Valentino

It's as if the director, impatient to get to his highlights, lost interest in the fine-tuning that makes a good idea a good movie. But Rudolf Nureyev as Rudolph Valentino is a good idea that pays off.

We can at least appreciate the ornamented period details, the elaborate production values, the ostentatious performances, and Russell's energy as a filmmaker.

Russell fails to offer any explanation for the ambiguous person that was Valentino. The director instead blurs any possible insight through continued excesses of crowds, hysterical women and assorted grotesqueries.

One of the most publicized films of the year has arrived, and believe me, it needs all the publicity it can get, for critical acclaim and public reception is beyond its limited reach.

[A] purported film biography.

Humor and love are skillfully arranged, giving viewers a version of man key to this time period. [Full Review in Spanish]

The faults in this film are endless, and most of the dialogue comes off like a high school parody of what Valentino might have been like. But for all its repellent aspects, there is something fascinating about Valentino.

Delirious biopic on the legendary silent screen star Rudolph Valentino.

Blending fact, fantasy and legend, Ken Russell succeeds more often than he doesn't.