The New York herald., 1921-03-07
-Four HOrsemen of
apocalypse Keeps
Throng in Thrills
Picture From Ibanez's Story
True to Life in Peace
and War.

Every once in a while q motloa pic
ture company spends money In floods.
uses thousands OF extras" employs
types" galore for It's principals, has al
legorical bits, builds expensive sets. and
yet, IN spite OF these customary movie
handicaps, produces a memorably sue
cessful picture. That is what the Metro
company did in The -Four Horsemen
OF the Apocalypse" uncovered for an in
definite run at the Lyric Theatre last
night which more than meets the chal-
lenge Of foreign competition flung BY
Passion"
This screen adaptation OF Vicente
Blasco Ibanez's famous novel has the
simmer of actual life In peace times
and the pulse OF bat:le-war seems to
be literally hurled on the screen. 1t Is
the greatest film to esne out Of the
world conflict. and still it maintains the
spiritual quality of the original work
in spite of plenty Of fire and birthstone.
French village is devastated with
hurricane effect and the gray hordes
swing onward TO Parts and back after
the Marine in Richard Harding Davis
fashion. Even the close views of French
soldiers passing in the street show them
as real weather beaten warriors and not
movie supers.
AppIauded TO the Echo.
All through the picture a discrimln-
ating verislmiitude 10 life Is maintained,
50 vividly aast night that a distinguished
and self contained audience found IT.
self applauding to the echo scenes on
which the last cheers were supposed to
have died down long ago.
II Is not all war, for in the beginning
enchanting vistas arc disclosed OF the
Argentine, where Julio Desnoyers begins
cultivating the flair for romance that IS
q legacy from his grahdfather. Maddri-
aga the CentGW. When he goes to Paris
as painter and tango teacher the at
mosphere Is consummately portrayed
even to street scuffle with a sprightly
display of In savate. or the manly French
art OF kicking. It is often by incidental
bits that picture really evaluates Itself,
and on the score of Its minor episodes
alone this picture is a Big Bertha.
Though somewhat protracted toward
the end. ii meets the threefold demands
on a picture-dramatca scenically
and Observation-Disclosures the emotions
strung up until the final rush from the
theatre. Under the sterling direction OF
Rex Ingram the type system has tri-
umphed for once, and even the monkey
pet shown seems just about the best
Besides meeting the requirements of the
eye all the characters act so that one
never feels the director is megaphoning
to them what to do and what not to do.
Players Look Their Parts.
Rudolph Valentino. the young Italian
born dancer. who has done little screen
work hitherto, lands with both feet on
the part of Julio. He not only acts nat
urally and forcefuly. but this handsome
youth looks Argentinian without a
makeup. Though less Latin in appear
ance. Alice Terry looks exquisite as
Marguerite Ldurter, and always has the
right emotion for the right moment.
The others. too numerous TO mention
entirely. included Pomeroy Cannon. Jo-
seph Swickard, Brinslay Shaw. Nigel De
Brulier. John Sainpolis Wallace Beery
and dozens more. all of whom were SUI
perb. June Mathis's stirring adartation
does not hold closely TO the book--no
film version could-but II Is as fine a
translation for the screen as the inter
probation of Ibanez's masterpiece ir
English. and Hugo Riesenfeld has given
4 an adept musical frame.