Old Ironsides

This picture is absolutely fantastic. I just saw it two nights ago when I was clearing out my room and felt in the mood for a sea epic. It's funny how someone like me, who doesn't even know how to swim (and doesn't plan to), indulges himself with every sea picture he sees. Chuck Farrell proves a worthy choice for the lead; a dreamer, seeking adventure on the high seas. Esther Ralston, even though I'm anti-blonde, is gorgeous as his supporting heroine. The portion of the cast that MADE the picture however was Wallace Beery and George Bancroft. They were awesome characters and the fight scenes between them were hilarious. I will NOT reveal anymore important plot elements, see the picture for yourself and enjoy. Just make sure to bring a towel, you're bound to get drenched with excitement.

There is some grand cinematography in this telling of the early US Navy's attempts to combat the Corsair pirates from North Africa who demanded tribute from all who would sail the seas upon pain of terrible retribution from their well equipped and terrifying fleet should any default. The cast - Wallace Beery, lively as ever, and George Bancroft as his gunner mate, work well together, as do the appearances from the hunky, lovestruck Charles Farrell (rather inappropriately named "The Commodore") and the rather butter-wouldn't melt Esther Ralston ("Esther" - perhaps she had trouble remembering her own name?). To be honest, this isn't a great film, from a narrative perspective, for much of the first half - it really does take a while to get underway. When it does, however, we get some cracking maritime battle scenarios with loads of action, gun battles and technically impressive cinematography that captures some of the genuine jeopardy faced by those sailors from all nations who had to deal with this Tripolitan scourge. From an historical perspective, the fairly embryonic US Navy wasn't quite so successful as this would suggest, but success they had - and the old USS Constitution certainly played her part in arresting these terrors of the Mediterranean and beyond. It's a good watch, this - especially if you like your stories encrusted with salt and a cat 'o nine tails, but maybe the first half hour could have been condensed just a bit better by James Cruze (no puns intended).

Having enjoyed MASTER & COMMANDER: THE FAR SIDE OF THE WORLD with Russell Crowe and its incredible depiction of life aboard an early 19th century frigate, I decided to re-view this 1926 film of shipboard life. I was surprised to note that several scenes in OLD IRONSIDES are quite similar to scenes in MASTER & COMMANDER. Surely director Peter Weir must have screened this movie before making his. The battle sequences are very similar with sand being spread on deck to absorb blood, the crew hitting the deck to avoid a volley, young boys dying during the fighting, and fierce close up hand to hand combat. Both movies are set during the same time period but this story is very different with the USS Constitution versus the Barbary Pirates being the setting here.

Charles Farrell who was a big romantic lead in the 20's especially when paired with Janet Gaynor, shows here why he was so popular. He is vulnerable but heroic, reserved but not stoic and he possesses an effortless charm that makes him appealing. Although playing the standard damsel in distress role, Esther Ralston makes an engaging heroine who is not a total wimp when the going gets tough. Character actors Wallace Beery and George Bancroft have a field day as feuding sailors while George Godfrey is featured in a more significant role than black actors of the time were usually given. Add to that some brief nudity and a discreetly sexy performance from Ralston (she was once known as The American Venus) and you have a real winner on your hands.

This epic film was well directed by movie pioneer James Cruze (THE COVERED WAGON, THE GREAT GABBO) who is all but forgotten today due to virtually all of his films being lost. Finally Paramount with the help of Kino Lorber has released this on DVD/Blu-Ray along with several of the others in their VHS silent film series of over 30 years ago including THE COVERED WAGON and a new release of Rudolf Valentino's THE SHEIK. Now if we can just get a restored version of Erich von Stroheim's THE WEDDING MARCH, then we will have them all. Special features included with this release are background commentary, a booklet, and Rodney Sauer's piano reduction of the original 1926 orchestral score...For more reviews visit The Capsule Critic.

Charles Farrell, an enterprising young lad, becomes a member of the crew of the Esther, a merchant ship bound to Naples. On the way, he makes friends with bos'n Wallace Beery, George Bancroft, a gunner who deserted from the Constitution, cook George Godfrey, and pretty passenger Esther Ralston. However, the ship is captured by Barbary Pirates, Miss Ralston is scheduled to be taken, along wih the ship, as a gift to an emir, and the men thrown into a slave quarry. Our Hero and his three pals escape and make their way to the Consiution, which finally shows up nearly an hour into the movie, where Johnny Walker as Stephen Decatur is already engaging in heroics. This goes on and it is in the final twenty minutes that we actually get the Battle of Tripoli and everyone is rescued.

It's a bit leisurely in getting down to what everyone is waiting for, but when it finally happens, it's a well conducted reenactment, with director James Cruze doing a lot of beautiful model work, thanks to Farciot Edouart and his special effects team. Bancroft is a lot of fun in a terrible wig, and Beery gets a big shove from the villains he had been playing towards the big-hearted lout he would portray at MGM. It's a rousing Yankee Doodle of a movie, and the script offers a lot of nice touches, thanks to a writing team that included Laurence Stallings, Rupert Hughes, and Dorothy Arzner. Some sequences were shot and presented in Magnascope, but the copy I looked at lacked the effect.

Like Orson Welles with Citizen Kane, James Cruze spent the rest of his directorial career trying to top the success of the epic western The Covered Wagon. The sea serves as the prairie landscape for this film, Old Ironsides the story of the first days of that valiant ship of the line in our new US Navy for Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes penned his immortal poem.

In this film the Constitution is a new ship and it's off to fight in the war against the Barbary pirates of Tripoli. In what I think is a rather unnecessary prologue we're shown scenes of the debates in the 5th Congress as to whether we should have a navy at all.

When the meat of the story gets served it's a slice of action and romance. Young Charles Farrell goes off to sea in search of adventure and gets recruited in a grog shop by boatswain Wallace Beery. Also recruited that way is George Bancroft who is a gunner on the new Constitution. Bancroft ain't happy on the way he was drafted and he and Beery have a running feud going.

As for Farrell, he's got eyes for passenger Esther Ralston, but she's out of his league. But they all get into the same fix when the Barbary pirates capture them and the ship. After that it's the US Navy and the as yet to be named Old Ironsides to the rescue. Most important for Ralston as the pirates have a choice place in the sultan's harem for her.

The Constitution was as yet to be named Old Ironsides. That would occur later on in the era before the War of 1812 when she battled the British ship of the line Guerriere. The battle scenes are well staged, the recently departed from Paramount Cecil B. DeMille couldn't have done better than Cruze.

The film holds up very well and if it isn't history it's good entertainment.