VICTORY
Starring Lon Chaney, Wallace Beery and Seena Owen
PHOTOPLAY
February, 1920
Maurice Tourneur accomplishes a rare feat in the splendid melodrama
whose name is capitalized above. He puts Joseph Conrad -- the
absolute Joseph Conrad -- on the screen, while very seriously
altering Joseph Conrad's story! That is to say, Tourneur has
caught, and conveys, the true spirit, the real philosophy, of
the author, In this respect the distinguished French-American
has more unerring capabilities, perhaps, than any other camera-master
now at work. Not since his great optic transcription of "Sporting
Life" has he so thoroughly caught the timbre, as a musician
would say, of the things in which he has engaged. Every reader
of Conrad's dark but superb story remembers that it ended in a
tragedy of hellish laughter: the bullet intended for the fiend
Ricardo hits that passionate saint Alma, and with her dies the
youthful philosopher Heyst, whom she has drawn from an existence
of self-immurement, only to an end of final despair. In Tourneur's
picture things go just the other way: Heyst has killed Ricardo,
and the anthropoid Pedro, in ultimate revenge, dumps "Mr.
Jones," face forward, into the fire, while out in the tropic
garden Heyst says the tender word, and Alma comes to his arms
as the organist pulls the stops for the exit march. Yet, though
the Conrad finale is so radically upset, the dark splendor of
Conrad's thought is preserved in every scene, and in every strange
drama. It is not a pleasant picture. It may best be described
profanely, as a heller. The internal glare upon the face of Mr.
Jones as he goes over into the fire; the deviltry of Schomberg;
the cold evil of the aforesaid Mr. Jones; the leers of the serpentine
Ricardo - none of these are happy subjects for contemplation.
Yet what superb characterizations! Wallace Beery as Schomberg,
Lon Chaney as Ricardo, Ben Deely as Jones, Bull Montana as Pedro:
here is acting; acting that you won't often find duplicated on
stage or screen. Jack Holt is very fine as the virile young philosopher,
and Seena Owen is at once sensuous and sensitive as Alma. Mr.
Tourneur has made a fine art of suspense in this photoplay.
Video source: Glenn Video