The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse

Many may question the logic of reviewing a film that has transcended "entertainment" due to its age, now standing as an antique document—a historical relic. However, as the world drowns in blood and World War III seems all but imminent, it is important to revisit a document as old and arcane as The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. As the epigraph in the 1991 film JFK stated, "What is past is prologue."

The film survives in a very dark and grainy state, clearly showing the signs of its age. It was one of the highest-grossing silent films, even surpassing Chaplin’s The Kid in 1921, and it set Rudolph Valentino on the path to becoming the iconic cinematic "Latin Lover." Alas, poor Rudy’s fate would be as tragic as that of the character he portrays here; unlike his on-screen counterpart, Valentino would die young from a tubercular lung, much like fellow silent film star Mabel "Madcap Mabel" Normand.

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse presents stark, fantastical, and horrific imagery pulled directly from the Bible—its Beast of the Apocalypse and the titular Four Horsemen are depicted as literal wraiths astride the Earth. Meanwhile, what unfolds beneath the dark, troubled skies is the simple tale of Madariaga (Pomeroy Cannon), a.k.a. "The Centaur," a Spanish gaucho turned prosperous landowner. He has two sons-in-law: a German, Hartrott (Alan Hale), whom he does not care for, and a Frenchman, Marcello (Joseph Swickard), whom he favors. His German grandson, Julio (Valentino), is already an accomplished rake at a young age. He and his grandfather hustle women in local taverns, while Julio has an affair with Ettienne’s wife, dancing the tango and setting the pattern for a wasted life.

All is well until the coming of war, the Apocalypse foretold, following Madariaga’s death. His sons-in-law return to their respective homelands, taking up the cause of their fellow countrymen against their cousins. Julio Desnoyers continues his hedonistic ways, becoming a sensation with the ladies. His former lover, Marguerite (Alice Terry), leaves to become a war nurse, tending to the sick and dying at Lourdes. She eventually returns to her husband, Ettienne (John St. Polis), who has been blinded in the war, to care for him.

Meanwhile, Marcello Desnoyers’ castle-estate is taken over by German troops, who wreak havoc as marauding "Dirty Huns." Marcello becomes involved in an altercation with a German soldier over a woman and is condemned to execution.

Four years later, Julio finally decides to do his part in the war, becoming a fine soldier. He meets Marguerite again, but they know they can never be together. Each is, in their own way, a prisoner of circumstance as much as they are prisoners of love.

The final denouement has Julio meeting his last surviving German cousin on the battlefield. The film concludes with Tchernoff (Nigel De Brulier), a seemingly prophetic figure, lifting his arms and declaring:

"Peace has come—but the Four Horsemen will still ravage humanity—stirring unrest in the world—until all hatred is dead and only love reigns in the heart of mankind."

The film ends on a somber note in a military cemetery, with row upon row of white crosses stretching up the dark slopes. There is a resigned acknowledgment of the roles that War, Famine, Pestilence, and Death will continue to play in humanity’s future. As we can see after more than a century, the pessimism of the filmmakers was, perhaps, well-founded. Fin.

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse | 1921 | starring Rudolph Valentino | directed by Rex Ingram

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My book: Cult Films and Midnight Movies: "From High Art to Low Trash, Volume 1"