The Desert Song (1929 film)
7.2 /10 1 Votes
Language English | 7/10 IMDb Genre Musical Duration Country United States | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Release date April 8, 1929 (1929-04-08) Cast (The Red Shadow), Carlotta King (Margot), (Susan), (Benny Kidd), (General Bierbeau), Jack Pratt (Pasha)Similar movies A Night in Venice , Die lustige Witwe , Call of the Flesh , Say It with Songs , , Bride of the Regiment Tagline Warner Brothers' spectacular SINGING success | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Myrna loy performs azuri s dance from the desert song film 1929
The Desert Song is a 1929 American Pre-Code operetta film directed by Roy Del Ruth and starring John Boles, Louise Fazenda, and Myrna Loy. It was photographed partly in two-color Technicolor, the first film released by Warner Bros. to be in color. Although some of the songs from the show have been omitted, the film is otherwise virtually a duplicate of the stage production and extremely faithful to it. It was based on the hit musical play with music by Sigmund Romberg and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein, Otto Harbach and Frank Mandel
Contents
- Myrna loy performs azuri s dance from the desert song film 1929
- The riff song from the desert song film 1929
- Plot
- Pre Code Sequences
- Cast
- Preservation status
- References
The stage musical opened at the Casino Theatre on Broadway on November 30, 1926 and ran for a very successful 465 performances. Based on the success of this film, Warner Bros. quickly cast John Boles in an all color musical feature called Song of the West which was completed by June 1929 but had its release delayed until March 1930.
The riff song from the desert song film 1929
Plot
French General Birabeau has been sent to Morocco to root out and destroy the Riffs, a band of Arab rebels, who threaten the safety of the French outpost in the Moroccan desert. Their dashing, daredevil leader is the mysterious "Red Shadow". Margot Bonvalet, a lovely, sassy French girl, is soon to be married at the fort to Birabeau's right-hand man, Captain Fontaine. Birabeau's son Pierre, in reality the Red Shadow, loves Margot, but pretends to be a milksop to preserve his secret identity. Margot tells Pierre that she secretly yearns to be swept into the arms of some bold, dashing sheik, perhaps even the Red Shadow himself. Pierre, as the Red Shadow, kidnaps Margot and declares his love for her.
To her surprise, Margot's mysterious abductor treats her with every Western consideration. When the Red Shadow comes face to face with General Birabeau, the old man challenges the rebel leader to a duel. Of course Pierre will not kill his own father, so he refuses to fight, losing the respect of the Riffs. Azuri, the sinuous and secretive native dancing girl, might be persuaded to answer some of these riddles if only she can be persuaded by Captain Fontaine. Meanwhile, two other characters, Benny (a reporter) and Susan provide comic relief. Eventually, the Red Shadow's identity is discovered, a deal is struck with the Riffs, and Pierre and Margot live happily ever after.
Pre-Code Sequences
After 1935, the original 1929 version became impossible to exhibit in the United States due to its pre-Production Code era content, which included sexual innuendo, lewd suggestive humor and open discussion of themes such as homosexuality (e.g. Johnny Arthur plays a character who is obviously gay). Consequently, a cleaned-up remake was released in 1943, with a third version following in 1953.
Cast
Preservation status
The film exists only in a black and white copy. The film elements are missing from a small portion of one of the musical numbers but the complete soundtrack survives intact on Vitaphone disks.
References
The Desert Song (1929 film) WikipediaThe Desert Song (1929 film) IMDb The Desert Song (1929 film) themoviedb.org