The 1962 remake of THE FOUR HORSEMEN OF THE APOCALYPSE is remembered as a major misstep. Riding on the coattails of the successful 1959 remake of BEN-HUR, MGM hoped dusting off another hit from the silent era would reap gold. Instead it reaped bad reviews and red ink.
I won't argue FOUR HORSEMEN is a great movie. Glenn Ford is way too old and passionless in a role a 26-year old Rudolph Valentino made iconic in the 1921 original. Ford also shares no chemistry with Ingrid Thulin, who is also overly reserved in a role that should sparkle more. That the forbidden love between these two is a major part of the film when it fails so badly is not ideal. The ending is abrupt and the story seems to run out of steam by the end,
However, director Vincente Minnelli still brings a lot of strong visual interest to the film and the epic family drama is still handled well. In some cases, there is more depth and nuance to the supporting characters than in the 1921 film. Julio's German cousin is as motivated by jealously of Julio's lifestyle as he is by nationalism. Chi Chi is now a resistance fighter. The Andre Previn score is glorious, often supplying the passion Ford and Thulin don't provide.
It's a decent epic, though it could have been a stellar one with stronger casting and a tighter script.
I won't argue FOUR HORSEMEN is a great movie. Glenn Ford is way too old and passionless in a role a 26-year old Rudolph Valentino made iconic in the 1921 original. Ford also shares no chemistry with Ingrid Thulin, who is also overly reserved in a role that should sparkle more. That the forbidden love between these two is a major part of the film when it fails so badly is not ideal. The ending is abrupt and the story seems to run out of steam by the end,
However, director Vincente Minnelli still brings a lot of strong visual interest to the film and the epic family drama is still handled well. In some cases, there is more depth and nuance to the supporting characters than in the 1921 film. Julio's German cousin is as motivated by jealously of Julio's lifestyle as he is by nationalism. Chi Chi is now a resistance fighter. The Andre Previn score is glorious, often supplying the passion Ford and Thulin don't provide.
It's a decent epic, though it could have been a stellar one with stronger casting and a tighter script.
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