Impoverished shoemaker's son Rudolph Valentino (as Juan Gallardo) wants to be a bullfighter, much to his widowed mother's dismay. Still, toreador Valentino excels in the dangerous sport; and, later, he is wealthy and famous throughout Spain. Along the way, he marries virtuous childhood sweetheart Lila Lee (as Carmen). For Valentino, temptation accompanies fame, as he falls under the spell of wicked temptress Nita Naldi (as Doña Sol), a slightly sadomasochistic bullfighting groupie. Can Valentino love two women at the same time?
Valentino performs well as an innocent ragamuffin who achieves great fame; of course, this parallels the idolization of the film's star. Moreover, the Idol proves just as attractive being seduced (herein, by Ms. Naldi) as he was the seducer (in the recent "Sheik"). Fred Niblo's "Blood and Sand" is a classic; however, the story, and disjointed bullfighting footage, do bog things down.
Great things happen, after about a quarter hour, when Valentino steps into Naldi's lair. In a neat bit of acting business, Valentino wipes a sweaty hand before greeting his seductress; then, he and Naldi's servant exchange weird looks as Valentino gets his cigarette lighted. After some crosscutting to innocent Ms. Lee, Naldi's harp-playing gets her man.
Writer June Mathis adapts well, for her star; but, the Ibáñez story should have more streamlined. Combining, or further developing, the characters played by Charles Belcher (Don Joselito) and Walter Long (Plumitas) might have helped. Mr. Belcher's character is most interesting; he collects torture devices, and choruses the film's thesis: "Happiness and prosperity built on cruelty and bloodshed cannot survive."
******* Blood and Sand (8/5/22) Fred Niblo ~ Rudolph Valentino, Lila Lee, Nita Naldi, Charles Belcher
