The Eternal Flame

Directed by Frank Lloyd. Adapted by Frances Marion from Balzac's novel, "La Duchesse de Langeais." Produced by Joseph M. Schenck. Distributed by First National. Released September, 1922.
 

There have been, to my knowledge, only two of Balzac's stories reproduced on the screen: one, "Eugenie Grandet," which was modernized by Rex Ingram and retitled The Conquering Power; the other, "La Duchesse de Langeais," which Norma Talmadge produced as The Eternal Flame.

In both these pictures, much of the beauty and some of the drama of Balzac was reproduced. But The Eternal Flame must be rated above The Conquering Power, because it retained the Balzac mood in its costumes and settings, as well as in its story. These pictorial qualities were beautifully designed, and were faithful in almost every respect to the Empire period. I say "almost" advisedly, because there was one apparently inevitable defect. The young ladies who provide atmosphere in the background of costume dramas will not learn how to do their hair correctly. There were a number of bobbed heads. visible and several coiffures that smacked more of the Hotel Alexandria, in Los Angeles, than of the court of Louis XVIII.
 

Norma Talmadge in The Eternal Flame

Miss Talmadge is a good actress. She has power, she has poise and she possesses a delicate subtlety of expression. But her undeniable talent had been guided into false channels; she had become a box-office star, devoting herself to standard, stereotyped "emotional" roles which permitted her to wear a given number of fashionable gowns, and to occupy a given number of close-ups. She had become terribly monotonous.

The Eternal Flame was therefore a source of considerable satisfaction to those who have had the opportunity to recognize Miss Talmadge's real ability. It demonstrated her versatility, for it compelled her to range from unassailable virtue to sly deviltry, from blank innocence to cynical sophistication, from tyrannical dominance to abject submission, and from bored worldliness back to spiritual regeneration.

The Duchesse de Langeais was a figure of prominence in the French court. She was at first devoted to her husband, a miserable, trifling cad who eventually inspired her to perilous flights of capriciousness. She became what is technically known as "the toast of Paris." She juggled hearts wantonly, permitting them to drop and splinter when the game palled. Of course, she ultimately encountered a strong, silent man (his name this time was General de Montriveau), and a calculated flirtation with him developed into soul-searing love. She trifled with him and he made her pay.

Of such is the story. It was developed carefully by Frances Marion, who chose to garnish it with an excessive number of epigrammatic subtitles. Otherwise, her construction of the plot was sound. She built up to an effective climax, heightened materially by the fine work of Miss Talmadge and of Conway Tearle, who impersonated the grim de Montriveau.

Frank Lloyd directed The Eternal Flame with the skill that has characterized all his recent productions. Oliver Twist, for which Lloyd is responsible, is one of the best pictures of the year- and The Sin Flood is included in the Honorable Mention list.

Lloyd has a fine flair for composition. He groups his characters in each scene so that they will make an effective picture and one which means something to the drama of the situation. Moreover, he knows how to eliminate the unessentials: The Eternal Flame is long and occasionally tedious, but there is nothing in it which does not lead directly to some necessary conclusion. Lloyd does not create atmosphere for atmosphere's sake, but to fortify the foundation of his dramatic interest.

Thus, when he shows us a gorgeous court ball with hundreds of expensively clad extras revolving through the deliberate paces of the Gavotte, be does not seem to say, "Here's a scene that'll knock your eye out with its splendor and its splurge." Rather, he uses his display of costly gaiety to heighten the tragedy of the duchess and her stern lover, who have come to a point in their affairs when they must unmask and appear before each other in the cold light of reality.

I doubt whether The Eternal Flame has been as successful financially as some others of Norma Talmadge's pictures- notably Smilin' Through- but it was of immense value nevertheless. It gave her the chance to remind the public that she is a genuinely able actress, and not just a popular type. And although prestige is a quality that cannot be cashed in at the First National Bank, it is always a good thing to have around the house.

Norma Talmadge, like everyone else, can use all of it that she can get.

Robert E. Sherwood, "The Eternal Flame" in "The Best Moving Pictures of 1922-23," Boston: Small, Maynard & Company, 1923, pages 24-26.

© 1998, David Pierce, on editing and revisions (if any)

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