Two Arabian Knights is a 1927 American silent comedy film directed by Lewis Milestone. It stars William Boyd, Mary Astor, and Louis Wolheim. The film was produced by Howard Hughes and distributed by United Artists. It won the only Academy Award for Best Comedy Direction in 1929. The story revolves around two American soldiers who are captured by the Germans and their attempts to escape while squabbling over a beautiful harem girl. The movie was long thought to be lost before being located in Howard Hughes' film collection. It was preserved by the Academy Film Archive.
Two Arabian Knights is a 1927 American silent comedy film directed by Lewis Milestone. The story revolves around two American soldiers, Sergeant Peter O'Connell (Louis Wolheim) and Private W. Daingerfield Phelps III (William Boyd), who are captured by the Germans on the Western Front during World War I and escape a POW camp only to stumble into a series of misadventures in Arabia. Along the way, they meet a beautiful harem girl (Mary Astor) and squabble over her.
Genre: Comedy, Romance, Adventure
Director: Lewis Milestone
Writer: James T. O'Donohoe, Wallace Smith, George Marion Jr.
Distributor: United Artists.
The film Two Arabian Knights explores themes of friendship, adventure, and romantic rivalry. It portrays the unlikely bond between two American soldiers and their comedic escapades amid war and love. The theme of cultural clash is also evident as the soldiers find themselves in the exotic and unfamiliar setting of Arabia.
Two Arabian Knights was well-received, winning the Academy Award for Best Comedy Direction in 1929. The film was praised for its comedic action sequences and direction by Lewis Milestone. It was considered a significant achievement in silent film comedy and contributed to the early success of its lead actors.
The production of Two Arabian Knights faced the typical challenges of silent film production, including technical limitations and the need for expressive visual storytelling. Additionally, the film's setting and the portrayal of cultural elements would have required careful attention to detail and cultural sensitivity.
The film is set against the backdrop of World War I, with the initial scenes taking place on the Western Front in Europe. The story later unfolds in the exotic and romanticized setting of Arabia, where the two soldiers encounter various adventures and comedic situations.
Two Arabian Knights employs the visual and storytelling techniques characteristic of silent films, such as expressive gestures, physical comedy, and intertitles to convey dialogue and narrative. The film also features elaborate set designs and costumes to create the otherworldly atmosphere of Arabian locales.
