Nigel De Brulier

John Barrymore at the peak of his matinee-idol powers, swashbuckling through Borgia-era Italy as the legendary lover. Directed by Alan Crosland for Warner Bros., it's a lavish silent spectacle — duels, dungeons, and Lucrezia Borgia herself — but its place in history is technical: Don Juan was the first feature released with a synchronized Vitaphone musical score and sound effects, the experiment that led directly to The Jazz Singer a year later. Mary Astor and a young Myrna Loy are among the women pursued through its nearly two hours. As a work published before 1930, it is in the public domain in the United States.

Adventure · Romance · Silent

A 1927 American silent romantic drama directed by Edward Sloman, based on the 1915 play Lea Lyon by Alexander Brody. The film stars Mary Philbin as Lea Lyon, daughter of a rabbi in a Galician town near the Russian border, and Ivan Mosjukine as Constantine, a Russian prince. When war is declared and the Russians occupy the town, Constantine demands Lea surrender to him, threatening to burn the village and its inhabitants. Impressed by her character, the prince discovers he loves her and spares both the town and the girl. This was Mosjukine's only American film — a major star of Russian and French silent cinema, he never made another Hollywood picture.

Drama · Romance · War