TANGO AND DEATH

My latest video. This is the famous tango scene from the 1921 blockbuster film The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, directed by Rex Ingram. This was Rudolph Valentino's first major film role, and it established him as a star.

 Valentino's partner in this tango scene was Beatrice Dominguez. At that time, Dominguez - known as La Bella Sevilla - was a popular dancer in Los Angeles, who also occasionally appeared in silent movies.

Tragically, Beatrice Dominguez died at the age of twenty-four of a ruptured appendix in February, 1921 - - shortly before the release of the film.

In her brief scene with Valentino, Dominguez was portrayed as somewhat of a tart and her bizarre makeup made her look like a floozy. In reality she was really quite lovely.

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse is one of the greatest silent films, and one of my personal favorites. The original length was three hours, but most of the versions seen today have been edited to 2 1/2 hours.

It's based on the 1916 Spanish novel (the same title) by Vicente Blasco Ibanez, and takes place during World War I. Valentino plays the part of Julio Desnoyers, the grandson of a wealthy Argentine landowner. Julio is a shiftless playboy whose main pursuit is pleasure. He eventually gets involved with a married woman and brings disgrace to his family.

When WWI errupts, Julio enlists in the army and is hurled into the horrors of war and the brutality of the real world - - which drastically curtails his former carefree attitude. Unfortunately he is killed before returning home.

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse is a powerful film, infused with religious symbolism and an explosive gamut of human emotions. The raw  creativity in silent films is astounding.

The tango scene in the movie depicts Julio during his reckless youth. It served as an introduction to Valentino's on-screen appeal and also featured his dancing skills ( note the sharp spurs on his boots). The elderly man sitting with a younger woman is Julio's grandfather.

The Russian philosopher in the film has a saint-like (almost Christ-like) presence. He brings a sense of rationality during the chaotic onslaught of war, and reveals Biblical predictions to Julio and his friend.

The horseman of death

In my humble opinion, the final scene of this film is one of the most powerful in movie history. 

It depicts a massive cemetery, with thousands of graves of those soldiers killed in WWI. Julio's parents wander about, trying to find their son's grave. The Russian philosopher appears, seemingly out of nowhere, and leads them to Julio's grave. 

"Did you know him?" asks Julio's father.

The philosopher spreads his arms out and replies 

"I knew them all."

Video best viewed full screen

Music score by Carl Davis

Blogger messed this up -- I had to edit several times.     Jon

TANGO

Forget your troubles. Clear the room.
And put on your dancing shoes.

LET'S TANGO!!


I can't remember when I made this video, but I pulled it out of my secret files and dusted it off (it's also available on YouTube).

Por una Cabeza, without a doubt, is my absolute favorite Argentine tango. It is heartfelt, intriguingly sensual, with a tinge of old-fashioned sentimentality.

Whenever I hear it, I'm transported to a distant place where I'd rather be: 

a sultry, smoke-filled, lamp-lit Latin cafe, where the late-evening hours are perfumed with beautiful women and smouldering with handsome men.
Where I am languidly smoking a cigarillo and leisurely sipping a glass of Malbec.....and savoring the possibilities of a mesmerizing night.

Forgive me - my romanticism is kicking in. 

When I was a little younger and considerably more agile, and when I was living in the delectable State of Illusion known as Hollywood - somebody (names need not be mentioned) taught me to tango.


I was never a dancer - by any stretch of the imagination - but a few glasses of sangria and a balmy summer night can inspire me to try just about anything. Old records on an antique Victrola. Candlelight. A smooth partner.
I learned the steps, the moves.
I tangoed. 


Por una Cabeza is a Spanish horse-racing term meaning "by a head".
It was written by the French-Argentine singer/composer Carlos Gardel (1890-1935), who tragically died in a plane crash at the age of 44.

  This tango has been used in numerous films over the years, including Schindler's List and (I think) Scent of a Woman.


Will you join me in a tango?


This video will be more enjoyable if viewed full-screen.
Note that in the second - more passionate - theme of the tango, I incorporate a lady in a red dress.


I finally added the Followers thing to my sidebar!

TANGO NOTTURNO

  



 I made this video tribute to film star Pola Negri (1897-1987) several years ago. It is accompanied by her singing the Tango Notturno from the 1937 German film of the same title.    (full-screen viewing is best)

  Polish-born Negri exemplifies the sultry, exotic, mysticism of the silent film era. She was not only a Hollywood film star, but also made motion pictures in Poland, Germany, and England. Although the height of her popularity was during the silent era, she made numerous successful European talkies. Negri's career fizzled by the late 1930's but she emerged from obscurity in 1964 to appear in one final film, The Moon-Spinners (with Hayley Mills).

 When I lived in California and wrote articles for movie magazines, I admittedly knew very little about Pola Negri except for the old rumors that had persisted through the years. She was supposedly nothing more than a vapid vamp, whose greatest talent was that of generating publicity.

When Rudolph Valentino died in 1926, Negri threw a well-publicized hysterical fit at his funeral. Her enthusiastic display of tears and swooning seemed to be the highlight of her acting career.  Pola claimed that she and Valentino had been secretly engaged shortly before his death. Much later, In her declining years, she admitted that the "engagement"  had been a publicity stunt and she was never in love with him. 

It wasn't until I finally saw some of Pola Negri's films that my negative opinion of her completely changed. She was an impressive actress, with an alluring persona and obvious intelligence. I never knew that she could sing until I saw her in Mazurka (1935) and her vocal skills surprised me.

Negri's expressive, sultry singing style is the epitome of the Berlin cabaret era and reminiscent of Marlene Dietrich. Ironically, Dietrich was supposed to star in the film Tango Notturno but was replaced by Pola Negri.

Marlene Dietrich was a superb cabaret performer - - much more potent on stage than she was in films. Although it's difficult to compare the two, I feel that Pola Negri was the better singer - - more polished and vocally sophisticated. Her performance of Tango Notturno is intoxicating.

Incidentally, Tango Notturno was written by the German film composer Hans-Otto Borgmann.

When I just tried the video it wouldn't play for some reason. If it doesn't work you can find it on my YouTube channel, which is JayveeSonata.