Call of the Flesh
| Call of the Flesh | |
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| Directed by | Charles Brabin |
| Written by | John Colton Dorothy Farnum |
| Starring | Ramon Novarro |
| Cinematography | Merritt B. Gerstad |
| Editing by | Conrad A. Nervig |
| Distributed by | Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer |
| Release date(s) | August 16, 1930 |
| Country | United States |
| Language | Movietone |
Call of the Flesh (1930) is an American musical film directed by Charles Brabin. The film stars Ramon Novarro, Dorothy Jordan, and Renée Adorée. It featured several songs performed by Novarro and originally included a sequence photographed in Technicolor.
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[edit] Production
Filming of Call of the Flesh began on January 27, 1930 under the working title The Singer of Seville, and lasted through March. It was shot at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios in Culver City. Before the premiere, the title was changed to Call of the Flesh because the original title made it sound too much like a musical. Ramon Novarro apparently hated the new title.[1]
This film marked Novarro's fourth film appearance with Renée Adorée, and his third with Dorothy Jordan.[2] Charles Brabin and Novarro had previously worked together on Ben-Hur before Brabin had been fired from that project. Novarro would later claim that he, not Brabin, actually directed most of Call of the Flesh.[3]
Novarro insisted that Renée Adorée be cast in the film opposite him, despite the fact that she was extremely ill with tuberculosis. and the actress suffered two hemorrhages during production which almost shut the project down. In one instance, Novarro tried to convince production supervisor Hunt Stromberg to relieve Adorée of her duties and reshoot her material with another actress, offering to waive his salary, but Stromberg insisted, against doctor's orders, that it would be too expensive. After completing her last scene, Adorée had a second hemorrhage again and lost consciousness; she was rushed to a sanitarium in La Crescenta.[4] Though Adorée survived two more years, her health effectively ended her chances at a continued career. Call of the Flesh was her last film.
[edit] Cast
- Ramon Novarro as Juan
- Dorothy Jordan as Maria
- Ernest Torrence as Esteban
- Nance O'Neil as Mother Superior
- Renée Adorée as Lola
- Mathilde Comont as La Rumbarita
- Russell Hopton as Enrique
[edit] Release and reception
Call of the Flesh was released on August 16, 1930.[5] It received mixed reviews. Mordaunt Hall of the New York Times said it was well directed but described the plot as 'somewhat lethargic.'[6] Variety said the film was uneven overall, and the New York Morning Telegraph said the storyline was 'banal.'[7] Despite a growing distaste for musicals among the general public, the movie was financially successful.
In some theaters, the film was accompanied by a comedy called The Great Pants Mystery.[8] No film of this title is listed on the Internet Movie Database. At the Capitol Theater in New York City, the film was accompanied by a Stepin Fetchit performance of Bye Bye Blues staged by Chester Hale.[9]
Call of the Flesh has not been released on DVD or video. It has been broadcast on television, and these versions of the film do not include any footage in Technicolor, which show Novarro's performance of an aria from Pagliacci.[10] A still survives showing Novarro dressed as Pagliacci, posed alongside actor Ernest Torrence.[11]
[edit] Alternate language versions
As with several American films made between 1930 and 1932, Call of the Flesh was remade into two alternate language versions. Novarro appears in both, reprising his role as Juan de Dios Carbajal, and directed both of them. They were filmed using a different crew and supporting cast on the same sets at MGM Studios. A German-language version, also to be directed by Novarro, was never filmed for financial reasons.[12]
[edit] La Sevillana or Sevilla de mis amores
La Sevillana was the Spanish-language version, co-starring Conchita Montenegro as María, along with José Soriano Viosca, Rosita Ballesteros and Michael Vavitch. Novarro's mother, Leonor Pérez Gavilán de Samaniego, makes her only film appearance as Mother Superior of the convent. Ramón Guerrero, who appears in the film, translated the original screenplay, and Novarro translated the song lyrics, assisted by Herbert Stothart. The film cost $103,437 and premiered at the Teatro Califórnia Internacionale in Los Angeles on December 5, 1930.[13] The production of La Sevillana marked Novarro's first performance in Spanish, his first language. It is credited with boosting the career of Conchita Montenegro.[14]
[edit] Le chanteur de Séville
Le chanteur de Séville was the French-language version, adapted by Yvan Noé and Anne Mauclair, co-starring Suzy Vernon, Pierrette Caillol, Georges Mauloy, Mathilde Comont (reprising her role), Carrie Daumery and Ramón Guerrero. It cost $96,598 and premiered on February 21, 1931, at the Théâtre de la Madeleine in Paris.[15]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Soares, André; Beyond Paradise: The Life of Ramon Novarro; St. Martin's Press, New York, 2002; p. 160
- ^ Soares, André; Beyond Paradise: The Life of Ramon Novarro; St. Martin's Press, New York, 2002; p. 153
- ^ Soares, André; Beyond Paradise: The Life of Ramon Novarro; St. Martin's Press, New York, 2002; p. 154
- ^ Soares, André; Beyond Paradise: The Life of Ramon Novarro; St. Martin's Press, New York, 2002; p. 154
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0020724/releaseinfo
- ^ http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9E05E6D61338E433A25750C1A96F9C946194D6CF
- ^ Soares, André; Beyond Paradise: The Life of Ramon Novarro; St. Martin's Press, New York, 2002; p. 160
- ^ The Times-News, Florence, Alabama; February 23, 1931; p. 4
- ^ http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9E05E6D61338E433A25750C1A96F9C946194D6CF
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0020724/trivia
- ^ http://blog.allanellenberger.com/book-flm-news/photo-special/
- ^ Soares, André; Beyond Paradise: The Life of Ramon Novarro; St. Martin's Press, New York, 2002; p. 163
- ^ Soares, André; Beyond Paradise: The Life of Ramon Novarro; St. Martin's Press, New York, 2002; p. 374
- ^ Waldman, Harry; Hollywood and the foreign touch: a dictionary of foreign filmmakers and their films from america, 1910-1995; ; p. 265
- ^ Soares, André; Beyond paradise: the life of Ramon Novarro; St. Martin's Press, New York, 2002; p. 374
