Mare Nostrum (1926) User Reviews

MARE NOSTRUM (Rex Ingram, 1926) ***

[Bunuel1976 · 7/10 · 18 August 2006]

This is a lavishly produced wartime romance and, as is typical of Ingram, quite stylishly handled (benefiting also from the fact that it was filmed in Europe, the director himself being based in France). The plot places its old-fashioned impossible and, inevitably, tragic love story against the backdrop of a nostalgic view of the sea and the simple fisher-folk who live and die in it, the bourgeoisie with their stuck-up attitude and high ideals and, naturally, an impending world-war situation; for all that, it's most interesting when dealing with the various espionage elements and especially the two submarine attacks (which must have been a novelty at the time) led by a bald-headed and aristocratic German officer, obviously inspired by Erich von Stroheim!

Still, Alice Terry's poignant performance as the female spy (who has mixed emotions about her mission and who happens to be the spitting image of Amphitrite, the Sea Goddess who protects fishermen) is the core of the film; this was perhaps the best role she ever had (directed, naturally, by her husband). Antonio Moreno is less impressive as the male lead, though his disheveled appearance when forced to work for the enemy and following his son's death (for which he is partly to blame) is appropriately world-weary. The beautiful and poetic finale, then, sees the drowning Moreno (after his ship was torpedoed by the sub he helped fuel!) being picked up by Amphitrite herself. Reportedly, this was Ingram's favorite among his own films - as well as Terry herself and Moreno, too!

Mare Nostrum floats gracefully.

[st-shot · 8/10 · 3 April 2011]

Since he was a child Ulysses Farragut had been in love with the sea embodied in the legend of the beautiful Ampitetre. Against his fathers wishes he grows up to captain his own boat The Mare Nostrum but as blissful as his life on the waves is it takes him away from his family. When The War breaks out the lucrative business of shipping as a neutral nation (Spain) calls for even more of his time. While on a tour of ruins he meets a German spy who fulfills his childhood ideal. She seduces him and he in turn agrees to assist re-fueling U boats seeking military targets. His actions result in catastrophe however when it sinks a passenger ship. Haunted by guilt and the need to exact revenge Farragut pursues those responsible.

Shot on location in Europe Mare Nostrum has an impressive look filled with the rich attention to detail that silent film director Rex Ingram and cameraman George Seitz (Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse) excelled at. Along with Von Stroheim he provided the era with the most lush and textured canvases and Mare Nostrum is a gallery of splendid landscapes, interiors and portraits to behold. Given its splendid look and fine chemistry and performances from Antonio Moreno and Alice Terry it moves along at a leisurely but absorbing pace. The supporting cast is also up to task with a trio of effective villains singling out Paquerette's Dr. Feldman.

Its a pity that Ingram retired from directing at an early age, it would have been interesting to see more extensive sound work which he did only briefly. As far as cameraman Seitz he would go to work on a regular basis with legendary directors Preston Sturges and Billy Wilder in their peak. I'd say he's a lot more important to the history than given credit for.

Reasonably entertaining

[gbill-74877 · 7/10 · 29 July 2018]

A decent enough film, but it's unlikely to blow you away. Set during WWI, a Spanish sea captain (Antonio Moreno) traveling in Italy meets and falls in love with a young German woman (Alice Terry). One problem is that he's married, and has a young son. Another is that the German woman and her older colleague (Mademoiselle Paquerette) are both spies, and convince him to help the Germany navy out in a way whose ramifications he can't fully appreciate. The film is thus about guilt and paying for the choices one makes in life, and director Rex Ingram pulls no punches. I loved the scenes on location in Naples, Pompeii (with Vesuvius smoking the background), Marseilles, and Barcelona. The scenes with U-boat attacks were tense, and the German officers suitably sinister. It's a little on the melodramatic side, and there are some rather big coincidences to help the plot get to where it's going. Even at 102 minutes, the film is belabored, and elements like the prologue could have been cut. There's something missing to truly recommend it, but on the other hand, it's well made and reasonably entertaining 92 years later.

Great Visuals Make This Silent

[Michael_Elliott · 13 February 2011]

Mare Nostrum (1926)

*** (out of 4)

Lavish MGM production takes a rather routine screenplay and turns it into something rather unique. Seaman Ulysses Ferragut (Antonio Moreno) falls for a woman (Alice Terry) who turns out to be a German spy and their relationship leads to one disaster after another. That's pretty much all you need to know in terms of story because there's no question that the main reason to check this out is the visual style. Even though the story is pretty routine, director Ingram at least pumps plenty of style and gives us some terrific visuals along the way. The film has our Captain being fixated on the sea goddess Amphitrite and this is the reason he ends up falling for the spy as the two look quite a bit alike. This obsession was one of the most interesting things about the screenplay and I must admit that I was pulled in by the "old ways" involving the mysterious of the sea and the various folk tales that are brought into the film. One of the best moments happens at the very start of the film when we see some items at the bottom of the sea. This certainly isn't anything we haven't seen in earlier films but Ingram shows it in such a striking way that it's very memorable. The same is true of the ending, which I won't ruin but there's no question the image is perfectly filmed. Some of the stuff goes a tad bit too far into melodrama including the relationship between the Captain and his wife. There's also a German officer that's a tad bit too silly and it's made even worse by the fact that it's played by an Erich von Stroheim look-alike. I'm sure had Erich been on good terms with the studio then he would have been playing the part. I do wonder why the studio and director cast someone like they did as I'm sure folks in 1926 saw the resemblance. As far as the performances go Terry clearly steals the film. She's extremely passionate, sexual and dramatic so she perfectly captures whatever it is she needs to do. I thought she really brought her character to life and managed to easily steal the film. Moreno is pretty much forgotten today but at the time he was Valentino's rival. His looks probably brought the majority of the women to the film but he turned in a nice performance. There's no question that the screenplay isn't the greatest but the cast and especially Ingram make this something a lot better than it would have been in lesser hands.

Tragedy on the "Mare Nostrum"

[romanorum1 · 7/10 · 10 May 2013]

The movie focuses on the life of a man who sails the Mediterranean Sea. As a child Ulysses Ferragut (Antonio Moreno), a Spaniard, had a passion for the sea. His uncle, the Triton (Uni Apollon), instilled in him sea tales and stories of the pagan goddess Amphitrite, a protector of sailors. He kept a supposed picture of her on the wall. Against the wishes of his father Don Esteban, who wants him to become a lawyer, Ulysses grows up to become a sea captain of his own fast freighter, the "Mare Nostrum." As he spends so much time at sea (and without much profit) he is rarely with his wife Cinta and young son Esteban. After World War I begins (1914), Ulysses' merchant business becomes very rewarding. After his ship moors at Naples in still-neutral Italy, Ulysses takes a vacation, visiting the old Roman ruins at Pompeii, destroyed long before by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius (79 AD). It still smolders. At the site Ulysses meets enthralling Freya Talberg (Alice Terry), who soon tells him point blank that she is a spy for her native Austria (Austro-Hungarian Empire), the main ally of Germany. Her traveling companion is mannish, heavy-set Dr. Fedelmann (Mademoiselle Paquerette). Declaring that he is a neutral Spaniard and not directly involved with the war, Ulysses is smitten with Freya. He notes that her likeness is the same as that of Amphitrite. Ignoring his small family, Ulysses begins a long affair with Freya.

Meanwhile, the concern of the German spies – Fedelmann and Count Kaledine – who have set up headquarters in Naples, is that the Italians are contemplating joining the allies in the war (English, French, and Russians) against the Central Powers (Germans, Austrians, and Hungarians). After Italy does indeed declare war against Austria (1915), Fedelmann and Kaledine leave Italy to set up shop in neutral Spain (Barcelona).

Encouraged by Freya to help Germany, Ulysses provides fuel for a German submarine operating in the Mediterranean. He is promised that the subs will torpedo only military vessels, not passenger ships. Under an odd-looking German commander, the sub later torpedoes an English passenger vessel that is carrying his son, Esteban, killing him. Mournful Ferragut decides to pursue those responsible for his only son's death. Subsequent scenes of note are the long crowd chase of a German spy in Marseilles, the firing squad scenario, and the final underwater setting.

Filmed on location in several countries, Rex Ingram's movie was probably his most ambitious enterprise outside of "The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse." The predictable, melodramatic spy-story really is not too thrilling, but good visuals/photography and on-location filming in France, Italy, and Spain help. See those large ships in Naples harbor; never mind the sea-models. Uni Apollon certainly reminds one of an old sea-dog. Alice Terry is alluring while Antonio Moreno is handsome. Grotesquely untidy and obese Hughie Mack is the jolly Spanish servant, Caragol. One wants to cry out to him: "Caragol, take a bath, and please, burn those clothes!" In the end he does find himself immersed.

The source of the phrase, "Mare Nostrum" originates solely from the Roman Empire. This huge dominion, the most far-flung and durable of antiquity, encompassed the entire Mediterranean Sea. As the Romans controlled the Mediterranean basin for hundreds of years, they fittingly called the vast water-system "Our Sea" (Mare Nostrum). Not only was the sea a link for many nations of the empire, but it also helped Rome to ship troops to faraway trouble spots.

Rex Ingram's Tale of Brave Ulysses

[wes-connors · 6/10 · 12 December 2010]

Handsome seaman Antonio Moreno (as Ulysses Ferragut) grows up enthralled by the legendary goddess "Amphitrite". The bewitching blonde is described as "the mother and sweetheart of all Mediterranean sailors," and Mr. Moreno keeps a portrait of her in his Barcelona home. There, Moreno lives comfortably with dark-haired wife Kithnou (as Cinta) and their beloved son Michael Brantford (as Esteban). Moreno captains his freighter ship "Mare Nostrum" (Latin for "Our Sea") along the Mediterranean while his wife worries about their son's frequently absent father...

To be a better father, Moreno decides to give up the lovely "Amphitrite" illusion and his seafaring to spend more time at home. This would leave the "Mare Nostrum" in the hands of Frederic Mariotti (as Toni) and obese Christian cook Hughie Mack (as Caragol). But, two things alter Moreno's plans. First, the Great War (aka World War I) begins, making his shipping business more lucrative and important. Then, Moreno meets alluring Alice Terry (as Freya Talberg), who appears to be the sea goddess "Amphitrite" come to life. Alas, Ms. Terry is no goddess, she's spy for Germany!

Continuing to strive for art, director Rex Ingram slowed down his dramatic pace and vowed to film exclusively outside of Hollywood for "Mare Nostrum". It had all the ingredients of a blockbuster - successful director (Ingram), handsome star (Moreno), proved source material (Ibanez), and popular female (Terry) - all done at a healthy budget for MGM distribution. Trouble is, the film simply does not deliver the anticipated excitement. While it seems to presently be lacking its original soundtrack, the surviving print is great condition. It's beautifully shot in France, Italy and Spain.

****** Mare Nostrum (2/15/26) Rex Ingram ~ Antonio Moreno, Alice Terry, Hughie Mack, Mickey Brantford

Tragic Tale Of The Sea

[Ron Oliver · 10/10 · 27 May 2001]

A young Spanish sea captain learns about life & death, great love & passionate hatred, while sailing the waters of MARE NOSTRUM - ‘Our Sea.'

Brilliant & disturbing, this was the last important film from acclaimed silent director Rex Ingram. Produced to great effect on location in the Western Mediterranean, this was one of Metro's biggest films of the 1920's. Returning to the author who had already given him enormous success with THE FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE APOCALYPSE - Vicente Blasco Ibáñez - Ingram would once again produce a film of exceptional high quality. Today, it is all but forgotten...

Antonio Moreno gives a vivid performance as the Captain who is used so harshly by fate. His doleful eyes linger in the imagination of the viewer long after the end of the film. Alice Terry - Mrs. Rex Ingram - is sultry & beautiful as the Austrian spy who seduces Moreno. Her firing squad scene is considered a classic of pacing & composition, and she is magnificent in it.

Uni Apollon is very effective in his few minutes as an old Spanish sea dog. Madame Pâquerette, as a large, mannish German spy master is formidable. Hughie Mack, as an absolutely loyal, grossly obese Spanish servant, is especially satisfying. (This excellent character actor would die from heart disease the year after MARE NOSTRUM's release, at the age of only 42.)

The unfortunate use of obvious models for some of the scenes at sea is more than mitigated by the presence of real ships & submarines in others. The filming among the ruins in Italy's Pompeii & Paestum, as well as the spy chase along the waterfront in Marseille, add tremendously to the overall ambiance of this remarkable film.

The underwater sequences with Amphitrite, goddess of Mare Nostrum, are absolutely haunting.

Tragic silent film

[preppy-3 · 9/10 · 27 March 2004]

Ulysses (handsome Antonio Moreno) owns a boat called the Mare Nostrum. He also has an uncaring wife but a son Estaban (Mickey Brantford) whom he loves. An evil, sexy German spy Freye (Alice Terry) seduces Ulysses and convinces him to help bring supplies to a German sub. He does and the sub ends up destroying a ship that Estaban is on. Ulysses vows to kill all the people responsible.

This silent film was believed lost for many years. Thankfully it's been found and beautifully restored. Basically, this is a tragedy so it's hardly a happy film but still it's extremely well-made and directed by Rex Ingram, one of the best silent film directors. There are some very amusing miniature ships and subs in some sequences, but this WAS 1926--that's probably the best they had!

The acting is good too. Moreno was a very popular star in his day--sadly, he's forgotten today. He's good-looking and gives one hell of a performance--some of his reaction shots were incredibly good. Terry was obviously hired because she was married to director Ingram, but she was a good actress and she's good here. She was cast against type playing an evil woman (she usually played the good girl) and she pulls it off. Her scene in front of the firing squad is just great. And young Brantford is very good as Estaban. The only bad thing was Caragol (Hughie Mack)--an obese man who provides unfunny comic relief. And it DOES have a silly ending.

Still, a great silent film. Well worth catching.

Lavish visuals, formula story-telling

[rfkeser · 5/10 · 12 December 1999]

About ten minutes into this plush production comes a jaw-dropping scene of visual fantasy--a vision of the maritime goddess Amphitrite--which is matched by a similarly striking underwater sequence at the end. Unfortunately, between these bookends sits a Victorian melodrama of adultery/guilt/expiation, which is then shoe-horned into a WWI spy plot: betrayal of spouse reflected in betrayal of country.

Despite its mythological and religious trappings, this is deeply conventional story-telling: while an artist examines the ambiguities of behavior, director Rex Ingram is satisfied with this formula plot, leaving his actors no credible characters to develop and only pot-boiler dialogue to mouth ["You are the only man I ever loved!"]. So, although Antonio Moreno looks fit in his sailing captain's uniform, he mostly frowns in pain or puzzlement, while the excellent Alice Terry must enact everything from villainy to martyrdom with little help. The other players are earnest, some used for heavy-handed stabs at humor; however, this film's disregard for people becomes clear as--late into the film--new, throw-away characters keep appearing to deliver more exposition.

The action sequences--impressively shot on locations in Barcelona, Marseilles and Naples--include a mob chasing a German spy around a harbor, plus several submarine attacks and shipwrecks [done with entertainingly elaborate though unconvincing miniatures]. Yet even the visuals seem conventional and static, like academic paintings, especially when compared to the cinematic dynamism of Sternberg or Walsh.

The title refers to the Mediterranean Sea, but is also the name of the hero's ship, and acquires still a third meaning at the end.

A brief review

[Dsosin · 10/10 · 15 June 1999]

This is a first-rate WWI spy film, shot on location in Pompeii

and elsewhere; the story is gripping and the details of

character are finely thought out. It was shown to great acclaim

at AMMI and Pordenone. I provided a piano score in each

venue

Rex Ingram's First Movie In His Nice, France, Film Studio

[springfieldrental · 8/10 · 10 March 2022]

Because of his incredible success with not only "Apocalypse" but 1922's "The Prisoner of Zelda," 1922's "Scaramouche" and 1924's "The Arab," Metro Pictures and later MGM gave Ingram production financing. Marcus Loew, head of Metro, was especially grateful for Ingram's contribution to his studio's coffers, handing him funding to purchase the old Gaumont Film Studio in Nice, France. It was in that refurbished studio Ingram produced February 1926's "Mare Nostrum." The complex required some necessary upgrading, which proved during the filming to be highly inadequate for a smooth production. The Nice so-called film professionals turned out to be inexperienced for the director's taste. Ingram was forced to ship Hollywood technical help over to France to complete the movie. The movie's poroduction ordeal, with numerous reshoots, took over 15 months for its final edit to be approved.

Gleaned from author Vicente Blasco Ibanez's 1918 spy story of the same title, "Mare Nostrum" is the name of the ship an unhappily married captain (Antonio Mareno) owns. He falls for Terry Alice, whose character is an Austrian spy during World War One. The Spanish captain is a neutral in the war. But when both losing his son to a German submarine while in transit and then losing his lover Terry to a German execution squad (she switched sides from the Axis Powers), he hires out his ship to the Allies to transport well-needed armaments. "Mare Nostrum's" spiritual slant focuses early on the sea goddess Amphitrite, who envelops the souls of the drowned and provides them with everlasting salvation. The personification of Amphitrite takes of the form of Terry Alice, as big of a complement to her by Rex as there ever was one.

Ingram was hoping his movie would strike gold since the authorship of the storyline was the same writer, Ibanez, who composed "Apocalypse." However, since the international movie was banned in Germany because of its bias against the Huns, its confused title, "Mare Nostrum," which Ingram insisted it be kept, caused the movie to underperform. The film's lack of success wasn't helped by a number of scenes employing model miniature boats, something that detracted from its realistic European backdrops where the love scenes take place.

Ingram produced only one other film for MGM, 1927's 'The Garden of Allah,' while making his last silent for United Artists in 1929's 'The Three Passions." He produced his only talkie, 1932's 'Baroud,' before he and Alice moved back to the United States to take up writing and painting. A pioneer in film, Ingram died from a cerebral hemorrhage on July 21, 1950 in North Hollywood, at the age of 58.

Pretty good for its day but quite dated today.

[planktonrules · 5/10 · 27 July 2013]

"Mare Nostrum" is the sort of film that must have played very well back in the day but now looks very, very dated. This is because the plot is often ridiculously melodramatic and very old fashioned. It also includes some story elements (such as the Greek goddess Amphitrite) that just seem out of place and unnecessary.

The movie begins with a prologue that is completely unnecessary, so I will say no more. The next scene finds the young boy at the beginning is grown and is a sea captain--much to his wife's dismay. In fact, she harangues him about this and he vows to quit. However, WWI erupts and the man realizes he can make a fortune with his shipping business. However, what he doesn't know is that his trip from home in Barcelona to Italy will result in ruin, as he meets a beautiful temptress who seduces him. In fact, she even gets him to do a small mission for the Germans, as she's actually a spy for the Central Powers. Captain Ulysses has been assured that his helping supply a submarine with fuel won't be a problem, as the ship won't attack any passenger ships. But, soon the u-boat IS attacking cruise ships and sinks the one with Ulysses' son aboard! Now, Ulysses is furious and vows revenge against the female spy and her cause. What's next? See the film.

In many ways, this film plays like a much more melodramatic version of "Mata Hari". It also features characters that are pretty unlikable and a running theme about a Greek goddess that comes off as very heavy-handed. Although also heavy-handed, I did like the Angel of Death clip near the end--it was pretty funny. Overall, a watchable film that is probably best seen by folks who adore silents and will cut the film a lot of slack, as it is pretty silly.

Excellent silent era movie

[searchanddestroy-1 · 2 January 2023]

I have not seen many films from the silent period, but I know that Rex Ingraham was a major director in Hollywood in this time. SCARAMOUCHE, FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE APOCALYPSE.... This one is a tragedy, gloomy story and riveting too for a today's audience, at least me. It is also a sea adventure film, war film, helped by strong, convincing performances, that reminded me Joseph Von Sternberg's DISHONORED. I recommend it, because it is available on you tube and you have no excuse to miss it, despite the silent problem. It is such a shame that so many movies from the silent period are now lost. So don't miss this one.