An oddity. P.C. Wren's very-English book transported to Mexico (replete with a bullfight), then Spain, but finally to the Sahara and the French Foreign Legion. RKO's 1931 version is pretty bad, but it has its pictorial compensations, and is kind of fun in its overblown, campy way. This isn't any kind of fun, but should be of interest to Legion and Wren adherents. Crowd scenes and at least one set (a fort)from the earlier film seem to be employed here. The one improvement on the first version is that the two male leads are macho types. The original story has been considerably changed. This new tack could have resulted in some interesting dramatic developments, if only someone involved in the production had had the talent to do something with it. The tape I've obtained has English titles.
Review of Hermoso ideal
