General Crack

Despite the intriguing title ('Crack' is actually an acronym for Christian Rudolf Augustus Christopher Kettler) this film isn't the snazzy early talkie it sounds. Rather it's a stately costume piece in which John Barrymore is far more active as a lover than a fighter; most of the battle scenes being triumphantly reported rather than actually shown (the climactic rout of the Russians being disposed of in barely five minutes).

A lot of money has plainly been spent on the sets (constantly shot at a distance so we get a good look at them) and the costumes. Alan Crosland directs like the close-up hasn't yet been invented. Barrymore gets little opportunity to demonstrate that he's more than just a pretty face (almost always shot with his left profile on display), except for his early appearance as his elderly father, when he for a moment bears a remarkable resemblance to his brother Lionel).