Customer Reviews

Romola [VHS]

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Even one star is too much for this edition. Lillian Gish was never happy with this film anyway ("I never thought the drama matched the splendor of its fifteenth-century backgrounds"), but it was stunningly filmed in Florence, Italy, where the story itself took place. But you would never know it by this tape-the print source looks like a ninth-generation 8mm copy,and often becomes one big blur. Titles are chopped off at the side, and the engineer even racks them up and down at points to "get it all in". There is no musical score of any sort. Please pass this edition up-the film has been restored in 35mm, and there is no reason to waste money on this!

Having had a success with "The White Sister," director Henry King and stars Lillian Gish and Ronald Colman teamed again in 1924 for the drama "Romola." Shot in Florence Italy, the film pioneered the use of panchromatic stock, and is one of the most beautiful films ever made. However, the story is a lesser than stellar retelling of George Eliot's novel. Set in 15th-century Florence, the story's villion Tito Melema (William Powell), is an ambitious, yet heartless young man who has betrayed his adoptive father by abandoning him and pretending to be a scholar. Tito's schemes succeed in winning the hand of the beautiful Romola (Lillian Gish). Her father, the noted blind scholar Bardo Bardi (Bonaventure Ibannez) favors the union, having been taken in my Tito, but Romola loves the handsome artist Carlos Buccelini (Ronald Colman). Meanwhile, Tito furthers his political lust for power by entering into a fake marriage with Tessa (Dorothy Gish), a young peasant girl. When the Medici family is forced out of power, Tito becomes the chief magistrate of Florence, which gives him ample opportunity to indulge in cruelty. After selling Romola's father's books and abandoning a pregnant Tessa, he condemns to death the priest Savanarola (Herbert Grimwood). At this point both the people and Romola turn against Tito, but he has one more monstrous act of evil to accomplish with Tessa before meeting his deserved fate.

Clearly "Romola" was an attempt by the Gish sisters to out do their legendary screen success in "Orphans of the Storm," but the production aspects end up outclassing the performances in this film. King had replicas of the Duomo and the Campanile built on a lot outside Florence, and even commissioned a pair of 15th-century galleons, which were christened the "Lilliano" and the "Dorothea." The film does faithfully relate major events in the life of Savonarola, the benevolent dictator of Florence, but that is just a major subplot to the tragic romance. The best performance in the film is definitely Powell's, but then his role as the villain is the best the story has to offer. At least Colman gets the girl this time; in his previous starring role opposite Lillian Gish she became a nun when she thought he was dead.

Romola is my favorite book by George Eliot - and has not received the attention it deserved - so I was eager to see a screen performance of it when I bought this dvd. I was aware that a 1924 silent movie is unlikely to capture the magic and complexity of a novel or the depth of the characters, and indeed, this is true. The film also omits much of the story in the book, and begins with Savonarola - who only appears later in the novel. But it is still a treat to see such an early interpretation of Romola, and with Lillian Gish. I recommend watching it - and more enthusiastically recommend the novel.

Having seen stills from this movie and being a Lillian Gish (and George Eliot) fan, I was disappointed to find that this DVD-R print is pretty much unwatchable. The titles are pretty much illegible. I'm not sure there is a watchable print available, but I fear the Grapevine print is not it.

(The book I recommend for George Eliot completists. It's attempt to reconstruct Florentine dialect makes you wonder if the patois of "Adam Bede" wasn't a literary contrivance).