Frères d'armes

Finally broadcast by Turner Classic Movies on December 15, 2004. The best feature of this comedy-drama is in fact the directing. Unusual overhead shots, clever arrangements of actors to later reveal a different situation than first seen, make this film stand out. Director Lewis Milestone would go on to do "All Quiet on the Western Front," "The Front Page," "Of Mice and Men," and the 1962 "Mutiny on the Bounty." The plot is a bit convoluted (war in the trenches to a prison camp, to the high seas, and finally in Arabia) and there is some problems with continuity, but a synopsis is that boy meets girl and boy gets girl. The writing appears to have been above average but are we looking at the original titles or was the text altered and updated during the restoration? William Boyd (AKA Hopalong Cassidy) is actually believable as a carefree World War I doughboy as is Louis Wolheim as his buddy the Sergeant. Michael Visaroff is excellent as the lecherous ship's captain. The film also features a twenty-one year old Mary Astor and Boris Karloff. New music provides a pleasant accompaniment. Film quality is not great, but it is apparently all that we can get. Recommended.

"Two Arabian Knights" has the distinction of winning one of the first two Oscars given for Best Direction. In the Academy's first year, 1927-28, the Best Director award was split between dramatic and comedy categories, and "Two Arabian Knights" won the latter. Indeed, it's only the first of two films in Oscar history -- the second being "The Divine Lady" the following year -- to win a Best Director Oscar without being nominated for Best Picture, but since that first year was the only one in which two directing awards were given, it isn't an apples to apples comparison with other years. Lewis Milestone, who certainly deserved to win an Oscar for something and would become the first person to win two directing Oscars when the Academy awarded him the prize two years later for "All Quiet on the Western Front," beat Ted Wilde ("Speedy") to win the one for this film, and I have to say the Academy got it wrong. "Two Arabian Knights" is enjoyable, at times very funny, and features a very fetching Mary Astor (this was the first silent performance I'd ever seen her in), but it doesn't hold a candle to Harold Lloyd's hysterical comedy.

If all had gone originally according to plan, we would be saying that both "Two Arabian Knights" and "Speedy" were bested in this category by Charles Chaplin's "The Circus." But the Academy decided to yank Chaplin's film from competitive consideration and instead give it a special award.

Grade: B+

TWO ARABIAN KNIGHTS has been restored by Flicker Alley and TCM after being unavailable for decades. The film is the only recipient of the "Best Direction of a Comedy Film" Academy Award that was only given out in 1927-1928. William Boyd and Louis Wolheim are two feuding G.I.s that are both captured by the Germans in World War I. The film is more of an adventure/comedy rather than a straight comedy. They have a suspenseful escape from their prison camp, only to be recaptured and sent to Turkey. They end up being stuck on a train, and a ship, as well as well as being marked for death by an Arab suitor. A very young and beautiful Mary Astor is a veiled woman who boards the ship and is a target of romantic advances by both men. Look fast to spot a very young Boris Karloff as the ship purser. Louis Wolheim has a face only a mother could love, but he is perfect in his part as the gruff sergeant.

I'm not sure how this film could have beaten out Chaplin's THE CIRCUS, Keaton's STEAMBOAT BILL, JR. and Harold Lloyd's SPEEDY for the "comedy direction" Oscar. Still, it is a fun, sophisticated, and exciting film that is well written. I particularly liked the scene where they escape from a jam with a little help from God (or Allah). If you like silent films, you won't be disappointed.

Turner Classic Movies showed this silent, B&W flick today (Aug 29, 2007) on TV.

Solid classic adventure story, complete with all of the key ingredients: exotic plot locations, a beautiful woman in peril, a pair of dauntless and resourceful heroes (one of them handsome, the other colorful) grossly outnumbered by badguys, sprinkled with comic relief. Great costumes and sets; as good or better than those of current movies. Surprising variety of camera craft and directorship; pans and zooms including overhead angles, and closeups of key characters and objects. In this regard again it seems like a modern movie! Actions convey the story very well; without the benefit of a soundtrack. Of course, this entails a considerable degree of live type acting (similar to that seen in plays), but I did not get a feeling of melodrama like is all too common in most silent films and early sound movies.

The most enjoyable performance is played by Louis Wolheim as the rough edged but colorful Sgt. Peter O'Gaffney, who was *perfectly* casted for the role; considering both appearance and skill.

There were at least a few peculiar facts about Muslim society that I had previously learned over the past several years, which added to my appreciation of the story in the area of historical accuracy.

My favorite scene was when the heroes are fleeing a swarm of dangerous, sword wielding Arabs through the narrow streets of a busy Muslim city. Suddenly though the chase is interrupted by an oblivious imam who pops out onto an exterior balcony to announce that it's time for afternoon prayer. Everyone out on the streets (except for the heroes) religiously obeys Islamic law and momentarily kneels down, which allows the heroes to escape. That scene was just one example of the film's many expressions of originality.

After seeing this movie I better realize how extensively modern movies contain rehashed ideas that were pioneered decades earlier.

The third movie produced by Howard Hughes, this gem was thought to be lost. It was recently restored and shown on TCM (12/15/04). The plot is a familiar one - two WW I soldiers escape from a German prison camp (guarded by an extremely lethargic German shepherd, who practically guides them out of the camp), stow away on a ship, and end up in "Arabia", where they rescue the lovely Mary Astor. The restoration is very good overall, although there are two or three very rough sequences. The production is very good, and there are some very funny scenes. And did I mention that Mary Astor is in it? The film won an Academy Award for the now-defunct category of "Best Direction of a Comedy".