A lot can change in 100 years. These days we have the heroes of the MCU topping the box office charts. A century ago we had the culturally insensitive exploits of The Sheik sending audiences into a fervor. In the era of silent films, audiences were just as likely to hit up a couple of films a week in theaters, especially if they wanted to catch something before it quickly played off and moved to the next screening location. Yet, when George Melford brought The Sheik to the silver screen in 1921, audiences demanded it to be held over for weeks upon end, setting attendance records. Based on the 1919 romance novel of the same name by Edith Maude Hull, the feature was one saddled with controversy from the very beginning due to its handling of certain racial and elements. This has not helped the film prosper with modern sensibilities, but it remains an important part of the cinematic landscape.
While the film appears to be a period piece, it actually takes place in the era in which it was released, only it “transported” audiences to the North African town of Biskra (aka desert exteriors somewhere in California). The gender politics of the story start out pretty strong as we follow Lady Diana Mayo (Agnes Ayres), a willful young woman who views the institution of marriage as a prison, much to the chagrin of her brother (Frank Butler). She even gets a bit up in arms when she is not allowed into a local casino when Sheik Ahmed Ben Hassan (Rudolph Valentino) has taken it over for the night. After a plan to gain entry lands her on the radar of the sheik, she finds herself the victim of a kidnapping plan that coincides with a month-long desert trip she had planned on taking against the urging of her brother. What follows is an uneasy journey from rambunctious prisoner to willing paramour which leaves a terrible message that men can force their love onto a woman and they will eventually relent. I guess this is okay when your captor is as “dreamy” as Rudolph Valentino?
If you are not put off by the sexual politics of the narrative, the depiction of Arabs as savages in such black-and-white terms should raise at least some ire. Even more so for a last-minute reveal that essentially makes the case that any “good” Arabs are so because they are not actually Arab. I would have respected the story a bit more if they at least had the courage to stick to their convictions rather than sell out an entire ethnicity. On a narrative level, there is not much to elevate this beyond the trashy romance novels on supermarket shelves. For its technical achievements, you can be much more forgiving. There are some really impressive feats of set design and costumes that are quite beautiful to behold. The film also flows nicely and does not appear to have a large amount of extraneous material. The most notable aspect of the film is arguably the performances; Rudolph Valentino may be playing a morally dubious individual, but you can sort of see why audiences were enamored by his magnetic screen presence. Most contemporary audiences will not get much from this on a story level, but as a piece of film history it is intriguing.
Video Quality
The Sheik makes its way to Blu-Ray thanks to Paramount Pictures with a lovely transfer from a 4K restoration of the best surviving elements. For a film that is celebrating its 100th anniversary, this is a truly wonderful presentation. There was a previous Blu-Ray from Kino Classics that I have never viewed nor do I have in my possession, but just judging from screenshots this appears to be a pretty decent upgrade. The transfer shows off a great amount of depth and enhanced detail within the film’s composition. Black levels present with some decent depth with no overwhelming occurrence of black crush or compression artifacts. The gorgeous color-tinted photography shines in high definition with natural grain intact. There is a fair amount of detail present with nice textures on the clothing and within the setting. The contrast is mostly well defined, but the transfer has an ever-present light rain of nicks and scratches throughout the runtime. You get used to this ongoing occurrence of minor damage as you focus on other aspects such as the depth of field and detail. Paramount has done as well as could be expected given the lack of existing materials in better shape.
Audio Quality
This Blu-Ray presents the film with a Dolby TrueHD 2.0 lossless audio track that sounds pretty wonderful. The film is graced with an original score composed and performed by Roger Bellon that is quite beautiful and mysterious. As this is a silent film, the music is the only element to contend with in this track, and it sounds bright and lovely with no clipping or age related wear and tear. Classic film fans should be beyond pleased with the sound quality of this track, as the new piece seems to complement the visuals perfectly.
Special Features
- Desert Heat – 100 Years With The Sheik: A new 12-minute featurette in which film historian and professor Leslie Midkiff DeBauche discusses the burgeoning popularity of film in the early 20th century and its impact on the culture, the adherence to the conventions of romance novels, the positive and negative depictions of feminism, the life and career of Rudolph Valentino and more that puts the film into context.
Final Thoughts
The Sheik is rife with problematic elements that may make it difficult for certain viewers to fully enjoy, but on a technical level there is much to admire. It is a really worthwhile experience to reflect upon what audiences were drawn to 100 years ago and see how far features have come in the interim. Paramount Pictures Home Entertainment has released a Blu-Ray featuring a stellar A/V presentation given the source material, as well as a decent supplemental featurette. If you are a fan of silent films, you will be very pleased to see how well this film fares with this new release.
Paramount Presents The Sheik is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Paramount Pictures Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
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