In this little-known Van Dyke picture, the brilliant cinematography and acting cancel out the shallow plot and seemingly endless 'docu-footage' of the island. What it all adds up to is a very interesting, beautifully shot representation of an exotic place, with a bit of heavy-handed message to make it a story rather than a documentary. There is one exception to this, though, and it is a stunning one: the scene in which the 'white god' teaches the girl to whistle. It is surprisingly intimate, and acted wonderfully well. I recommend this one to fans of early cinematography.
23 Reviews
Tropical hokum made notable by location filming
AlsExGal3 May 2023
Monte Blue stars as Doc Lloyd, a drunk living like a bum among the French Polynesian natives who are being exploited by white traders for the nearby valuable pearl beds. The mistreatment of the locals reaches a breaking point for Doc, and after a violent outburst, he ends up on another island, this one untouched by white man's hands. Here Doc cleans up his act, helping the natives with his medical savvy, and falling in love with native girl Fayaway (Raquel Torres).
The Tahitian shores are nice to look at, and the underwater sequences are intriguing for the time. Director W. S. Van Dyke keeps things moving, but this works more as a travelogue than a compelling narrative. A scene where native fishermen wrestle with giant sea turtles is a highlight, even if you sympathize more with the turtles. This won an Oscar for Best Cinematography, but not until 1930.
The Tahitian shores are nice to look at, and the underwater sequences are intriguing for the time. Director W. S. Van Dyke keeps things moving, but this works more as a travelogue than a compelling narrative. A scene where native fishermen wrestle with giant sea turtles is a highlight, even if you sympathize more with the turtles. This won an Oscar for Best Cinematography, but not until 1930.
A very good film...and made three years before the more famous TABU
planktonrules25 March 2009
Warning: Spoilers
This is the tale of a doctor who is disgusted at the greed of the White sailors who plunder and exploit the Polynesian natives. Risking their lives to retrieve huge pearls, the locals are given mere trinkets. And, when a few die, the Whites take no heed. But, when the doctor has had enough and verbally attacks these "businessmen", his is tied to the wheel of a ship full of plague victims and cast adrift. Fortunately, he finds an unspoiled island full of sweet villagers. Will the wicked White men come and destroy this paradise, too, or will the doctor find the peace he so craves? The film has amazingly good cinematography and it's nice to see that the crew went to Tahiti to film. Additionally, the film is innovative because it's MGM's first sound film, though like most of these early films, it is NOT all-sound, but uses some synchronized music and sound effects. At the time, audiences were spellbound--today it just seems like a nice silent film with some added sound and nothing more. The story is very good and compelling, though at times a bit too earnest and preachy about those "White Devils" and their greed.
I am a huge fan of F.W. Murnau, the great German director. While he did some wonderful and very advanced films (such as NOSFERATU, FAUST and THE LAST LAUGH), somehow the final film in his career (TABU, 1931) has also been accorded 'classic status'--even though it was a silent film made in 1931. In addition, you can't help but think that Murnau was copying WHITE SHADOWS IN THE SOUTH SEAS--as the films seem very similar to me. However, WHITE SHADOWS was an innovative film with synchronized sound and music. By 1931, sound was the standard in many nations and Murnau's making a silent seemed a bit out of date. If I had to watch just one of these films, I'd pick WHITE SHADOWS.
I am a huge fan of F.W. Murnau, the great German director. While he did some wonderful and very advanced films (such as NOSFERATU, FAUST and THE LAST LAUGH), somehow the final film in his career (TABU, 1931) has also been accorded 'classic status'--even though it was a silent film made in 1931. In addition, you can't help but think that Murnau was copying WHITE SHADOWS IN THE SOUTH SEAS--as the films seem very similar to me. However, WHITE SHADOWS was an innovative film with synchronized sound and music. By 1931, sound was the standard in many nations and Murnau's making a silent seemed a bit out of date. If I had to watch just one of these films, I'd pick WHITE SHADOWS.
A magnificent film
fsilva16 February 2005
It still doesn't cease to amaze me how some Silent Movies, dramas or comedies, catch my attention so much, getting me so immersed in the plot, thus making me forget I'm watching a silent, an antique, a piece of history, enjoying the movie as I'd do with any "talking" movie.
In this case, the images are so real (it was filmed on location) and so hauntingly beautiful, that make many later Hollywood films from the 1940's or 1950's, which depict "South Seas Life" look unreal, fake, notwithstanding their possible entertainment value.
There's so much truth in this morality photo-play about a white man, identified as a "derelict" of the South Seas, previously a doctor, who finds "Paradise on Earth" (peace, love & happiness), on a certain island of the Polynesia. Monte Blue is great as this "white man".
Most of the featured players of the film, one realizes, are real natives from the islands, and this adds so much truth to the storyline. Beautiful actress Raquel Torres, does not seem (IMHO) out of place at all as Monte Blue's native love interest. And Robert Anderson is a very nasty villain.
There are some awesome underwater sequences, featuring octopuses, sharks, pearl-diving and others featuring palm-climbing, dancing, etc. Notice the different tinting (reddish, blue, sepia ...) of the sequences of the film; only at the beginning and on the end, plain black and white is used.
Great Sound score for this late "silent film", the first used for a MGM film and the first time Leo-the-Lion roared! The original South-Sea Islands Film. Excellent.
In this case, the images are so real (it was filmed on location) and so hauntingly beautiful, that make many later Hollywood films from the 1940's or 1950's, which depict "South Seas Life" look unreal, fake, notwithstanding their possible entertainment value.
There's so much truth in this morality photo-play about a white man, identified as a "derelict" of the South Seas, previously a doctor, who finds "Paradise on Earth" (peace, love & happiness), on a certain island of the Polynesia. Monte Blue is great as this "white man".
Most of the featured players of the film, one realizes, are real natives from the islands, and this adds so much truth to the storyline. Beautiful actress Raquel Torres, does not seem (IMHO) out of place at all as Monte Blue's native love interest. And Robert Anderson is a very nasty villain.
There are some awesome underwater sequences, featuring octopuses, sharks, pearl-diving and others featuring palm-climbing, dancing, etc. Notice the different tinting (reddish, blue, sepia ...) of the sequences of the film; only at the beginning and on the end, plain black and white is used.
Great Sound score for this late "silent film", the first used for a MGM film and the first time Leo-the-Lion roared! The original South-Sea Islands Film. Excellent.
part exotic south sea adventure, part documentary
ksf-24 March 2009
The very first "sound track" film from MGM..sound effects track added by Doug Shearer, who did the sound recording on about 90% of all the old black & whites. Caption cards are still used throughout the film for the dialogue. Was also actually filmed in Tahiti, which would have been pretty rare for those times. Monte Blue ( plays Doctor Lloyd ) and Robert Anderson (the trader) had been in silent films for years, but this was Raquel Torres' ("Fayaway") first role. In our story, when pearls are discovered in the waters of the south seas, the white men move in to take advantage. The natives are up against the caucasian traders, the critters of the sea, storms, and sickness when it comes to their shores. The story is quite simple, but the outdoor and underwater photography are the high points here. Even with a respectable restoration, different scenes appear in various colors, and the lighting and sound have become slightly spotty. Interesting scenes at the feast, where prior to cooking, the fish is carefully sewn up in leaves to keep it from burning. Where others have despaired over the "documentary" feel to the film, I felt that this was one of the strengths. (Although some of those costumes and dances DO look pretty hokey.) Lloyd lives with the natives, and must decide what his long term goal is, and how to reach it. Several scenes have been sped up, which may have been an effort by "someone" to move the plot along more quickly. Or maybe just newer technology going at a different speed. Directed by WS Van Dyke, produced by Thalberg and Stromberg, all pretty big cheeses in the industry at the time.
A doctor tries to save natives from an evil trader.
JohnHowardReid14 May 2018
Warning: Spoilers
CAST: Monte Blue (Dr Matthew Lloyd), Raquel Torres (Faraway), Robert Anderson (Sebastian), Renee Bush (Lucy), Bobby Andrews.
The original director, ROBERT FLAHERTY, was replaced a third of the way through shooting by W. S. VAN DYKE when MGM decided to use professional actors to supplement the native cast. Photographed on locations in the Marquesas Islands by Clyde De Vinna, George Nogle and Bob Roberts. Film editor: Ben Lewis. Screenplay: Jack Cunningham. Dialogue and titles: John Colton. Adapted by Ray Doyle from the 1919 novel by Frederick O'Brien. Song "Flower of Love" by William Axt, David Mendoza, Dave Dreyer and Herman Ruby. Sound recording: Douglas Shearer. Executive producer: William Randolph Hearst. Producer: Hunt Stromberg.
Copyright 17 November 1928 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Distributing Corp. A Cosmopolitan Production. New York opening at the Astor, 31 July 1928. U.S. release: 10 November 1928. Sydney opening at the Prince Edward, 7 March 1929 (ran 8 weeks). 9 reels. 7,968 feet. 88½ minutes.
SYNOPSIS: A doctor tries to save natives from an evil trader.
NOTES: Academy Award, Cinematography, Clyde De Vinna only (defeating The Divine Lady, Four Devils, In Old Arizona, Our Dancing Daughters and Street Angel).
MGM's first sound film, with a synchronized music score, sound effects and occasional dialogue.
COMMENT: In many ways, this film recalls "Tabu" (1931) on which Flaherty quarreled with F.W. Murnau. Unfortunately, despite its award-winning photography (and its fascinating title), "White Shadows in the South Seas" is definitely the lesser movie.
The original director, ROBERT FLAHERTY, was replaced a third of the way through shooting by W. S. VAN DYKE when MGM decided to use professional actors to supplement the native cast. Photographed on locations in the Marquesas Islands by Clyde De Vinna, George Nogle and Bob Roberts. Film editor: Ben Lewis. Screenplay: Jack Cunningham. Dialogue and titles: John Colton. Adapted by Ray Doyle from the 1919 novel by Frederick O'Brien. Song "Flower of Love" by William Axt, David Mendoza, Dave Dreyer and Herman Ruby. Sound recording: Douglas Shearer. Executive producer: William Randolph Hearst. Producer: Hunt Stromberg.
Copyright 17 November 1928 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Distributing Corp. A Cosmopolitan Production. New York opening at the Astor, 31 July 1928. U.S. release: 10 November 1928. Sydney opening at the Prince Edward, 7 March 1929 (ran 8 weeks). 9 reels. 7,968 feet. 88½ minutes.
SYNOPSIS: A doctor tries to save natives from an evil trader.
NOTES: Academy Award, Cinematography, Clyde De Vinna only (defeating The Divine Lady, Four Devils, In Old Arizona, Our Dancing Daughters and Street Angel).
MGM's first sound film, with a synchronized music score, sound effects and occasional dialogue.
COMMENT: In many ways, this film recalls "Tabu" (1931) on which Flaherty quarreled with F.W. Murnau. Unfortunately, despite its award-winning photography (and its fascinating title), "White Shadows in the South Seas" is definitely the lesser movie.
Oscar for cinematography
SnoopyStyle21 March 2023
On a Pacific island, Dr. Matthew Lloyd drinks too much and is tired of the white traders taking advantage of the local pearl divers. Sebastian is the worst of them all. Pearl diving is full of dangers. Matthew gets shipwrecked and falls for island girl Fayaway.
This won the Oscar for cinematography. It has the beauty of the tropics even if it's in black and white. I'm more impressed with the underwater filming. I don't know the history of that part of cinema, but it looks like the real ocean. Maybe they filmed it from the surface. The storm looks like tank work. Apparently, this was sold as a sound film, but that part seemed to have disappointed. The story isn't much. This works better as a travelogue.
This won the Oscar for cinematography. It has the beauty of the tropics even if it's in black and white. I'm more impressed with the underwater filming. I don't know the history of that part of cinema, but it looks like the real ocean. Maybe they filmed it from the surface. The storm looks like tank work. Apparently, this was sold as a sound film, but that part seemed to have disappointed. The story isn't much. This works better as a travelogue.
Thoughtful Silence
Ron Oliver12 February 2005
Spreading from island to island, the WHITE SHADOWS IN THE SOUTH SEAS corrupt every culture they encounter.
This unfortunately obscure film, produced by MGM right at the cusp when the Silent Era was giving way to Sound, is a fascinating look at the vanishing way of life to be found in the South Pacific Islands. Its beautiful, vivid photography justly won the Oscar for Best Cinematography.
This 'Camera Record' was directed by W.S. Van Dyke, the Studio's on-location master. The film's prologue states "Produced and photographed on the natural locations and with the ancient native tribes of the Marquesas Islands in the South Seas." The footage depicting the pearl divers and the coconut tree climbers is particularly noteworthy.
Monte Blue gives a very fine performance as a derelict doctor who finds himself acclaimed as a white god on an island of gentle, friendly natives. His despair at the arrival of brutish Caucasian traders in this idyllic paradise is riveting. Mexican actress Raquel Torres, in her film debut, is poignant as the island maiden who captures Blue's heart.
This unfortunately obscure film, produced by MGM right at the cusp when the Silent Era was giving way to Sound, is a fascinating look at the vanishing way of life to be found in the South Pacific Islands. Its beautiful, vivid photography justly won the Oscar for Best Cinematography.
This 'Camera Record' was directed by W.S. Van Dyke, the Studio's on-location master. The film's prologue states "Produced and photographed on the natural locations and with the ancient native tribes of the Marquesas Islands in the South Seas." The footage depicting the pearl divers and the coconut tree climbers is particularly noteworthy.
Monte Blue gives a very fine performance as a derelict doctor who finds himself acclaimed as a white god on an island of gentle, friendly natives. His despair at the arrival of brutish Caucasian traders in this idyllic paradise is riveting. Mexican actress Raquel Torres, in her film debut, is poignant as the island maiden who captures Blue's heart.
Mostly Silent Docudrama About White Exploitation
evanston_dad19 April 2023
Nothing distinguishes "White Shadows in the South Seas" as a pre-Code silent film more than its overt criticism of white exploitation and capitalism and its downer of an ending that sees the hero getting killed and the white jerks winning.
Part travelogue, part docudrama, "White Shadows in the South Seas" might seem antiquated because of its silent movie conventions, but don't let that fool you into thinking that it doesn't have sophisticated themes. It deals more frankly with the subject of white colonialism than any movie from, say, the mid-30s through the 1950s would be allowed to.
I don't really know how accurately the film sticks to the actual traditions of the South Seas people in it vs. How much is Hollywood baloney, but it was at least filmed on location, a big deal for a movie back then, and its impressive location photography (and really stunning underwater camera work -- I didn't even know it was possible to film underwater in 1928) won the film the Academy Award for Best Cinematography.
Grade: A-
Part travelogue, part docudrama, "White Shadows in the South Seas" might seem antiquated because of its silent movie conventions, but don't let that fool you into thinking that it doesn't have sophisticated themes. It deals more frankly with the subject of white colonialism than any movie from, say, the mid-30s through the 1950s would be allowed to.
I don't really know how accurately the film sticks to the actual traditions of the South Seas people in it vs. How much is Hollywood baloney, but it was at least filmed on location, a big deal for a movie back then, and its impressive location photography (and really stunning underwater camera work -- I didn't even know it was possible to film underwater in 1928) won the film the Academy Award for Best Cinematography.
Grade: A-
A morality play that is still quite powerful today
llltdesq9 October 2000
This movie, which is part silent and part talkie, is a tale of one man's disintegration, his actions which help to destroy an entire culture and his growing horror at what he has helped to bring about. The movie is still quite effective even now, more than 70 years later, largely because its concerns have probably been part and parcel with humanity's existence since we stopped being nomads and started building cities-greed, the struggle for control, the individual penchant for being your own worst enemy at times. A most memorable and compelling film, the cinematography is beautiful (it justifiably won an Oscar) and the film is one you will remember for a long while.
A doctor in the house
bkoganbing13 February 2019
Some beautiful for its time black and white film footage of the South Seas and
its native inhabitants are seen in this film by Woody Van Dyke who managed to find time enough to put a coherent plot into the film.
Monte Blue is a doctor with a social conscience sick of how the white traders are exploiting the south sea natives has gone native himself and is living not much better than them. He falls in love with Raquel Torres daughter of the high chief who is promised to their island Deity.
A god is pretty stiff competition, but Blue eventually eventually given his medical training has some moves.
The story is not the thing though. The documentary like film footage of the South Seas won for White Shadows In The South Seas an Oscar for cinematography. Raquel Torres was quite an appealing subject for the movie camera as well.
The film holds up well even if the story borders on the old fashioned.
Monte Blue is a doctor with a social conscience sick of how the white traders are exploiting the south sea natives has gone native himself and is living not much better than them. He falls in love with Raquel Torres daughter of the high chief who is promised to their island Deity.
A god is pretty stiff competition, but Blue eventually eventually given his medical training has some moves.
The story is not the thing though. The documentary like film footage of the South Seas won for White Shadows In The South Seas an Oscar for cinematography. Raquel Torres was quite an appealing subject for the movie camera as well.
The film holds up well even if the story borders on the old fashioned.
Timeless Message
somejava30 June 2017
Over time I've noticed how much I enjoy the pace of silent movies. Not being pushed and hurried is a very welcoming experience. Also the fact, that, in between the written dialog...you only rely on the physical expressions of the actors and your own imagination. And in my opinion that allows the viewer to enjoy the movie in his or her own unique way. This holds true for all silent movies. This movie would certainly seem to have been ahead of it's time. The statement made was loud and clear. The acting was good. The underwater scenes and the context they were presented in probably had the most impact on me.
Great Scenery, but Lousy Ending!
silentmoviefan14 September 2012
Warning: Spoilers
White Shadows of the South Seas has lots of wonderful scenery, both the plant and human kind. The women natives and leading lady Raquel Torres are not hard to look at, whatsoever. But... The ending? Awful, terrible and bad! Monte Blue is a drunken doctor who does what he can for the natives who need medical help. He also doesn't like the way his fellow white people exploit the natives. He strikes up a friendship with Raquel and things blossom into love. Earlier in the film, he told one of the white exploiters how awful he thought his practices were. Unmoved by this, the exploiter suggests he leave and continuing to do what he did would be hazardous to the doctor's health. Toward the end of the film, Monte takes up the cause again and the exploiter, keeping his word, has him shot. He dies and Raquel is shown weeping over his grave in the final scene. Not that bad a film, but the ending left me cold!
Great Tropical Romance & Photography
zpzjones23 February 2004
Warning: Spoilers
This is a fine silent film done in the tradition of Robert Flaherty's docu's but with a scenario/script. Monte Blue in his finest silent performance is a doctor who has become disenchanted with his existence & has taken to the bottle. He meets Sebastian, a modern day opportunist cum pirate. He and Monte clash and later Monte is shanghaied by some of Sebastian's thugs and tied to the wheel of a schooner which in the title cards is infested with bubonic plagued dead bodies. The schooner is set adrift in a storm and Monte gets loose from the wheel and tries steering the boat to safety only to end up on some rocks on an uncharted tropical Pacific island. Monte later after the shipwreck meets some native islanders who have been insulated from the outside world-civilisation. They adopt Monte as one of their own and he learns to live with them and has a renewed interest in life. As time goes on Monte(his character is called Lloyd)& the natives become as family. One day Monte goes pearl diving and realizes the value of such an abundance of pearls. Greed overtakes Monte causing him to throw his newfound existence with the natives as well as their trust in the garbage can. He sets out a signal fire atop a hill to be rescued. The only boat to see his signal is Sebastian & his men. They arrive in all of their colonial like arrogance and get the native women to smoke cigarettes & the men to be lazy. Later Monte & Sebastian meet a final time before one of Sebastian's men shoots Monte dead.
This is a fine film to introduce a novice to silent films. It's what these films were all about. Fine story telling without any recorded dialogue. Beautiful travelogue like photography(in Tahiti by the way). A 10 out of 10 from me.
This is a fine film to introduce a novice to silent films. It's what these films were all about. Fine story telling without any recorded dialogue. Beautiful travelogue like photography(in Tahiti by the way). A 10 out of 10 from me.
A Glorious Panorama to a Lost Time!!
kidboots21 June 2010
Warning: Spoilers
Late in 1927, Irving Thalberg decided to shoot an epic adventure film and he selected "White Shadows in the South Seas". Robert Flaherty, a famed documentary maker, was selected to direct. Thalberg had been very impressed with his "Moana" of 1926. W.S. Van Dyke was named as assistant director, he had mainly worked on westerns, but in years to come with films such as "Trader Horn" (1931) and "The Thin Man" (1934) etc he earned a reputation as a stylish but fast director who always got films finished on time. Almost immediately, Flaherty found the studio schedule too binding and walked out - W.S. Van Dyke carried on. With the involvement of both Flaherty and Van Dyke, the movie has the best of both worlds - the magnificent documentary style of photography combined with an imaginative, stirring story.
Filmed in Tahiti, even though the opening credits claim it was shot on location in the Marquesas Islands with "authentic" islanders, it tells the story of white shadows in the South Seas - the shadow white men cast over the beautiful, untouched Polynesian Islands. Dr. Matthew Lloyd (Monte Blue) a "derelict of the islands", is an alcoholic and despairs of the way white men have cheated, robbed and exploited the trusting natives. He makes an enemy of Sebastian (Robert Anderson), an evil trader, who manages to get Lloyd on to a plague ridden boat, which, during a typhoon, is ship wrecked on another uncharted island.
Island life is filmed in a golden glow - absolutely dazzling. The scenes of natives diving for pearls, preparing the feast and doing ceremonial dances have a documentary feel to them (Flaherty's influence) and are a glorious panorama of a lost time. When Lloyd rescues the chief's young son from drowning the island people make him a God. Eventually he also succumbs to the "instinct of his ruthless race - Greed!!" He finds a cast off pearl and starts to dive for them. When Fayaway (beautiful Raquel Torres) finds him lighting a fire to attract passing ships, her sadness and pleading convinces him he has been a fool. More white shadows come with a boatful of traders (the evil Sebastian among them) who intend to open a store and send the natives diving for pearls. The ending is confronting and not at all like I thought it would be - it creates a very sad and somber finish to a beautiful, thoughtful film.
Monte Blue had been a rugged leading man throughout the twenties - this was probably his best remembered film. Raquel Torres, a beautiful Mexican actress made her debut as Fayaway, but unfortunately, in the handful of films she made, she was usually cast as island girls with names like Raquella, Pepita and "hula dancer".
Highly, Highly Recommended.
Filmed in Tahiti, even though the opening credits claim it was shot on location in the Marquesas Islands with "authentic" islanders, it tells the story of white shadows in the South Seas - the shadow white men cast over the beautiful, untouched Polynesian Islands. Dr. Matthew Lloyd (Monte Blue) a "derelict of the islands", is an alcoholic and despairs of the way white men have cheated, robbed and exploited the trusting natives. He makes an enemy of Sebastian (Robert Anderson), an evil trader, who manages to get Lloyd on to a plague ridden boat, which, during a typhoon, is ship wrecked on another uncharted island.
Island life is filmed in a golden glow - absolutely dazzling. The scenes of natives diving for pearls, preparing the feast and doing ceremonial dances have a documentary feel to them (Flaherty's influence) and are a glorious panorama of a lost time. When Lloyd rescues the chief's young son from drowning the island people make him a God. Eventually he also succumbs to the "instinct of his ruthless race - Greed!!" He finds a cast off pearl and starts to dive for them. When Fayaway (beautiful Raquel Torres) finds him lighting a fire to attract passing ships, her sadness and pleading convinces him he has been a fool. More white shadows come with a boatful of traders (the evil Sebastian among them) who intend to open a store and send the natives diving for pearls. The ending is confronting and not at all like I thought it would be - it creates a very sad and somber finish to a beautiful, thoughtful film.
Monte Blue had been a rugged leading man throughout the twenties - this was probably his best remembered film. Raquel Torres, a beautiful Mexican actress made her debut as Fayaway, but unfortunately, in the handful of films she made, she was usually cast as island girls with names like Raquella, Pepita and "hula dancer".
Highly, Highly Recommended.
Hidden gem
gbill-7487711 March 2017
How nice is it to see this treatment, this attitude, of the white man's imperialism towards native cultures in the 19th century, especially when other movies from this time period often had such blatant or casual racism. Here we clearly see the white man as the bad guy, greedy for pearls, exploiting the Polynesians, and spreading disease. It may be over the top and idealized at times, with some non-factual bits such as attacking octopi and grand proclamations against the white race as a whole, but its heart was certainly in the right place, and this notion of which party was evil was certainly correct.
Filmed on location in the Marquesas (or perhaps in reality Tahiti), it shows beautiful footage of the islands as well as the culture, such as people dancing, scaling coconut trees, shaving breadfruit, diving, fishing, and making fire. I'm not an expert but it feels authentic, and without a doubt, it's certainly respectful of the indigenous people. Director W.S. Van Dyke ("One Take Woody", who would go on to an Oscar nomination for "The Thin Man") pulls all the right strings here, from a fantastic typhoon scene, to intimate moments between leading man Monte Blue, and an island woman played by Raquel Torres. Most of the rest of the cast consists of real Islanders. Cinematographer Clyde De Vinna was worthy of the Oscar he won for the visual treats he gives us throughout the movie, and we also get a few bits of sound on MGM's first film with a pre-recorded soundtrack. What a hidden gem this film is for 1928.
Filmed on location in the Marquesas (or perhaps in reality Tahiti), it shows beautiful footage of the islands as well as the culture, such as people dancing, scaling coconut trees, shaving breadfruit, diving, fishing, and making fire. I'm not an expert but it feels authentic, and without a doubt, it's certainly respectful of the indigenous people. Director W.S. Van Dyke ("One Take Woody", who would go on to an Oscar nomination for "The Thin Man") pulls all the right strings here, from a fantastic typhoon scene, to intimate moments between leading man Monte Blue, and an island woman played by Raquel Torres. Most of the rest of the cast consists of real Islanders. Cinematographer Clyde De Vinna was worthy of the Oscar he won for the visual treats he gives us throughout the movie, and we also get a few bits of sound on MGM's first film with a pre-recorded soundtrack. What a hidden gem this film is for 1928.
One of the best by Woody Van Dyke and Monte Blue
morrisonhimself30 May 2009
Woody Van Dyke was a prolific director, with many well-loved and classic movies helmed by him. "White Shadows in the South Seas" is one of his best, showing a mastery of camera use and a skill in leading his cast.
Monte Blue was, likewise, a very prolific actor, but his lead role here has to be one of his best, and one of his best performances. He was very affecting, very touching, and even handled the pre-Yakima Canutt fight scenes well.
There is a realism to this movie that caught my attention, even though I am very familiar with the silent genre, having been, for example, a regular for years at the old Silent Movie Theatre in Los Angeles when it was run by the great John Hampton.
As others have commented here, the beauty of the location joined with the quality of the acting and directing make this masterpiece a cinematic experience, and I urge everyone to grab any opportunity to watch it.
Monte Blue was, likewise, a very prolific actor, but his lead role here has to be one of his best, and one of his best performances. He was very affecting, very touching, and even handled the pre-Yakima Canutt fight scenes well.
There is a realism to this movie that caught my attention, even though I am very familiar with the silent genre, having been, for example, a regular for years at the old Silent Movie Theatre in Los Angeles when it was run by the great John Hampton.
As others have commented here, the beauty of the location joined with the quality of the acting and directing make this masterpiece a cinematic experience, and I urge everyone to grab any opportunity to watch it.
Invasion of the Pearl Snatchers
dougdoepke7 March 2009
Warning: Spoilers
Thanks are due to TMC for reviving this antique for contemporary audiences. The film deserves rediscovery. With its exotic setting and simple morality tale, the fable achieves considerable power. Especially memorable is the very last scene with the artfully posed Tiki god emblematic of what has been lost. Also, note the briefness of that final revealing sequence showing how the native culture has been corrupted. Once the traders prevail, it's almost painful to see these innocents replaced with dangling cigarettes, laboring children, and commercialized dancing. Though kept brief, the stark contrast took nerve on the part of filmmakers who risked backlash from audiences unused to seeing Western impact in a negative light. For rarely do we see the effects of colonial expansion portrayed in such touching terms. Sure, some of the movie's romance scenes are overlong, while others are plain hokey. But the underlying theme of paradise lost remains as affecting now as it was then.
Not to excuse the ruthless tradersbut when the simple native economy is replaced by the Western commodity economy, an historical dilemma is posed. On one hand, we regret the loss of the simple, idyllic innocence so powerfully portrayed in the trusting people and natural abundance of the tropical isle. However, that idyllic existence is also a static existence, with no motive for science, knowledge, or development, at least as the Western world understands them. Whatever their greedy motives, the traders do represent the possibilities of dynamic Western culture. Put simply and starkly, the contrasting choice is between a culture of comfortable inertia or one of developmental challenge. The appeal of each is something to think about. Anyway, I'm not sure which I would choose, but after a long week's work, I think I'm with the doctor.
Not to excuse the ruthless tradersbut when the simple native economy is replaced by the Western commodity economy, an historical dilemma is posed. On one hand, we regret the loss of the simple, idyllic innocence so powerfully portrayed in the trusting people and natural abundance of the tropical isle. However, that idyllic existence is also a static existence, with no motive for science, knowledge, or development, at least as the Western world understands them. Whatever their greedy motives, the traders do represent the possibilities of dynamic Western culture. Put simply and starkly, the contrasting choice is between a culture of comfortable inertia or one of developmental challenge. The appeal of each is something to think about. Anyway, I'm not sure which I would choose, but after a long week's work, I think I'm with the doctor.
Gorgeous photography
cstotlar-122 November 2012
I saw this film years ago at the Cinematheque in Paris, along with "Moana" and "Tabu". We think of Murnau as a supremely gifted director and Flaherty as an extremely talented documentarist. In fact, Flaherty was involved in all three films, finally directing "Moana" in the end. All three directors ended up going in quite different directions and somehow Van Dyke's marvelous film got lost in the struggle. In fact, his film survived any competition and is still wonderful to watch. It helps to remember too that Van Dyke was very much a studio director, Murnau was quite foreign to the system and Flaherty was not only painfully slow but hardly ever compromised with other directors, not to mention studio heads. Van Dyke came out with a great film and it's all his and his alone.
Curtis Stotlar
Curtis Stotlar
Beautiful Film Marred By Narrow Stereotyping
frankwiener5 July 2017
This was a film that was very visually appealing with good acting on the part of the leads. The Marquesas are the nearest chain of islands to the southeast of Hawaii, and having visited Hawaii several times, I saw this film as a rare opportunity to experience Hawaii as it might have existed before the commercial jet airplane was invented and the isolated territory became a state. Although the traditional culture of the Marquesas may not be exactly like that of Hawaii, it is Polynesian and bears many similarities.
The one major problem that I had with this film was its blatant condemnation of the entire white race with the exception of one recovering alcoholic doctor. Even he momentarily succumbed to "the greed of his race", a lapse in judgment that served to lure the evil, exploitative white trader and his associates to the previously "unspoiled" island. While I am not condoning the reprehensible behavior of some whites during the colonial era, I thought that the racist sentiments against the white race in general, as expressed throughout this film, were very offensive. If the creators of the film desired to make a statement about racism by whites, how is their own racism against whites justified? The belief that Polynesia was perfect until the white man ruined it contradicts my understanding of the history of the region. This biased and unrealistic interpretation of history significantly marred what would have otherwise been an extraordinary film. I also didn't understand why the director included some sounds that only served to disrupt the action and annoy the viewers.
The one major problem that I had with this film was its blatant condemnation of the entire white race with the exception of one recovering alcoholic doctor. Even he momentarily succumbed to "the greed of his race", a lapse in judgment that served to lure the evil, exploitative white trader and his associates to the previously "unspoiled" island. While I am not condoning the reprehensible behavior of some whites during the colonial era, I thought that the racist sentiments against the white race in general, as expressed throughout this film, were very offensive. If the creators of the film desired to make a statement about racism by whites, how is their own racism against whites justified? The belief that Polynesia was perfect until the white man ruined it contradicts my understanding of the history of the region. This biased and unrealistic interpretation of history significantly marred what would have otherwise been an extraordinary film. I also didn't understand why the director included some sounds that only served to disrupt the action and annoy the viewers.
Academy Awards' Best Cinematography on Display in Pacific Movie
springfieldrental24 May 2022
MGM's head of production Irving Thalberg was recuperating in the hospital when he read Frederick O'Brien's book on his 1919 travels to the Pacific South Seas Islands. Enthralled by the prospects of making a great movie based on the author's account, Thalberg enlisted documentary filmmaker Robert J. Flaherty to direct his proposed film. It was natural for Flaherty, a friend of O'Brien, to be considered for the project since he had produced and filmed 1926's "Moana," a documentary on the natives on the Pacific island of Samoa. For insurance, Thalberg assigned MGM director W. W. Van Dyke to assist him in the movie with a semi-fictitious plot.
In the credits for November 1928's release of "White Shadows in the South Seas," Van Dyke's name is the only one listed as director. Working from a script, Flaherty, according to accounts, was taking his sweet time filming the movie at the Tahiti location. Van Dyke, reporting back to MGM studios, noted his inefficient methods. The two clashed so often that Flaherty decided he had enough. He felt he wasn't getting any support from MGM's Los Angeles studio, and abruptly left the island. Van Dyke, whose nickname was "One-Take Van Dyke," was known for his proficiency in getting his movies completed on schedule and under budget, qualities MGM head Louis B. Mayer loved about the director.
The movie's plot was unusual for its time in that it places blame on the civilized white man for exploiting the island natives and endangering their health and lives in the quest to gather all the pearls they can to satisfy greedy pearl traders. A rather worn-out doctor-turned-alcoholic, Dr. Lloyd (Monte Blue), laments the blatant cruelty inflicted on the islanders by the whites and voices his opinion. The men in the white business suits don't take kindly to his criticisms and shanghai him on a boat to parts unknown. The good doctor ends up on another idyllic island inhabited by super friendly natives untouched by the scourge of white capitalists. That is until the opportunists hear about the great quantity of pearls found on that island.
The production of "White Shadows in the South Seas" was not only contentious between the two directors, but also between MGM producer Hunt Stromberg and writer David Selznick, who left the studio after their confrontation. An impartial observer noted "David thought it an idyllic story; Hunt said he wanted lots of breasts." MGM was fortunate to have adventure cameraman Clyde De Vinna, who loved to travel to exotic locations. He was familiar with Tahiti as far back as 1923, accompanying director Raoul Walsh to shoot his movie 'Lost and Found on a South Sea Island." De Vinna's work was so breathtaking in capturing tropical settings both above and below the water line that he received the Academy Award's Best Cinematography for that year.
"White Shadows in the South Seas" is also noted for the first film MGM inserted sound. Filming was done without any audio and had a soundtrack created in post-production. With its Los Angeles studio incapable of inserting the audio because of a lack of equipment, the head of MGM's sound department, Douglas Shearer, actress Norma Shearer's brother, took the movie's negatives to New Jersey where he placed onto the film strip synchronized music and sound effects using the Western Electric Sound System. The movie, however, contains no audible dialogue between the actors.
"White Shadows in the South Seas" was also the first time MGM's lion was heard roaring. MGM films before then had the lion's roar inserted into the introduction well after their initial releases. The studio secured the services of a new lion, Jackie, who was trained to roar. Jackie replaced the first MGM lion, Slats, who never made a peep. Jackie is seen fronting each MGM movie until 1956, when Leo the Lion took over.
In the credits for November 1928's release of "White Shadows in the South Seas," Van Dyke's name is the only one listed as director. Working from a script, Flaherty, according to accounts, was taking his sweet time filming the movie at the Tahiti location. Van Dyke, reporting back to MGM studios, noted his inefficient methods. The two clashed so often that Flaherty decided he had enough. He felt he wasn't getting any support from MGM's Los Angeles studio, and abruptly left the island. Van Dyke, whose nickname was "One-Take Van Dyke," was known for his proficiency in getting his movies completed on schedule and under budget, qualities MGM head Louis B. Mayer loved about the director.
The movie's plot was unusual for its time in that it places blame on the civilized white man for exploiting the island natives and endangering their health and lives in the quest to gather all the pearls they can to satisfy greedy pearl traders. A rather worn-out doctor-turned-alcoholic, Dr. Lloyd (Monte Blue), laments the blatant cruelty inflicted on the islanders by the whites and voices his opinion. The men in the white business suits don't take kindly to his criticisms and shanghai him on a boat to parts unknown. The good doctor ends up on another idyllic island inhabited by super friendly natives untouched by the scourge of white capitalists. That is until the opportunists hear about the great quantity of pearls found on that island.
The production of "White Shadows in the South Seas" was not only contentious between the two directors, but also between MGM producer Hunt Stromberg and writer David Selznick, who left the studio after their confrontation. An impartial observer noted "David thought it an idyllic story; Hunt said he wanted lots of breasts." MGM was fortunate to have adventure cameraman Clyde De Vinna, who loved to travel to exotic locations. He was familiar with Tahiti as far back as 1923, accompanying director Raoul Walsh to shoot his movie 'Lost and Found on a South Sea Island." De Vinna's work was so breathtaking in capturing tropical settings both above and below the water line that he received the Academy Award's Best Cinematography for that year.
"White Shadows in the South Seas" is also noted for the first film MGM inserted sound. Filming was done without any audio and had a soundtrack created in post-production. With its Los Angeles studio incapable of inserting the audio because of a lack of equipment, the head of MGM's sound department, Douglas Shearer, actress Norma Shearer's brother, took the movie's negatives to New Jersey where he placed onto the film strip synchronized music and sound effects using the Western Electric Sound System. The movie, however, contains no audible dialogue between the actors.
"White Shadows in the South Seas" was also the first time MGM's lion was heard roaring. MGM films before then had the lion's roar inserted into the introduction well after their initial releases. The studio secured the services of a new lion, Jackie, who was trained to roar. Jackie replaced the first MGM lion, Slats, who never made a peep. Jackie is seen fronting each MGM movie until 1956, when Leo the Lion took over.
More realis -tiki than most
kekseksa26 December 2017
MGM did this film no favour by promoting it as their first "sound" film. Given the obsession with "sound" that dominated the US cinema industry in 1928 this meant that all criticism of the film tended to concentrate on whether it ws or was not a genuine "sound" film - which quite evidently it was not. It has a musical score by William Axt intermingled with a few sound effects but, since such orchestral scores were already common in major cinemas during the late silent era, only the degree of synchronisation (the first work of MGM sound recordist Douglas Shearer) represented any kind of innovation.
And the value of the film is not of course there at all but lies, as with any other good silent film, in the strong script and excellent cinematography by Clyde de Vinna (who received the Oscar and would work on all Van Dyke's "exotic" films of the next few years - The Pagan, Trader Horn, The Eskimo) and Bob Roberts who has worked with Flaherty on Moana (1926) and would go on rather surprisingly to become one of the principal cinematographers in the flourishing Argentinian film industry.
Normally speaking this film ought to represent everything that I tend to find crass and mediocre in US film. It is a producer's and cutter's film par excellence, chosen by Irving Thalberg himself and directed by the notorious "one-shot Woody"; Robert Flaherty who was initially to have directed was sacked for working too slowly.
Yet I have to admit this seems to me in some ways the classic US film at its best before the influence of "sound" has become fully felt. It may not have been shot as it claims in the Marquesas but was nevertheless made on location in Tahiti and the cinematography is not in the least studio-bound nor overly preoccupied with continuity or glamorous "star"-focus. It makes use of local non-professional actors and actors and gives a dignified and not altogether paradisal picture of traditional island life. Even without the influence of Flaherty, the film is "too slow" for at least one other commentator, that is to say, probably just about right for any non-US audience. To my mind, it is not the "documentary" aspects of the film one would like to see curtailed but rather the tiresome and over-sentimental love-scenes (to please Thalberg's philistine colleague Stromberg), complete with a bit of "whistling" (to assuage the sound-buffs), which are quite the weakest feature of the film.
Then, politically, as other reviewers have already remarked, it is a strong and unambiguous condemnation of colonial exploitation. In this respect there were two different trends in the US take on traditional cultures - the "progressist" notion on the one hand that they were picturesque but desperately and cruelly harsh (the view favored by Flaherty in Nanook or in The Man of Arran) and the "nostalgic" view of such cultures as "paradisial" (curiously also associated, almost by accident, with Flaherty who had been unable to find anything sufficiently gruesome on Samoa and had to be satisfied with reviving a defunct practice of painful body-tattooing for his 1926 film Moana). As a result Moana had been sold as an "idyll" and contributed to the development of a US "tiki" culture dominated by ideas of the "lost paradise" and "the noble savage".
Probably this film, like Murnau's later Taboo, gained from the departure of Flaherty whose politics were always inclined to favour rather than condemn the "civilising mission". Thalberg and Van Dyke have strongly taken the opposite view while not exaggerating the notion of "paradise" either. In other words, they have successfully steered a course between two false myths (that of primitives saved by civilisation from the harsh savagery, on the one hand and that of a paradisal idyll on the other). Here, whether originally paradisal or not, we are shown a world that is victim to a genuinely savage exploitation by the dreg-end of colonialism (as in the stories of Joseph Conrad) but the contrast shown (very clearly in the parallel scenes of diving and in the more heavily allegorical opposition between pearls and fish-hooks), is not, despite a bit of false rhetoric, so much between a paradise and a hell but rather, quite simply and correctly, between a good and bad use of natural resources and between decent and indecent value-systems.
In the later scenes the story turns totally to moral parable (the corrupting "white shadow" that develops in the hero himself), but, shorn of the more "mystical" elements of the original book, it remains on the whole a reasonably realistic representation, excellently played and excellently shot. The ending, which I shall not reveal although it is I some ways the most unusual feature of the film, is powerful where it could so easily have been facile. The film holds up well , as another reviewer remarks, beside Murnau's 1931 Tabu and compares very favourably indeed with King Vidor's 1932 The Bird of Paradise (a muddle of all conceivable myths and.a falsely glamorous star-vehicle).
The same cannot be said for the marketing of the film which was a model of tasteless exploitation with Sid Grauman's "prologue" to the film at the Chinese Theater, "The Tropics", involving an extravagant array of "tiki" singing and dancing. All the same, that "white shadow"' past ad the film shown, the stars were also present to talk afterwards about their experience in making it.
And the value of the film is not of course there at all but lies, as with any other good silent film, in the strong script and excellent cinematography by Clyde de Vinna (who received the Oscar and would work on all Van Dyke's "exotic" films of the next few years - The Pagan, Trader Horn, The Eskimo) and Bob Roberts who has worked with Flaherty on Moana (1926) and would go on rather surprisingly to become one of the principal cinematographers in the flourishing Argentinian film industry.
Normally speaking this film ought to represent everything that I tend to find crass and mediocre in US film. It is a producer's and cutter's film par excellence, chosen by Irving Thalberg himself and directed by the notorious "one-shot Woody"; Robert Flaherty who was initially to have directed was sacked for working too slowly.
Yet I have to admit this seems to me in some ways the classic US film at its best before the influence of "sound" has become fully felt. It may not have been shot as it claims in the Marquesas but was nevertheless made on location in Tahiti and the cinematography is not in the least studio-bound nor overly preoccupied with continuity or glamorous "star"-focus. It makes use of local non-professional actors and actors and gives a dignified and not altogether paradisal picture of traditional island life. Even without the influence of Flaherty, the film is "too slow" for at least one other commentator, that is to say, probably just about right for any non-US audience. To my mind, it is not the "documentary" aspects of the film one would like to see curtailed but rather the tiresome and over-sentimental love-scenes (to please Thalberg's philistine colleague Stromberg), complete with a bit of "whistling" (to assuage the sound-buffs), which are quite the weakest feature of the film.
Then, politically, as other reviewers have already remarked, it is a strong and unambiguous condemnation of colonial exploitation. In this respect there were two different trends in the US take on traditional cultures - the "progressist" notion on the one hand that they were picturesque but desperately and cruelly harsh (the view favored by Flaherty in Nanook or in The Man of Arran) and the "nostalgic" view of such cultures as "paradisial" (curiously also associated, almost by accident, with Flaherty who had been unable to find anything sufficiently gruesome on Samoa and had to be satisfied with reviving a defunct practice of painful body-tattooing for his 1926 film Moana). As a result Moana had been sold as an "idyll" and contributed to the development of a US "tiki" culture dominated by ideas of the "lost paradise" and "the noble savage".
Probably this film, like Murnau's later Taboo, gained from the departure of Flaherty whose politics were always inclined to favour rather than condemn the "civilising mission". Thalberg and Van Dyke have strongly taken the opposite view while not exaggerating the notion of "paradise" either. In other words, they have successfully steered a course between two false myths (that of primitives saved by civilisation from the harsh savagery, on the one hand and that of a paradisal idyll on the other). Here, whether originally paradisal or not, we are shown a world that is victim to a genuinely savage exploitation by the dreg-end of colonialism (as in the stories of Joseph Conrad) but the contrast shown (very clearly in the parallel scenes of diving and in the more heavily allegorical opposition between pearls and fish-hooks), is not, despite a bit of false rhetoric, so much between a paradise and a hell but rather, quite simply and correctly, between a good and bad use of natural resources and between decent and indecent value-systems.
In the later scenes the story turns totally to moral parable (the corrupting "white shadow" that develops in the hero himself), but, shorn of the more "mystical" elements of the original book, it remains on the whole a reasonably realistic representation, excellently played and excellently shot. The ending, which I shall not reveal although it is I some ways the most unusual feature of the film, is powerful where it could so easily have been facile. The film holds up well , as another reviewer remarks, beside Murnau's 1931 Tabu and compares very favourably indeed with King Vidor's 1932 The Bird of Paradise (a muddle of all conceivable myths and.a falsely glamorous star-vehicle).
The same cannot be said for the marketing of the film which was a model of tasteless exploitation with Sid Grauman's "prologue" to the film at the Chinese Theater, "The Tropics", involving an extravagant array of "tiki" singing and dancing. All the same, that "white shadow"' past ad the film shown, the stars were also present to talk afterwards about their experience in making it.
Intensely moving and lyrical.
pronker4 August 2019
Warning: Spoilers
Directed by Woody "One Take" Van Dyke, this adventure film begins with callous white trader Anderson gleefully cheating a Marquesan diver out of a sizable pearl by paying him with a tick-tocky wristwatch. The diver is tickled pink with the promise of more "riches." He returns to the deeps, where an octopus snags him down long enough to drown him before his pals drag him up. Enter Doctor Blue, who has "succumbed to despair and to drink" due to being powerless to stop exploitation. Blue slaves over the diver, but after a night of desperate attempts involving massage and raising the man's arms over and over above his head, the man succumbs.
Blue confronts Anderson, who tells him to shut up forever about "conditions." Blue snarls aw hell no (large amount of silent swearing in silent films), and when a ship drifts into the harbor containing "measles-stricken native sailors," Anderson shuttles altruistic Blue to the ship with Anderson's scurvy men crewing the lighter, only it's not measles. It's bubonic plague, the sailors are already dead, and Scurvy Crew fastens Blue to the wheel, fires the ship and hustle away to elude an oncoming storm. The storm carries the ship to a peaceful island far, far away even as it douses the fire. At this point, the film's tints of sepia and yellow for daytime and dark blue for night scenes really prove effective. I choked beside Blue in every heaving wave covering him before he wriggled out of his bonds. He steers the foundering ship to an island where he's revered as a near-god by the natives who've not seen white people before (we're not told how) when he saves the life of little drowned Napua. He's the chief's son and brother to Torres, gorgeous but taboo because she's dedicated to the gods as virgin. Napua holds his breath valiantly in his role until the little guy comes back to life in a realistic fashion. This time the massage and holding-the-arms-overhead technique works.
Her Father, The Chief lifts the taboo as Blue and Torres find happiness. Except. Pearls adorn many necks and when Blue sees them gathered from the lagoon, he leaves Torres alone a lot as he accumulates numerous lovelies to pile in heaps and heap in piles. He lights a clifftop signal fire to any passing ship to return himself to civilization with wealth and presumably Torres. "You've Changed," says Torres sadly to her love, after spying Napua reports Blue's treasure hunting to her. In a credible display of real remorse, Blue works through his greed, tells and shows his love for their life together in a touching scene as he throws his pearls off the cliff. They leave the fire burning as they retire to their hut.
Darn!
Island #1 must not have been more than a three-hour tour away, because shortly Anderson and Scurvy Crew land and the people rejoice, because he'll be nice like Doctor Blue, right? Anderson wiggles his way into the village's trust by spreading bolts of colorful cloth (the colors came out tinted well enough) and cigarettes. Blue despairs to see the White Shadow blot his paradise, slugs Anderson and Scurvy Crewman shoots Blue dead. The final scene depicts Anderson's new trading post on their island with native girls smoking cigarettes sauntering before ogling sailors, native men diving for pearls for pittances, Napua forced to work to gather coconuts and Torres, dressed in a smothering Mother Hubbard rather than her grass skirt and dainty woven bra, mourning over Blue's grave that is marked with a tiki stone.
This movie was intense. As a stand-in for the Marquesas, Tahiti of 89 years ago delivers gorgeous footage of folks en masse climbing for coconuts, luaus, fishing, pearl diving, underwater scenes of real sharks, giant clams trapping your feet to prevent surfacing for air, and octopi menacing divers (staged, natch, but the footage was nicely edited). Clyde De Vinna won an Oscar in the 2nd Academy Awards for Best Cinematography, the film was the first MGM film with a pre-recorded soundtrack, and the first to feature the MGM lion roaring at the beginning. Early sound films often are adapted plays with ensuing loads o'exposition and dialogue, but this one had no more than required intertitles and a minimum of the Arm-Waving Acting that silents displayed. It's silent with synchronized music and sound effects including cries, laughs, whistling, and one spoken word, "Hello," as Blue approaches Torres for the first time as she swims au naturel with her buds amid shrouding greenery. The score is great, though.
The message about western civilization being bad for native peoples colors the film throughout and it's hard to argue with that. One good thing happens when Napua is resuscitated due to western doctoring. A lengthy romantic Meet Cute is Blue demonstrating whistling to Torres as she's entranced by the bird-like sounds. What happens next when lips are in that position is the usual expected event. I'd seen Blue in many B-westerns as character actor, but this is the first time I'd seen him star and he impressed me as talented; nowadays it seems John Gilbert is more remembered. Reddish, blue, sepia, etc. tints the film and plain b/w is only at the beginning and end. The gorgeous poster on this site's entry is by A. Wagener.
Blue confronts Anderson, who tells him to shut up forever about "conditions." Blue snarls aw hell no (large amount of silent swearing in silent films), and when a ship drifts into the harbor containing "measles-stricken native sailors," Anderson shuttles altruistic Blue to the ship with Anderson's scurvy men crewing the lighter, only it's not measles. It's bubonic plague, the sailors are already dead, and Scurvy Crew fastens Blue to the wheel, fires the ship and hustle away to elude an oncoming storm. The storm carries the ship to a peaceful island far, far away even as it douses the fire. At this point, the film's tints of sepia and yellow for daytime and dark blue for night scenes really prove effective. I choked beside Blue in every heaving wave covering him before he wriggled out of his bonds. He steers the foundering ship to an island where he's revered as a near-god by the natives who've not seen white people before (we're not told how) when he saves the life of little drowned Napua. He's the chief's son and brother to Torres, gorgeous but taboo because she's dedicated to the gods as virgin. Napua holds his breath valiantly in his role until the little guy comes back to life in a realistic fashion. This time the massage and holding-the-arms-overhead technique works.
Her Father, The Chief lifts the taboo as Blue and Torres find happiness. Except. Pearls adorn many necks and when Blue sees them gathered from the lagoon, he leaves Torres alone a lot as he accumulates numerous lovelies to pile in heaps and heap in piles. He lights a clifftop signal fire to any passing ship to return himself to civilization with wealth and presumably Torres. "You've Changed," says Torres sadly to her love, after spying Napua reports Blue's treasure hunting to her. In a credible display of real remorse, Blue works through his greed, tells and shows his love for their life together in a touching scene as he throws his pearls off the cliff. They leave the fire burning as they retire to their hut.
Darn!
Island #1 must not have been more than a three-hour tour away, because shortly Anderson and Scurvy Crew land and the people rejoice, because he'll be nice like Doctor Blue, right? Anderson wiggles his way into the village's trust by spreading bolts of colorful cloth (the colors came out tinted well enough) and cigarettes. Blue despairs to see the White Shadow blot his paradise, slugs Anderson and Scurvy Crewman shoots Blue dead. The final scene depicts Anderson's new trading post on their island with native girls smoking cigarettes sauntering before ogling sailors, native men diving for pearls for pittances, Napua forced to work to gather coconuts and Torres, dressed in a smothering Mother Hubbard rather than her grass skirt and dainty woven bra, mourning over Blue's grave that is marked with a tiki stone.
This movie was intense. As a stand-in for the Marquesas, Tahiti of 89 years ago delivers gorgeous footage of folks en masse climbing for coconuts, luaus, fishing, pearl diving, underwater scenes of real sharks, giant clams trapping your feet to prevent surfacing for air, and octopi menacing divers (staged, natch, but the footage was nicely edited). Clyde De Vinna won an Oscar in the 2nd Academy Awards for Best Cinematography, the film was the first MGM film with a pre-recorded soundtrack, and the first to feature the MGM lion roaring at the beginning. Early sound films often are adapted plays with ensuing loads o'exposition and dialogue, but this one had no more than required intertitles and a minimum of the Arm-Waving Acting that silents displayed. It's silent with synchronized music and sound effects including cries, laughs, whistling, and one spoken word, "Hello," as Blue approaches Torres for the first time as she swims au naturel with her buds amid shrouding greenery. The score is great, though.
The message about western civilization being bad for native peoples colors the film throughout and it's hard to argue with that. One good thing happens when Napua is resuscitated due to western doctoring. A lengthy romantic Meet Cute is Blue demonstrating whistling to Torres as she's entranced by the bird-like sounds. What happens next when lips are in that position is the usual expected event. I'd seen Blue in many B-westerns as character actor, but this is the first time I'd seen him star and he impressed me as talented; nowadays it seems John Gilbert is more remembered. Reddish, blue, sepia, etc. tints the film and plain b/w is only at the beginning and end. The gorgeous poster on this site's entry is by A. Wagener.
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