Beyond the Rocks (film)
Encyclopedia
Beyond the Rocks is a 1922 silent
drama film
directed by Sam Wood
, starring Rudolph Valentino
and Gloria Swanson
. It is based on the novel of the same name
by Elinor Glyn
.
about a woman (Swanson) forced to marry an older, wealthy man. Just before her marriage she meets a young nobleman
(Valentino). While in the Alps
on her honeymoon, they meet once more and still later, in Paris
, meet a third time and fall in love. When the woman's husband finds out about her feelings for the nobleman, he confronts the man, but after further consideration, decides to sacrifice himself by standing in harm's way on an expedition to Arabia. His death during that expedition makes it possible for the young lovers to come together.
, save for a one minute portion, for the better part of the twentieth century until a print was found in the Netherlands
in 2003. The film was restored by the Nederlands Filmmuseum and the Haghefilm Conservation. It turned up among about two thousand rusty film canisters donated by an eccentric Dutch collector, Joop van Liempd, of Haarlem
. It was given its first modern screening in 2005. The restored version was released on DVD in 2006.
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
directed by Sam Wood
Sam Wood
Samuel Grosvenor "Sam" Wood was an American film director, and producer, who was best known for directing such Hollywood hits as A Night at the Opera, A Day at the Races, Goodbye, Mr. Chips, and The Pride of the Yankees...
, starring Rudolph Valentino
Rudolph Valentino
Rudolph Valentino was an Italian actor, and early pop icon. A sex symbol of the 1920s, Valentino was known as the "Latin Lover". He starred in several well-known silent films including The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, The Sheik, Blood and Sand, The Eagle and Son of the Sheik...
and Gloria Swanson
Gloria Swanson
Gloria Swanson was an American actress, singer and producer. She was one of the most prominent stars during the silent film era as both an actress and a fashion icon, especially under the direction of Cecil B. DeMille, made dozens of silents and was nominated for the first Academy Award in the...
. It is based on the novel of the same name
Beyond the Rocks
Beyond the Rocks is a 1906 novel by Elinor Glyn. The novel was later adapted into a 1922 silent film in which Gloria Swanson and Rudolph Valentino starred together for the only time. The film was directed by Sam Wood and distributed by Paramount Pictures.-Plot summary:The book is a melodrama...
by Elinor Glyn
Elinor Glyn
Elinor Glyn , born Elinor Sutherland, was a British novelist and scriptwriter who pioneered mass-market women's erotic fiction. She popularized the concept It...
.
Plot
The film is a melodramaMelodrama
The term melodrama refers to a dramatic work that exaggerates plot and characters in order to appeal to the emotions. It may also refer to the genre which includes such works, or to language, behavior, or events which resemble them...
about a woman (Swanson) forced to marry an older, wealthy man. Just before her marriage she meets a young nobleman
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
(Valentino). While in the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
on her honeymoon, they meet once more and still later, in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, meet a third time and fall in love. When the woman's husband finds out about her feelings for the nobleman, he confronts the man, but after further consideration, decides to sacrifice himself by standing in harm's way on an expedition to Arabia. His death during that expedition makes it possible for the young lovers to come together.
Cast
- Rudolph ValentinoRudolph ValentinoRudolph Valentino was an Italian actor, and early pop icon. A sex symbol of the 1920s, Valentino was known as the "Latin Lover". He starred in several well-known silent films including The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, The Sheik, Blood and Sand, The Eagle and Son of the Sheik...
as Lord Hector Bracondale - Gloria SwansonGloria SwansonGloria Swanson was an American actress, singer and producer. She was one of the most prominent stars during the silent film era as both an actress and a fashion icon, especially under the direction of Cecil B. DeMille, made dozens of silents and was nominated for the first Academy Award in the...
as Theodora Fitzgerald - Edythe ChapmanEdythe ChapmanEdythe Chapman , was an American stage and silent film actress from Rochester, New York. As early as 1898 she appeared in New York, New York in the Charity Ball. Edythe performed at the Shubert Theater in Brooklyn, New York in a production of The Light Eternal in 1907...
as Lady Bracondale - Alec B. FrancisAlec B. FrancisAlec B. Francis was an English actor, largely of the silent era. He appeared in 241 films between 1911 and 1934.He was born in London and died in Hollywood, California.-Selected filmography:...
as Captain Fitzgerald - Robert BolderRobert BolderRobert Bolder was an English film actor of the silent era. He appeared in 99 films between 1912 and 1936.He was born in London and died in Los Angeles, California.-Selected filmography:* His New Job...
as Josiah Brown - Gertrude AstorGertrude AstorGertrude Astor was an American motion picture character actress, who began her career playing trombone on a riverboat.-Career:...
as Morella Winmarleigh - June ElvidgeJune ElvidgeJune Elvidge was an early 20th century film actress from St. Paul, Minnesota.Elvidge is noted for playing roles as a vamp in silent movies such as The Lure of Woman and The Poison Pen . She appeared in westerns such as The Law of the Yukon and The Price of Pride...
as Lady Anna Anningford - Mabel Van BurenMabel Van BurenMabel Van Buren was an American stage and screen actress from Chicago, Illinois. She had dark hair, brown eyes, and was five feet three inches tall. She enjoyed riding horses and swimming....
as Mrs. Jane McBride - Helen DunbarHelen DunbarHelen Dunbar was an American theatrical performer and silent film actress.-Career:Born Katheryn Burke Lackey in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, she first appeared with the Weber & Fields Stock Company, when it began its career on the New York stage...
as Lady Ada Fitzgerald - Raymond Brathwayt as Sir Patrick Fitzgerald
- Frank ButlerFrank Butler (writer)Frank Butler was an American film and theatre actor; he was also a screenwriter.-Theatre:His theatre career included two appearances in Broadway-theatre productions in New York City, New York....
as Lord Wensleydon (as F. R. Butler)
Preservation status
Beyond the Rocks was considered a lost filmLost film
A lost film is a feature film or short film that is no longer known to exist in studio archives, private collections or public archives such as the Library of Congress, where at least one copy of all American films are deposited and catalogued for copyright reasons...
, save for a one minute portion, for the better part of the twentieth century until a print was found in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
in 2003. The film was restored by the Nederlands Filmmuseum and the Haghefilm Conservation. It turned up among about two thousand rusty film canisters donated by an eccentric Dutch collector, Joop van Liempd, of Haarlem
Haarlem
Haarlem is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland, the northern half of Holland, which at one time was the most powerful of the seven provinces of the Dutch Republic...
. It was given its first modern screening in 2005. The restored version was released on DVD in 2006.
