Review of When a Man Loves

This is a pretty run-of-the-mill film up until about midway through it and seemed like just another period costume drama merged with a romance--nothing particularly special about it despite starring Delores Costello and John Barrymore. However, after a somewhat sappy and somewhat static beginning, the film really jumped into high gear later on in the film. Up until then, Barrymore really seemed like a good-looking guy but also a bit of a "cream puff". However, when his woman was in danger, the film suddenly morphed into a macho action picture--something I never would have suspected up until then! Barrymore, known more as a lover and thespian, suddenly transformed into a Douglas Fairbank-like character who fought with sword or barehanded and was tough and full of fire!! This transformation really helped the film, as early in the film he had transformed from a divinity student to a lover--the rugged "he-man" guy at the end was definitely a huge change!! As for the rest of the film, the production values were definitely top-notch, as Warner Brothers pulled out all stops--sparing no expense on costumes, writing or hiring top actors in Costello and Barrymore. In addition, it's one of the first films that featured a full orchestral score even though there is no spoken dialog. Because of all this plus an excellent script, instead of a turgid costumer (such as MARIE ANTOINETTE--a huge picture that utterly bored me), it's much more reminiscent of great action-adventure films like SCARAMOUCHE. For silent film buffs, this isn't one you want to miss.