Douglas Fairbank Sr.'s swan song. He retired afterward and died five years later. Fairbanks was not very successful in the sound era, and this film was dismissed on its release, and flopped. It's actually pretty good, though. Fairbanks is a tad awkward, but it works in favor of the story. He plays an aging Don Juan. He is still a hit with the ladies, but he's annoyed that he has impersonators. After one of these impersonators is killed in action, Don Juan takes the opportunity to retire from the business, faking his own death. At first he enjoys his life as a regular man, but when he discovers that romance is much more difficult without his reputation preceding him, he decides to re-enter the identity of Don Juan. Problem is, no one believes him. It's a clever and very funny movie, beautifully shot and well acted. Merle Oberon is especially entertaining as a dancer.

When this film began, I was very suspicious about the casting of the aging Douglas Fairbanks in this film. After all, he was supposed to be playing Don Juan--the famed lover. Yet here was Fairbanks--clearly middle-aged, with thinning hair and a less than impressive physique. In fact, this turned out to be his last film--dying just five years later. So I KNEW this couldn't possibly work...or so I thought. However, the plot actually worked because in the film, Don Juan was supposed to be past his prime--it's just that he and his adoring public didn't yet know it!

The film begins with Don Juan adored by the masses of married women who he has been seducing and flattering. However, his doctor is concerned--his patient isn't as young as he used to be and he needs to slow down. At first Don Juan is skeptical, but when his servant is murdered by a man who THOUGHT this was Don Juan, the aging philanderer makes the most of it--and allows the world to think he is dead. Then, he can retire and take life easy. However, after a while, he finds this life a bit dull--and the ladies are less than impressed by this anonymous man. So he decides to go public--admit he's alive and resume his wicked ways. The problem, however, is that the Don Juan of legend is just too sexy and too appealing--and no one believes this aging man is this rake!

The film has a neat message, nice costumes and a few flashes of the old Fairbanks as he scampers up the side of a building to woo a willing lass. While not a great film, it was a nice farewell for the world-famous leading man. I saw this on the recent Criterion release, but as it had absolutely no special features on the disk, you might just want to watch it or download it from the IMDb link--something you can do with many of director Alexander Korda's films.

Legendary lover Douglas Fairbanks (as Don Juan) feels the fatigue of advancing years; so, the ageing lady-killer takes advantage of a misunderstanding, and fakes his own death. After a rest, Mr. Fairbanks tries to return to his amorous ways; but, nobody believes he's the real Don Juan. Through it all, Fairbanks fans both new (Merle Oberon as Antonita) and old (Benita Hume as Dona Dolores) flames.

A look at the credits of "The Private Life of Henry VIII" (1933) will reveal what filmmaker Alexander Korda had in mind - obviously, with "Don Juan", he hoped to duplicate the success of the earlier "Henry VIII". Unfortunately, this similarly staged "Private Life" found itself coming up short, and is significantly more lowly regarded. Indeed, it is a flat film. Moreover, the supporting cast is introduced in a confusing manner; it's difficult to keep track of who's who.

In his last film role, Fairbanks is terrific as an ageing "Don Juan". Interestingly, he succeeds in eliciting the feeling he memorably portrayed "Don Juan" sometime during his 1920s box office reign. Not so, the famed womanizer was played, in fact, by John Barrymore; and, in spirit, by Rudolph Valentino. Still, Fairbanks makes the role personal; undoubtedly, his status as an fading film superstar helped.

Fairbanks' best scene occurs about a half hour in, when he is informed of his character's "death" via the sword of Gibson Gowland (as Don Alfredo). Fairbanks pretends to be his character's mourning steward; then, he offers some interesting, likely personal, observations on fame. This is followed by a nice funeral sequence, revealing much about the famed lady-killer's escapades. Barry Mackay's deftly inept portrayal as a wannabe Juan is worth noting; his "inability" to leap effectively contracts Fairbanks' ageing gracefulness.

******* The Private Life of Don Juan (8/28/34) Alexander Korda ~ Douglas Fairbanks, Merle Oberon, Benita Hume