Beyond the Rocks (1922)

My Review

Rudolph Valentino and Gloria Swanson, two of silent pictures’ biggest stars, play star-crossed lovers in the silent film classic “Beyond the Rocks.” Swanson plays a young woman who marries an older millionaire to support her family, but soon meet a younger nobleman, which leads to an impossible love triangle. Director Sam Wood put together a riveting drama from a scenario (screenplay) by Jack Cunningham. It was adapted from a 1906 novel “Beyond the Rocks: A Love Story” by Elinor Glyn.

“Beyond the Rocks” was considered a lost film for most of the twentieth century, as no copies were known to exist, until 2003 when a print was discovered in a private collection in the Netherlands. Co-stars include Edyth Chapman, Alec B. Francis, Robert Bolder, Gertrude Astor, June Elvidge, Mabel Van Buren, Helen Dunbar, and Frank Butler. “Beyond the Rocks” is a quick view at only an 80 minute running time from producer Jesse L. Lasky and Paramount Pictures. Despite being set in Europe, this movie was filmed all around Southern California.