Call of the Flesh

Convent-reared Dorothy Jordan falls in love with Ramon Novarro, who sings and dances at the cantina next door. She runs away with him to Seville, where he studies opera singing with Ernest Torrence. But ex-girlfriend Renee Adoree tries to break things up.

Given the title, you expect something more profligately pre-code than what shows up on screen; the title, however, was shifted from THE SINGER OF SINGER after musicals became a drug on the market. Novarro dances well enough, and sings opera well, if a bit reedily -- or perhaps that's due to the sound recording. It's a movie which depends on your tastes in stories. If you enjoy the occasional sugar-coated plot with dewy-eyed Dorothy at her sweetest, then you'll enjoy this one.

By no means a "B" film in budget, but definitely one in story and technique. After seeing this effort, it's remarkably easy to understand why Novarro's stellar career declined so rapidly and dramatically in the sound era. It's not that there's anything wrong with his voice, it's just that his acting seems so ludicrously inept and his personality so colorless and lacking in charisma. Mind you, if you turn off the sound, then Novarro's gestures and even his persona appear quite acceptable. But with sound in this film, he's just ridiculous! True, the script itself is a load of old romantic melodrama that's about impossible to stomach, let alone get involved in. The only way to rescue this sort of operettish stew from the throw-out pot, is to pep it up with flair and imagination. Unfortunately, Charles Brabin is not this sort of chef – at least not here. He did learn his lesson, but here his direction is little more than disinterested and/or routine. Even the sets lack the pictorial qualities we usually associate with Cedric Gibbons. The sound recording of course is poor. But at least the photography in the present wholly black-and-white version telecast by TCM retains appeal.

Its an oldie. Ramon Navarro (Ben Hur, Mata Hari) and Dorothy Jordan. he's a singer, she's a nun. she falls for him, but they must decide what is really the best thing for her to do. the whole thing is pretty low budget. cheesy story, cheesy sets, bad fake, foreign accents. things they would say in 1930, but certainly not today. and all before the film production code, so it was okay to do some of these things! he's a singer, so there's lots of singing. some sound and picture issues, but it IS 90 years old, so we'll cut it some slack. it gets better as it goes along. also keep an eye out for Ernest Torrence... he was also Steamboat Willie, with Buster Keaton! Torrence died quite young of complications of surgery. directed by the mostly unknown Charles Brabin. he had made TONS of silent films, and then a couple years more in talkies. the trivia says there was a color sequence that seems to lost.... sad. Novarro was beaten to death at age 69, apparently as part of a robbery. also sad.

"Call of the Flesh" is a musical romance, so I was expecting lots of song (check) and lots of emotion (no). I have not seen Ramon Novarro in any other film, but this one certainly does not promote him, much as he is showcased in song and dance. His dancing was leaden. His singing was okay, but the songs were awful, and nothing to make even an innocent convent girl fall in love with. Ms Jordan's performance was touching and enjoyable. I just could not muster any enthusiasm for the story and gave up persevering through this movie by 40 minutes in.

This is one of my favorite films of all time. I loved every character, and every actor and actress. The film is charming. It is serious, funny, heartwarming; and the music is both charming and beautiful. This story must have been written with Ramon Novarro, Dorothy Jordan, and Renee Adoree in mind; but the whole cast is "perfect". I wish that this film will someday be available on video. Some may find this film naive or too simplistic, but it's innocence and sincerity overwhelm me.