Film Review
Pierre Frondaie's popular French play
L'Insoumise
provided the young Howard Hawks with a suitably grand and exotic
storyline with which to demonstrate his visual flair and storytelling
ability. Hawks had by this time made four films for the William
Fox studio and had already demonstrated remarkable versatility and
ambition. Although its run time is a modest 80 minutes
Fazil has an epic feel to it and is
an unusually lavish production for Fox. Hawks fell out with his
superiors when he exceeded both the budget and production schedule,
thereby hastening his departure from the studio. Although Hawks
was justified in going the extra mile -
Fazil is one of the most visually
striking of his silent films - the effort was pretty well wasted as the
film's release was put back until June 1928 (almost a year after
filming had been completed), by which time sound cinema had well and
truly arrived.
Fazil
must have seemed horribly dated and attracted far less attention than
it might have done had it come out a year earlier.
One of the main strengths of the film is the choice of the lead actors,
whose charismatic presence considerably enhances what might have been a
somewhat tedious and unconvincing melodrama. Charles Farrell,
remembered today for his many superb collaborations with director Frank
Borzage, makes an impressive Prince Fazil, his imposing physique and
expressive features perfectly attuned to revealing the contradictions
of an Arabian potentate who is torn between tradition and love.
The Norwegian actress Greta Nissen, a star with the Famous
Players-Lasky Corporation, has a dazzling screen presence and, like
Farrell, a rare talent for bringing depth and humanity to characters
who, on paper, appear hideously superficial. Nissen's vitality is
exploited by Hawks to the full - her Fabienne is the very embodiment of
the liberated modern young woman - and it is this which makes the
ending so unbearably poignant, if not downright cruel.
Whilst the love-conquers-all plot is scarcely credible, sometimes
looking more like a tacky adolescent fantasy than an adult drama, the
film is visually alluring and offers up several moments of undiluted
brilliance. The one stand-out sequence is the one depicting the
lovers' whirlwind romance in Paris, a spectacular montage that
powerfully conveys the frenzy of life lived at its most intense.
Before this there is a memorable ballroom scene in which the throng
around the main protagonists disappears, leaving them in a world of
their own, oblivious to everything around them. The last few
reels of the film, set in Arabia, are less impressive and the budgetary
limitations are painfully revealed by the obvious mismatch between some
location footage and a studio mock-up of a desert. With more time
and a much bigger budget Hawks could well have made this his first
masterpiece, but circumstances were against him.
Fazil is as much a curiosity piece
as anything else, a dusty relic of the silent era which is enlivened by
some startling directorial flourishes and its captivating central
performances.
© James Travers 2014
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Next Howard Hawks film:
Scarface (1932)
Film Synopsis
Although faithful to the traditions of his race the Arabian prince
Fazil is reluctant to take wives so that he may produce an heir.
He is a man for whom women as yet hold no interest. During a
business trip to Europe he meets a young French woman, Fabienne, with
whom he falls instantly in love. Fabienne is equally taken with
the handsome dark-skinned Arab and, after a whirlwind romance, they
agree to marry. Too soon their different customs begin to drive
them apart. When Fabienne invites an old male friend of hers to
have dinner with them Fazil is incensed and returns to his home
country, satisfied that their marriage is over. Unable to forget
Fazil, Fabienne heads after him but is shocked when she finds he has
assembled a harem of beautiful women. Realising he still loves
Fabienne, Fazil agrees to send his other wives away if she will agree
to stay with him. The unpleasant realities of life in a foreign
land and customs that are strange to her cause Fabienne to regret her
decision...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.