Review of The Sheik

The good:
Rudolph Valentino is stunning, gorgeous, sexy, beautiful, etc., etc. Honestly, that IS the best part of the film (coming from a woman, that is).

The romance is of course the important part, which the film masters. Valentino and Ayres (once she gets over the whole "getting kidnapped" deal) share a heart-melting, dramatic romance in lavishly decorated Arabian sets and costumes. Every inch of each shot is beautifully decorated.

The not so good:
While Rudy is an undeniably charasmatic personality (who I did love as Ahmed), he occasionally overacted, as many of the other actors did as well. However, it is not enough to distract from the drama of the story.

Lady Diana's quick change from despising the man who kidnaps her to slavish love is very unlikely and somewhat jarring. While I understand her reasoning, I thought it could have flowed better if this kind of huge character development happened gradually.

Overall...
I very much enjoyed the film, and I definitely recommend it to Valentino fans, silent film fans, and romance fans. While I personally don't believe it to be a masterpiece, it is a well done movie.

7/10