Of time.
The first public presentation Of the
long heralded film was given at the
Lyric Theater last night under the di-
rection of DR.. Hugo Riesenfeld 1t is a
Rex Ingram production. adapted from
Vicente Blasco Ibanez's book by June
Mathis
The unwieldness Of the story in book
form has been conveyed to the screen
in q more or less literal adaptation. 1t
lacks the smooth current that eIbanez
managed to give it through the magic
Of his storytelling style. The i'm
pressive moments in the picture are
isolated. When they come they are
worth while. But the effect of the
whole is spasmodic. We're it not for
the four horsemen gallopng contnu
ally across the screen the picture would
be q combination of the war film and
the everyday love triangle.
The spectacle of the Beast and the
four ACKNOWLEDGEMENT, War, Fam
inc and Deaths the outstanding fac
tor in the picture. The Beast is
spiked monstrosity belching forth fire
and smoke. Each horseman is more
terrible in aspect than the one before.
Riding together they make startling
and haunting picture and pave the way
for the war scenes that follow. The
effect of the galloping horsemen is
heightened by the musical accompani-
mentS.
Stirring Wartime Scenes
There is much of the war in "The
Four Horsemen." All the old stirring
scenes of Paris getting under arms and
men marching for the front that people
have tired of seeing. This is not al
lowed to drag, however, for the action
is swift and impetuous and the hu-
man interest is strong Ibancz's char
acters in themselves are sufficiently
pronounced in type to sustain close
observation.
While in the book Madariaga, the
Centaur, overshadows everything by
his strength of personality, he is q
subordinate figure in the picture and
his memory is forgotten almost as
soon as his will is read cutting off
his young nephew Julio. An attempt
is made to make him the cornerstone
OF the picture, but, willie he is an in
teresting and vivid old roue, as he
alternately lays and loves the work
ers on his huge Argentine estates and
passes on to his grandchildren some Of
his ckedness, he adds little to the pic
ture. 1t is spectacle first and fore
most. The human interest is sec
ondary.
Opens in Argentina
The story opens in the Argentine on
Madarlaga's huge estates, where men
live rough lives and are strong and
tough. The apple of the Centaurs eye
is Julio Desnoyers. his young grandson,
who speedily learns TO be as gay q dog
as his grandfather. After the death
of the old man the scene shifts to Paris
Here the love interest begins. Mar
guerltc Laurier, married woman, is
loved by Julio, who is studying art at
the time. Her husband finds them out
just on the eve of war being declared
The call to arms comes and Paris be-
comes vital, throbbing city. The war
is brought back with force as one
street scene after another is flashed
across the screen. By now the horse
men are gallopng, too. The picture
attains its dramatic zenith just here.
Marguerite's husband goes to war; her
brother goes; every one goes but Julio.
She holds him with the silken threads
of their passionate love. Julio's weak
ness of character and his development
are traced inch by inch. He is pre-
sented IS . lovable character in spite
Of his frailty
The cast includes Rudolph Valentino
as Julio,- Alice Terry as Marguerite,
pomeroy Cannon as Madariaga, John
Sainpolis as Laurier and Nigel de
Brulier as Tchernof, the man of mys-
terry who first describes the four horse
men. Various preliminaries are used
to heighten the effect of the picture
A foreword on the four horsemen by
DR.. Frank Crane is delivered by Henry
I,