6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Criminally underrated!, January 17, 2005
This review is from: Conquering Power,the [VHS] (VHS Tape)
I can't believe this little-known gem from 1921 isn't better-known; it's one of the best films I've ever seen, silent or talkie! Based on the Balzac story 'Eugénie Grandet' (which I'm told would be almost 3 hours long were it remade today, since it left out a lot of stuff in the book), it's the story of young French dandy Charles Grandet, who is sent away by his debt-ridden father to live with his extremely rich uncle, whom he is told has a daughter a few years younger than he is. Charles is very surprised when he arrives to find that the huge castle he was told his uncle lived at is empty, and that his aunt, uncle, and lovely cousin Eugénie are actually living in a small hut to save money (Charles's uncle is quite the miser). His uncle does not take very well to having him there, and completely disregards the note from his brother telling him to take care of his nephew like his own son and to provide for him. He makes poor Charles live in the basement, and keeps it a secret from him that the sale of his father's estate brought in quite a lot of money that rightfully belonged to Charles. He also thwarts the budding love affair between Charles and Eugénie, sending Charles away to Martinique (unknowing that he was able to finance his voyage with gold pieces from Eugénie, the gold her father gave her every year on her birthday) and intercepting his love letters home to Eugénie so that she is led to believe he doesn't love her anymore. He even goes so low as to write a letter to his nephew lying that Eugénie is getting married, when in actual fact she is still patiently and forlornly waiting for Charles. However, since the title of the movie, 'The Conquering Power,' refers to love, there is a happy ending after all of the years Charles spent away and all of the hardships both of the young lovers went through, both financially and emotionally.
Rex Ingram was an incredible director, and June Mathis was an incredible screenwriter; they really don't make them like that anymore. The scene where Father Grandet is locked in his office and having hallucinations (complete with phantom hands reaching through the door and the figure representing gold coming at him threateningly) is as frightening and chilling as it must have been back in 1921, and is so much more powerful than such a scene would have been had it been in a movie with sound. Another lovely scene illustrating the power of silence to convey a story and mood is when Eugénie sneaks down into the basement and finds her cousin asleep at his desk and sees the letter he is writing to his former girlfriend, the scene where she discovers his true feelings towards her. She tenderly covers him up with a blanket like a protective mother hen, and when he awakes she tries to give him money, saying a cousin is like a brother and surely he will accept money from his sister. The only bad thing about this movie is that the print quality could use some restoration work, but it's certainly not distracting or unwatchable like some other prints of films that are just as old, films where oftentimes faces and objects are little more than blurs. Apart from the expected scratches and lines in a film this old, the picture quality is very clear and distinct. I hope this comes onto DVD eventually.
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