Camille (1921)

A courtesan and an idealistic young man fall in love, only for her to give up the relationship at his status-conscious father's request.

Director:

Ray C. Smallwood

Writers:

Alexandre Dumas fils (by), June Mathis (written for the screen by)

Stars:

Rudolph Valentino, Rex Cherryman, Arthur Hoyt

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Rudolph Valentino	...	Armand Duval
Rex Cherryman	...	Gaston Rieux
Arthur Hoyt	...	Count de Varville
Zeffie Tilbury	...	Prudence
Patsy Ruth Miller	...	Nichette
Elinor Oliver	...	Nanine
William Orlamond	...	Armand Duval's Father
Consuelo Flowerton	...	Olympe
Alla Nazimova	...	Marguerite Gautier (as Nazimova)

Storyline

Camille is a courtesan in Paris. She falls deeply in love with a young man of promise, Armand Duval. When Armand's father begs her not to ruin his hope of a career and position by marrying Armand, she acquiesces and leaves her lover. However, when poverty and terminal illness overwhelm her, Camille discovers that Armand has not lost his love for her.

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Plot Keywords:

f rated | courtesan | promise | illness | camelia | 

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Taglines:

IT IS ALL CHAMPAGNE AND TEARS Fresh Perversity, Fresh Credulity, Fresh Passion, Fresh Pain (Print Ad- Wheeling Intelligencer, ((Wheeling WVA)) 20 May 1922)

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

Passed

Did You Know?

Trivia

Concerned about the all-seeing eye of the camera revealing her true age--which was, at the time, past 40--Alla Nazimova saw to it that all of her closeups or near closeups were shot in heavily filtered soft focus, which makes even the best existing prints of the film difficult to watch.

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Quotes

Title Card: Winter. Paris, magic city of pleasure, yet beneath its tinseled gaiety throbbing with life's grim note of passion and tragedy.

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Alternate Versions

On 14 February 2002, Turner Classic Movies (TCM) broadcast the television premiere of the film with a new score by Peter Vantine, and a running time of 70 minutes. Vantine won the privilege of providing the score from a nationwide contest conducted by TCM, in which there were 375 entries. This version can be seen as a special feature on the Warner Bros. Home Video DVD for Camille, released in 2005.

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Connections

Version of La traviata (1993)

User Reviews

Interesting Early Version of Camille

This version of Camille features Nazimova as the courtesan and Valentino as her young lover, Armand. It certainly makes for an excellent film and deserves to be viewed as an earlier rendition of the story that features a mature star opposite a rising one. I think it holds its own space next to the Garbo version, and both benefit by the comparison.

Valentino is subtle and intense, he gives a memorable performance and his presence is electric. He is much more expressive than Robert Taylor in the Garbo version. Nazimova must have been aware of his scenic power, as she chose to have him absent in the last scene, so we could concentrate on her death which was very well done. In general Nazimova tends to be over the top in the crowd scenes, but her solos or scenes with Valentino reveal subtlety and add depth to the interpretation. She is very convincing for example, in establishing the disease as a major feature in her character from the very beginning.

The story takes place in the present then 1920's and not in the 1840's. The designs for sets and dresses by Natasha Rambova are exquisite. We first see Camille at the top of a grand staircase in what we assume is the Opera, surrounded by admirers and wearing a grand gown, and wild hairstyle. The party at her house afterward is perfect in the decor and design, particularly the way we can see into her boudoir from the salon. The country scenes were beautiful as were the flashbacks into the story of Manon Lescaut, the book that is a gift from Armand, and which he reads to her in their idyllic moments, and that she will hold on to till the very end. It relates a similar life to hers in the 18th century, and we understand her predicament to be a recurring theme, as old and human as society itself. The interior scenes in the country however were too spartan and middle-class in style. And her dresses are also too plain. We find it hard to believe Marguerite could have spend so much and get so little. It does seem a perfect environment though, for Armand's conventional and small- minded father, who looks like Napoleon III in his commanding incarnation of bourgeois morality.

The gambling scene that marks her re-entry into her old life is one of the best in the film. The communication between Marguerite and Armand from across the room is as intense as if they were holding each other close. It must be seen to be understood, as no words can accurately describe the gamut of feelings rushing by the actors, it is precisely at these moments that we understand the art of the silent era, and Norma Desmond's comment in "Sunset Boulevard" :"We didn't need words, we had faces".

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

None English

Release Date:

26 September 1921 (USA)

Also Known As:

Kameliadamen

Company Credits

Production Co:

Nazimova Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

70 min (2002 alternate) 72 min

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1