Wordiezett So much average

Contentar Best movie of this year hands down!

MoPoshy Absolutely brilliant

Geraldine The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

MissSimonetta What would you get if you cranked up the unfortunate racial and sexual implications of The Sheik (1921) to eleven? The Barbarian (1933).Ramon Novarro is badly miscast as a womanizing Arab prince who sets his eye on the beautiful American tourist Myrna Loy, who's visiting Morocco with her fiancé. He pretends to be her servant before kidnapping and raping her. He takes her to his desert tent, where he tries to force her to marry him, but she humiliates him during the ceremony, prompting him to let her go marry the man she loves..... Until she gets cold feet and decides she really loves the guy who stalked and assaulted her, so the movie ends with the two of them living happily ever after (made okay by the fact that Myrna's character is half Egyptian, mentioned once at the beginning and once at the end).The Sheik, while horribly dated and somewhat offensive, has Valentino's goofy performance and an undeniable kitsch element that makes it enjoyable as a "so bad, it's good" movie. Plus Valentino's sheik never actually rapes his female co-star. The Barbarian is truly vile. While it has some beautiful sets, a delicious scene of Myrna Loy lounging in a tub with deliberately placed rose petals, and a charming musical bit by Novarro, it's hard to get past the squick factor of the plot.

Gwenhwyvar Ramon Novarro and Myrna Loy get caught up in a torrid romance in one of the last of the pre-code "sheik" films. To anyone who has not seen "The Sheik" or "The Son of the Sheik", the two most famous examples, the plot is simple. Sexy Arab guy (or white guy posing as an Arab) falls for a Western girl and abducts her across the desert sands where red hot (for the time) romance blooms. Fan magazines of the 1920's would gravely discuss the pros and cons of the "cave man approach" to love. "The Barbarian" must have seemed like something of an anachronism when it was released in the early 30's.Myrna Loy plays Diana, an American girl with an Egyptian mother. Neatly removing any objections to an interracial romance, this sets the stage for Jamil to enter her life. Novarro's character is a prince posing as a driverman. What exactly he is prince of is unclear since the script will alternately talk about Egypt, Mecca and Tehran as his domain. Quite a cosmopolitan, it seems.But to Diana, he is a servant and she treats him accordingly. That is, when she is not swooning over his admittedly pleasant singing. But station is station and Jamil's love for Diana takes a decidedly warped turn when the inevitable abduction occurs.There seems to be disagreement among the viewers as to whether or not Jamil forced himself on Diana. It seems pretty clear to me that he did. Whether or not she liked him at the time is up to the opinion of the viewer. That does not, however, alter the fact that she was raped. If the viewer believes that she liked him, merely add "date" before the verb. Same crime, different circumstances. For an interesting comparison, try seeing the "love" scene in the equally silly "Fountainhead".The rest of the film concerns the reactions of Diana's fiancé (Reginald Denny), who isn't really given much to do but stand about and look outraged, and the rest of the cast, who are divided into pro and anti-Jamil camps. Which man Diana will choose is fairly obvious if you know anything at all about Hollywood movies of this time. After all, he IS a prince and she IS half-Egyptian and they DID, well, you know...So, how was it? Myrna Loy is lovely and tries her best but one gets the impression that she is smarter than the script, provided by the overrated (and supposedly liberated) Anita Loos. As for Ramon Novarro, he is a personal favorite for his silent work but he is miscast here. Novarro, by all accounts, was a very pleasant man and he just is not convincing in the smoldering roles. He just seems too nice. He was far better with sincere, heroic characters and in light comedy. Sadly, his dark good looks and last name ending in a vowel condemned him to a certain number of Latin Lover roles. He is very charming at the beginning of the film, when is character is more of a rascal. I particularly liked the scenes of him romancing female tourists in English and German! Is it worth it? Yes, for the glimpse of pre-code Hollywood and just how much they could get away with. It is fun to see big stars in non-typical roles. It will certainly start many discussions of race and gender relations in classic Hollywood. My interest is, frankly, more for research than entertainment. If the plot sounds romantic to you, go for it. If it horrifies you, stay away. If you're like me, you will enjoy the context and theory of the film more than the film itself. It would certainly make a fascinating selection on a DVD set concerning race in early Hollywood. Hint, hint.PS, does anyone know what language everyone is speaking? It doesn't sound like Arabic but I am no expert.

linda_ann_10-1 I have read the previous comments about this movie, and as much as sexual assault is heinous, it is unfair to judge a movie almost 75 years old by our standards in the 21st century. I have just seen it for the first time and I absolutely fell in love with all the characters and the roles they played! All we saw was Jamil kiss Diana passionately, and there is absolutely NOTHING that follows indicating that sex took place between the two characters at that desert scene. I do not think the writers or directors of the movie intended for us to conclude anything - it was a maybe at best as to whether or not they had sex. I have no use for feminazis who want to destroy older movies by assuming that this scene should be the whole basis of this film. It was well done with super talented actors, beautiful cinematography and magnificent costumes. AND, given the divorce rate today, we really have no right to judge or question why two people (fictional or real) fall in love and want to spend the rest of their lives together. These movies are what they are, some are good and some are, well, um, hmm..... overall, better than most of the modern garbage Hollywood puts out for it. I was so awed by this stunning film and I hope it comes out in DVD someday, I will be first in line to buy it!!!

Ursula 2.7T I love lurid, trashy pre-Codes. Love 'em a lot! And I usually love Ramon Navarro. But I hated him in this movie, and I hated this movie.We are supposed to believe that Myrna Loy's character (Diana) loves Ramon Navarro's character (Jamil), but we are never given any valid reason as to *why* she might feel this way about him. Jamil is a creep, through and through. Not a charming cad. Not a dangerous bad boy. Just a creep.Jamil lures Diana to a house under false pretenses and lures another man "Pasha" there too, letting Pasha think that Diana is hot for him and wants to meet for a tryst. Jamil then hands Pasha a whip as Pasha enters Diana's room. Off-screen we hear three blood-curdling screams. Pasha has used the whip on Diana. Niiiiiiice. (insert eyeroll here)Jamil then abducts Diana and takes her across the desert. In the evening he rapes her. OK, there I said it. Do not believe the other reviewers who say that Diana wanted it. She didn't, and the movie makes that clear to us. She rescinds from Jamil's touch and tries to fight him off. In the next scene (after the deed has been done), we see her sitting down with her clothes torn and tears on her cheeks. Jamil approaches her and she recoils and flinches in fear. So you tell me: rape or consensual sex? And at the end of the flick, she runs out on her own wedding to a fairly nice guy who clearly loves her, and runs off voluntarily with Jamil. Why???? The movie gives us not one good reason why we should root for this couple or feel sympathy for Jamil.It was just disgusting and vile. And not in a good way, like oh say Kongo or Three on a Match or Sign of the Cross or The Unknown or any other late 20s / early 30s really great lurid films are. This one was just pure trash. Don't waste your time!