User Reviews

In presenting the story of Beau Brummel, Warner Brothers did an infinitely better job than MGM in the Fifties in that film that starred Stewart Granger, Elizabeth Taylor and Peter Ustinov. Though this is a silent film and sadly silent because we don't get the benefit of John Barrymore's magnificent speaking voice, still the essence of Brummel as a Regency social climber comes through.

That was the problem with the Granger/Taylor version. It presented a Brummel who tried to interfere in the political issues of the day. The real Beau could have cared less for what was going on in Parliament with Pitt and Fox going at each other. That's the Beau that Barrymore gives us in this version.

Barrymore also succeeds in making Beau a more real person. This is a very hard character to bring to life because Brummel didn't really accomplish anything. He was a soldier who resigned his commission in the army to pal around with the Prince Regent. He didn't stand for anything, create anything, espouse a popular cause. He got involved in a couple of Regency Scandals and eventually the Prince of Wales got bored with him.

We don't like the Brummel that Barrymore creates, but we do get some insights into a man who did let some real chances in life slip by.

Mary Astor and Irene Rich and Carmel Myers play a trio of the women in his life. Willard Louis perfectly recreates my own conception of what the weight challenged Prince of Wales who later become George IV was like. Not easy to do because even in the Granger/Taylor version of the story, Peter Ustinov easily walked off with acting honors. There's also a nice performance by Alec Francis as Barrymore's devoted valet.

The end of the film with the dying Brummel going through dementia is silent screen acting at its finest and some of the best work I've seen John Barrymore do. Try to catch this film when broadcast next.

Clyde Fitch's play, written for renowned stage actor Richard Mansfield, is a very romantic interpretation of incidents in the life of George (Beau) Brummel, the Regency dandy whose name has become a watchword for sartorial splendour and correctness, and is itself freely adapted for this film that showcases the unparallelled talent of John Barrymore in his prime as Brummel. With revenge in his heart, Brummel sets out to manipulate London society in a great game due to his, because of an untitled station, having lost his lover, played well by 18 year old Mary Astor with whom Barrymore began an affair during this filming, and he utilizes a close relationship with his sponsor, the Prince of Wales, the Regent (later King George IV), to advance his plan. Barrymore's control of his scenes is unmatched as he expresses the widest possible range of emotion and reaction with the smallest movement of eyes or mouth and, although there are opportunities aplenty for emoting, his utilization of a prolonged gaze into the eyes of a lover or foe speaks volumes. Barrymore is strongly assisted by a very able supporting cast, including Willard Louis as the Prince of Wales, Aleck B. Francis as Brummel's loyal manservant and, as the Duchess of York, the exquisite Irene Rich, whose rhythms and ability to focus upon her character's persona nicely complements Barrymore during their shared scenes. Harry Beaumont, as always, directs capably and is assisted enormously with his efforts by cinematographer David Abel, whose skill with large groups during complicated action was later markedly in evidence as he supervised the cameras during the best of the Astaire/Rogers films. Somewhat more than a cavil might be a desire for the scenario to have presented more of Brummel's full life rather than the lengthy treatment given to its denouement, and that lacking in accuracy, but certainly allowing Barrymore a good deal of dramatic opportunity that does not go shunned.

BEAU BRUMMEL (A Warner Brothers Classic of the Screen, 1924), directed by Harry Beaumont, from the play and historical data by Clyde Finch, stars the legendary John Barrymore in one of his most prestigious films of the silent era. Mixing fact and fiction into the life of George Bryan Brummell (1778-1840), an English social arbiter, the opening inter-title sums it up best: "Nowhere in all history can be found a more amazing character than George Bryan Brummel, the friend of princes, the arbiter of fashion and the social ruler of England during the reign of George II. And nowhere in all fiction can be found more romance than was crowded into the life of this penniless commoner, whose natural charm and studied insolence made him the greatest dandy of all time - the immortal Beau Brummel." For the plot summary, beginning in the year 1795, George Bryan Brummel (John Barrymore), British Army officer and captain of the Tenth Hussars, deeply loves Margery Werthaim (Mary Astor). Because her mother (Clarissa Selwynne), "ambitious, relentless," finds Brummel to be a young man of no importance, insists Marjory wed Lord Alvanloy (William Humphrey) instead. As she takes her daughter to get married, Alvanloy leaves Brummel in the garden in humiliation by throwing him a sixpence. Next scene: "Revenge was all he thought of now. He would use his charmed wit and personal appearance in a game against the society which has robbed him of his love."  For the years to follow, Brummel does just that. Through the guidance of the Prince of Wales (Willard Louis), Brummel makes his way through society, resigns from the Army, abandons his whig for a more natural hair, has an affair with Mrs. Snodgrass (Betty Brice), the landlord's (James Marcus), wife; and makes his indiscretions with the ladies of the court, particularly Lady Hester (Carmel Myers), wife of Lord Henry Stanhope (Richard Tucker), whom he finds terribly annoying; and Frederica Charlotte (Irene Rich), sister-in-law of the Prince of Wales, whom he claims to be a tender woman, all of whom he loves and leaves. Making many enemies and finding himself heavily in debt, he at first serves time in a jail in Calais, and later finds himself living in poverty. His only true friend during his declining years is his servant, Mortimer (Alec B. Francis), whom he dismisses from his employ for being too helpful. Falling out of love with everything, Brummel is approached by Marjory, only to lose her again as explained with these words: "Death kills but once, life kills many times." What further develops remains to be seen. 

At first glance, BEAU BRUMMEL comes across as an overlong (128 minutes) dull costume drama about doomed love (with portions closely resembling George Du Maurier's PETER IBBETSON), redeemed by sincere yet "ham" acting of John Barrymore, from a young dandy to aged old man (with a striking resemblance to the older appearance of his brother, Lionel), and the ever youthful Mary Astor, both of whom would be reunited in DON JUAN (Warners, 1926), and supporting Claudette Colbert in the sound comedy, MIDNIGHT (Paramount, 1939). Looking over and comprehending everything not absorbed the first time around, this can now classified as a rich atmospheric production with fine acting, by 1920s standards, and detailed period pieces of long, long ago. Although there's really no action involving sword play to stir up excitement, there's little suspense midway involving a duel a Bowling Green between Brummel and a jealous husband.

BEAU BRUMMEL, a fortunate survivor of the silent film era, is not as relatively known as others from that era. In the wake of home video, however, it was placed on video cassette during the late 1980s through various distributors, including Video Yesteryear and Grapevine Video, just to name a few, mostly with missing footage and poor quality visuals. It can also be acquired in the DVD format as well.

Cable television's Turner Classic Movies brought BEAU BRUMMEL back to life by having a restored copy for its January 29, 2008 presentation accompanied by new and exceptional orchestral score conducted by young film composer James Schafer of Rancho Cucamonga, California. Regardless of host Bob Osborne announcing BEAU BRUMMEL making its "world television premiere," in fact, has played on television before in April 1994 on the Nostalgia Channel as part of its Saturday night weekly presentation of "When Silents Were Golden." Aside from an already pre-recorded orchestral score from a 1930s reissue used for this feature, watching BEAU BRUMMEL or any silent movie for that matter, couldn't really be fully appreciated on the Nostalgia Channel due to its frequent commercial interruptions. Now that it has finally turned up on the commercial free TCM, BEAU BRUMMEL may have its chance of rediscovery to the delight of film enthusiasts wanting to compare this with its 1954 remake (with Brummel ending with two L's) starring Stewart Granger, Elizabeth Taylor and Peter Ustinov. (***)

What can anyone say about this? Beautiful print, some fine acting by Barrymore -- wonderfully subtle for the period in the early sequences and quite appropriately over-the-top at the end. Given the uniformly over-the-top performances he was called on to make towards the end of his career, the well-preserved Barrymore silents -- this one, his fine, generous performance in THE BELOVED ROGUE, and the sheer electricity between him and Dolores Costello in WHEN A MAN LOVES show what a fine actor he is -- those turns and his wonderful comic work in MIDNIGHT.

I have been less than impressed in the past by some of the scores offered by the Young Composers but, although a bit shaky in the earlier sequences, this one settled right down and was quite good.

I had quite forgotten this was directed by Harry Beaumont, who became my favorite MGM B director -- even though, of course, MGM didn't make B movies.

Beau Brummel (1924)

*** (out of 4)

Warner wanted to make a name for themselves so they went all out with this lavish production that features a terrific performance from John Barrymore. He plays the title character, a poor man who has the woman (Mary Astor) he loves taken away from him because of his low standing in society. Heart-broken, Beau sets out to use his charm and wit to get back at the society who ruined his life. Have you ever watched a big-budget movie and wonder where all the money went to as it's obviously not showing on screen? Well, that's certainly not the case here as one can't help but be impressed with the magnitude of this film. The sets, costumes and production values are all extremely high and this helps keep the film moving even when the story isn't doing much. I think the biggest flaw with the movie is its 128-minute running time, which leads to some dead space here and there. The story itself isn't all that ground-breaking even for this era so I'm guessing the main reason for the longer running time was just to give the film a more "epic" feel. With that said, this is still a very impressive movie. As I said earlier, the massive sets are extremely impressive and one can't help but get caught up in their sheer beauty. The images of the costumes alone makes one really focus in. Just take a look at a sequence towards the end when a large number of soldiers are marching. One does wonder what all these extras in these lavish costumes cost the studio. Those familiar with Astor are probably more aware of her sound films so seeing her here, at 18-years-old, was a pretty big eye-opener just because I wasn't use to see her look so young. She is pretty good in the role and handles working next to Barrymore and never gets tramped by him. Willard Louis is extremely good as the Prince of Wales who is the one Beau really goes after in the film. Carmel Myers, Richard Tucker and William Humphrey turn in fine work as well. Alec B. Francis plays the long-time servant and is wonderful. As for Barrymore, he's pure magic here. A lot of people are going to call the performance hammy or stage-bound, which might be fair but from all the movies I've seen of his this one here gave the closest feel of what it might have been like watching him on the stage. He really nails every inch of this character whether it's the poor boy at the start, the rich jerk or the eventual fallen and broken man. Barrymore is clearly having a great time playing all of these different styles and he's especially effective in the final scenes, which I won't spoil. The scene can be called melodrama but it's melodrama at its highest peak thanks to Barrymore. He alone makes this film worth checking out.

"Nowhere in all history can be found a more amazing character than George Bryan Brummel, the friend of Princes, the arbiter of fashion and the social ruler of England during the reign of George III. And nowhere in all fiction can be found more romance than was crowded into the life of this penniless commoner, whose natural charm and studied insolence made him the greatest dandy of all time - the immortal 'Beau' Brummel," asserts the this film's illustrative opening. And John Barrymore is well-suited for the leading role...

We begin in 1795, when dapper officer Barrymore gathers with the greatest personages in England for a wedding. The bride is his beautiful young lover Mary Astor (as Margery). Unfortunately, the groom is not Barrymore. Pressured by family to dismiss her true love and submit to an arranged marriage, Ms. Astor weds foppishly fat Willard Louis because Barrymore is a poor commoner and Mr. Louis is a Prince in line to be King. For revenge, Barrymore decides to infiltrate British high society with scandal...

"Beau Brummel" suffers from a threadbare plot, but boasts rich production values. Hollywood offered Barrymore greater access to life's pleasures and he returned the favor with moments of relentless overacting; considering the weaknesses in this story, it helps the film. Much admired, Barrymore won the Rudolph Valentino Medal as 1924's "Best Actor" for his "Beau Brummel" characterization. And the film went to the Top 5 in annual lists compiled by the New York Times, Film Daily, and Motion Picture Magazine.

****** Beau Brummel (3/30/24) Harry Beaumont ~ John Barrymore, Mary Astor, Willard Louis, Alec B. Francis

It's interesting how much 'wit' can be found even in a film without spoken words. "Beau Brummel" is playful, a little naughty, and at times quite sad. The acting here is notably restrained and natural for a silent film. with John Barrymore leading the way in an excellent performance as Gordon Byron 'Beau' Brummel.

Brummel was a real person, even though the film acknowledges up front that his escapades have been largely fictionalized by legend. In this reality, Brummel was an 18th century army officer and dandy, who, despite his lack of wealth or noble blood, partied with the elite, romancing the women, befriending the men, and being a style and trend setter. What gives this a sense of drama to go with the playful social satire is the fact that Beau is denied the one woman he really loves, so his other successes are all a bit hollow. Also, in the end Brummel has little other than his smarts and charm to stand on, which keeps him always one insolent move from falling into poverty and disrepute.

There are weak spots. The photography and direction aren't particularly imaginative, with a very stagy feel to the blocking and camera angles. Most of the film is shot in head on, eye level medium 2-shots. The sets also often look a bit more like something designed for the stage than for the 360 degree vision of film. But if this isn't a great film, it's a good, clever, enjoyable one, and a chance to see Barrymore, said by many to be the finest actor of his time, as a comparatively young leading man.

Rarely has history witnessed an ordinary person drastically reshape the clothing of the day, transforming an era of ornate apparel into a simpler, yet more practical formal style of dress. England's dandy, Beau Brummell, was that person.

Warner Brothers adapted Clyde Fitch's 1890 play on the close friend of the Prince of Wales, later King George IV, who was so influential in the early 1800's fashion world that he was responsible for men giving up their knee breaches and stockings for simple trousers and surrendering their wigs for just plain natural hair. The studio's March 1924 "Beau Brummel" (spelled with one L while in real life it's two LLs) starred actor John Barrymore as the Englishman who gave us the suit and tie. Whereas the real Brummell was such an influencer during his time, the movie concentrates more on his many loves, single and married women, which ultimately doomed him to a life of poverty and eventually into insanity from syphillis.

Appearing as his first love in "Beau Brummel" was actress Mary Astor in one of her first prominent roles. She's most remembered playing Bridget O'Shaughnessy in 1941's 'The Maltese Falcon.' At 16, Astor was a runner-up in a Motion Picture Magazine's contest, soon drawing attention to Paramount Pictures. Changing her name from Lucile Langhanke to Mary Astor, the teenager appeared in several films before Barrymore strongly suggested her as Lady Margery. The actor, 42, fell for the 17-year-older during filming "Beau Brummel," but her ever-watchful parents kept a tight leash on Mary and saw to it the two never spent time alone together. Barrymore, however, persuaded them Mary needed needed personal acting lessons in private. He only required a few intimate hours with her before they secretly became engaged. But her parents nullified the forthcoming betrothal since she was legally underage. Barrymore soon fell in love with actress Dolores Costello, who eventually became his wife and Drew Barrymore's grandmother.

It was at this time Barrymore began to insist on having his face photographed just on his left side. Nicknamed "the Great Profile," he defended his preference, saying, "The right side of my face looks like a fried egg. The left side has features that are to be found in almost any normal anthropological specimen, and those are the apples I try to keep on top of the barrel." On the set, Barrymore and Willard Louis, the actor who played the Prince of Wales, took the liberty of telling dirty jokes to one another instead of the scripted dialogue. They felt, being a silent movie, it was far more entertaining for them to say the raunchy lines than the boring script. What they failed to realize some members of the audience could lip read. Studio execs were flooded with letters complaining about the profanity the two uttered in front of the cameras.

The highlight of Barrymore's acting appears in the final sequences, when his character, old, hunchbacked and senile, mopes around his spartan chamber in a delirious funk. He displays his twisted personality by interacting with the Prince of Wales and Lady Margery's spirit, the type of scene the actor especially excelled at given his outstanding previous performance in 1920's 'Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.' One side note: John's sister Ethel Barrymore was the first actor/actress to appear on the cover of Time Magazine, its November 10, 1924 edition. She had appeared in silents since 1914, but her output in the 1920s was mainly a small part in one lone short film, 1926's 'Camille.' Ethel was more of a stage performer in New York City theaters during the Time cover publication, playing in an revival of 'The Second Mrs. Tanqueray' at the time of her magazine fame.

"George Byron Brummel" (John Barrymore) is a soldier and not an especially significant one at that. He falls in love with the "Lady Margery" (Mary Astor) and though she reciprocates to an extent, she's not prepared to sacrifice her status to marry him so instead marries the "Lord Alvanley" (William Humphrey) and leaves her erstwhile paramour to the life of a bit of a libertine. The best way to achieve success at doing very little is to attach oneself to one even better at it, and so he engineers a meeting with the Prince of Wales (Willard Louis) and soon the pair are firm friends and "George" - now widely called "Beau" is holding court in a regal splendour all of his own. Gradually he acquires enemies at court and begins to over-play his hand. He racks up debts and philanders to the point where his royal patron starts to tire of his toy and, after a rather rash retaliatory comment to the Prince one day, "Beau" is abandoned to his multiple creditors, That causes him to flee to the relative safety of France, but clearly clearly his goose is starting to look cooked and he is increasingly reliant on the loyalty of his manservant "Mortimer" (Alec B. Francis) and on the charity of his few remaining friends in Britain. A potential reconciliation between the two seems possible when the now King George III visits France, but pride and rancour put paid to that and condemn poor old "Beau" to a decline that is anything but beautiful. Harry Beaumont takes his time with this drama and that helps develop the quite complex character of "Brummell". We see ambition and shallowness from Barrymore's performance, but we also see a shrewdness and a sort of perverse type of loyalty and humanity as he grows older and more considered. Astor delivers well too - she imbues her character with a combination of stoicism and emotion well. On the downside, though the Prince was reputedly quite a dandy character, I felt Louis rather overplayed that here at times. The two men still give us a decent dynamic when both are in full pomp, though. There's also a strong ensemble supporting cast that demonstrate well the foppishness of the court and the contrasting poverty endured by those who (not so) cheerily waved their flags and cheered. The last twenty minutes is poignant with some well executed special effects conveying the conclusion to us and those on screen to another place. As ever with lengthy silent films, you have to admire the musicians who read the contours of the film and accompany it so skilfully and here, we have some considerable artistry from the set designer and costumier too in the ultimate story of reaping what you sow!

For 1924, this is a truly exquisite looking film. You can tell that the fledgling studio, Warner, really pulled out all the stops to make this film a success--great sets, camera-work and even recruiting John Barrymore back from the stage to star in this film. However, despite all these positives, the overall effect isn't all that engaging--thanks to a very weak story that practically put me to sleep.

The problem with the story is that Beau Brummel is a very, very flawed man. At first, you see him as flawed but decent. Later in the film, he just seems like a jerk--allowing his way overblown ego to ultimately destroy him. In fact, this made the second half of the film much tougher going because it was hard to care about a man who simply didn't deserve it. Plus, so much of the film consisted of rather syrupy love scenes and Barrymore's acting was really over the top. While I love many of Barrymore's films, in this one he seemed a bit "hammy"--nothing like his later film roles.

Without a serious re-working of the film, this one turned out to be very pretty but ultimately as dull as the later Stewart Granger re-make. Pretty to look at but not very satisfying--it's like eating a meal entirely of unflavored rice cakes.

Have always enjoyed John Barrymore's films and also his brother and sister Lionel and Ethel Barrymore. TCM introduced this film for the first time and it was a great joy to view a great masterpiece which was finally produced with a music score and this effect made this film greater to view and enjoy. John Barrymore plays the role as Beau Brummel who falls madly in love with Lady Margery Alvanley, (Mary Astor) and she is spoken for by another military man. This event destroys Beau Brummel's heart and soul and he decides as a soldier to resign and leave the military service. Beau becomes a Regency Social Climber in London Society and meets up with the Prince of Wales, (Willard Louis) and gains his friendship and begins to start his revenge on the British Society. Beau loves women and uses them to his own purpose and arranges for some romantic escapades for the Prince of Wales and in turn gains all kinds of favors. In other words, Beau is a silver fox who manages to out smart everyone and reaches his goal, but is he happy and what happens to him? Was surprised to learn that John Barrymore was 42 years of age when he appeared in this film and Mary Astor was only 18 years of age. Fantastic film, don't miss this one, you will enjoy it if you know who John Barrymore was and his famous film career and a life of drinking and more drinking.

This silent version of "Beau Brummel" (there was one in 1913) stars the great John Barrymore in the title role, and he manages without speaking to give us a clear, layered view of this vain social climber. Also starring are Mary Astor, Carmel Myers, and Irene Rich as three of the women in his life. Mary Astor was nearly unrecognizable - low, long eyebrows (they all seemed to have them) and different teeth, and 18 years old! Though in black and white, the sumptuousness of the costumes and the beauty of the sets, as well as the prevailing atmosphere, are all evident. Brummel resigns his commission so that he can literally hang out with the Prince of Wales, who becomes George IV. When he falls out of favor, he also falls on hard times. The woman he loses to her marriage into a wealthy family, Lady Alvanley, remains a loyal friend as does his butler Mortimer.

Barrymore's acting, particularly in his last scenes, is brilliant. Thankfully he went into talkies so we would have a chance to hear his beautiful speaking voice.

Superior to the MGM color version starring Stewart Granger.

Barrymore and Mary Astor give great, deeply touching performances in this rather sentimental adaptation of the Clyde Fitch play. Barrymore's broad range of talents is here on full display, from comedy to pathos. If you want to know why millions of viewers adored Barrymore, see this movie. Willard Louis, as the Prince of Wales is also a delightful standout. When actors perform this well as an ensemble it's usually a sign that the director was helping them get to their best. The film has peaked my interest in director Harry Beaumont. My only criticism is the script which I found effectively sentimental but overly so. At a certain point sentimentality, in this case the longing for innocence, interferes with the truth of the historical characters who were creatures of society. Still, this is a movie with emotionally affecting performances.

Some BIG hollywood names in this silent from 1924... John Barrymore and Mary Astor (oscar for The Great Lie, but probably better known for Maltese Falcon.) Couldn't get bigger names than that! they both made the successful transition to talkies in the 1930s. Astor was pretty new to silents, but did a find job. Here, Lady Margery (Astor) ends up marrying royalty for traditional, practical reasons, even though she was in love with poor Brummel (Barrymore). Age-old story of bad timing, missed connections, regret. Willard Louis is Prince of Wales here... he died young at 44 of typhoid fever. Something about the silents... they seemed to have dumbed everything down for the audience, and really spelled everything out. Current opinion is that it was such a new medium that the directors weren't sure just how much needed to be said in title cards, so they erred on the side of over-explanation. It's good, as silents go. LONG. but good. kind of goes on and on, but there was a story to tell. Picture quality and title cards are excellent. Must have been a professional restoration. Directed by Harry Beaumont, who will be nominated for "Broadway Melody" 1929.