A fiasco in 1930, and silly and laughable over 90 years later. It's not the fault of its stars, John Gilvert, Eleanor Boardman and Renee Adore that it's so ridiculously melodramatic and unbelievable. In "Singin' in the Rain", a bunch of boys come out of the theater after watching Gene Kelly and Jean Hagen in their first talkie, mocking them. The scene they're making fun of has nothing on the frequently audacious moments between Gilbert and his two leading ladies here, with Gilbert's attempts to make love realistically destroyed by the dialog and direction, and not his voice.
Set during the first decade of the 20th Century in Nicholas and Alexandra period Russia, this opens up with a gypsy festival where Gilbert and Boardman are celebrating their engagement and a fortune teller informs him that he's going to end up with someone else, meaning Adoree. He does marry Boardman and they have a child together but indeed he leaves her and ends up with Adoree. She's a vivacious gypsy singer and dancer (singing "O Chichonia"), and at least that's an exotic moment. But the film never rises above its absurdities, poorly directed by Fred Niblo and outside of the curiosity value ain't worth much more than a one time viewing by the most devoted of old movie conosieurs.
Set during the first decade of the 20th Century in Nicholas and Alexandra period Russia, this opens up with a gypsy festival where Gilbert and Boardman are celebrating their engagement and a fortune teller informs him that he's going to end up with someone else, meaning Adoree. He does marry Boardman and they have a child together but indeed he leaves her and ends up with Adoree. She's a vivacious gypsy singer and dancer (singing "O Chichonia"), and at least that's an exotic moment. But the film never rises above its absurdities, poorly directed by Fred Niblo and outside of the curiosity value ain't worth much more than a one time viewing by the most devoted of old movie conosieurs.