The Pagan

The Pagan is a 1929 synchronized sound romantic drama filmed in Tahiti and produced and distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. While the film has no audible dialog, it was released with a synchronized musical score with sound effects using both the sound-on-disc and sound-on-film process. Both director W. S. Van Dyke and cinematographer Clyde De Vinna had previously visited Tahiti in 1928 to film White Shadows in the South Seas. The Pagan stars Ramon Novarro.^[1][2]

The film has a slight resemblance in story to an earlier Novarro silent, Where the Pavement Ends (1923), directed by Rex Ingram and now lost.

Trader Henry Slater stops at a South Pacific island looking to obtain a cargo of copra. He is informed that half-caste Henry Shoesmith, Jr. owns the largest plantation, but is rather indolent.

Meanwhile, Shoesmith is lolling around, while admirer Madge wishes she had met him before she became a fallen woman. Then the young man hears a woman singing aboard a ship. He swims out and is strongly attracted to Tito. She, however, rebuffs him.

When the narrow-minded Slater first meets Shoesmith, he is quite rude to the native, but soon changes his manner when he learns who the young man is. The easygoing Shoesmith does not take offense, and is delighted to be formally introduced to Tito, Slater's half-caste ward. Slater starts to bargain for copra and is pleasantly surprised when Shoesmith offers him as much as he wants for free. He takes the precaution of having Shoesmith sign a contract to that effect.

Tito eventually falls in love with Shoesmith, but Slater has other plans for her. He tells Shoesmith to stay away from his ward, using the excuse that Shoesmith has no ambition. He suggests to the naive younger man that he take out a bank loan and build up his business. Then he sails away with Tito and his copra.

Shoesmith follows Slater's advice and runs a store, but Madge warns him he does not know what he is doing (he allows every customer to buy on credit). When Slater returns, Shoesmith asks Tito to marry him. She agrees. However, Slater informs the puzzled Shoesmith that the loan payments are overdue and that he is foreclosing on all of Shoesmith's property. In addition, Slater informs his ward that he will "sacrifice" himself to protect her by marrying her himself. Shoesmith is too late to stop the wedding, but while Madge distracts the guests, he carries Tito off to his native home.

Slater encuentra a Tito mientras Shoesmith está ausente, la lleva a su barco y comienza a golpearla. Shoesmith lo sigue y se produce una pelea. El joven gana, y él y Tito nadan de regreso a la isla. Sin embargo, al divisar tiburones que se acercan, no tienen más remedio que regresar con Slater, quien los persigue en su bote . Slater sube a Tito a bordo, pero mantiene a raya a su rival con una espada. Shoesmith nada bajo el bote hasta el otro lado y derriba a Slater al agua, donde los tiburones lo atrapan. La joven pareja regresa a su idílico hogar.

• Ramón Novarro como Henry Shoesmith Jr.
• Renée Adorée como Madge
• Donald Crisp como Henry Slater
• Dorothy Janis como Tito

La película incluía una canción principal titulada "Pagan Love Song", compuesta por Arthur Freed (letra) y Nacio Herb Brown (música).

• Lista de los primeros largometrajes sonoros (1926–1929)

• El pagano en IMDb
• La película El pagano en la base de datos de películas de TCM (archivada)
• La película "El pagano" en el catálogo de largometrajes del AFI.
• El pagano en la historia virtual