Stolen Moments

Stolen Moments (1920)

** (out of 4)

A rather dull and lifeless silent melodrama about a woman (Marguerite Namara) torn between a Latin playboy (Rudolph Valentino) and a hardworking man (Albert L. Barrett). This was originally produced to show off Namara and was released as a six-reeler but after Valentino became a star the studio went back and cut most of the story out making this a three-reeler that showed off the famous star more. With that in mind, it's really no shock that the film makes very little sense and this is certainly true during the final act, which involves a murder and an investigation. The six-reel version is now lost so this "Valentino version" is all that's left. Once again, I can't say I was too impressed with the silent icon but I do plan on getting to some of his more famous roles. Namara isn't any better in the lead but Barrett comes across with a good performance and is the main reason to see this.