An exceptional classic film. In a storyline very similar to Dracula, the strange Maestro Svengali (John Barrymore) falls in love with a young girl (Marian Marsh) and uses his powers of hypnotism and mind control to seduce her. Erie, eye catching, strangely romantic and a little twisted, Svengali was everything Dracula should have been. The film is a masterpiece of visuals. The slanted, disproportionate sets and imaginative camera work give many scenes a dreamlike feel. John Barrymore is perfect as the title character. He does not play Svengali as a flatly evil man, but gives him charm, humor and vulnerability. He causes us to pity him for his unrequited love almost more than we fear him for his actions. The talent of the supporting cast does not go to waste either. Marian Marsh gives a good performance as Trilby, the object of Svengali's desire, and Donald Crisp and Luis Alberni provide some comic relief as a couple of struggling artists. Complete with a dark, somewhat open ending, this movie has all the right touches. Svengali is better and more effective than a horror movie without quite being one itself.
Review of Svengali
