John Gilbert's final silent film is actually my favorite of his work. Here he plays a guy that, while not a rogue, isn't always noble or even likable. Initially held hostage by a diamond thief duo in the middle of the desert, the trio gets in over their heads and eventually worry more about surviving than who gets the precious stones. There's a kind of noir vibe to the proceedings-- not necessarily in the movie's overall aesthetic or character types, but in just how nasty and cynical it gets about human nature. Of course, the ending rubs that cynicism out with its conventional "he gets the girl and she goes straight" thing, but Desert Nights still remains a taut thriller, suffused with a tense atmosphere and a palpable erotic charge.

.....at their sheer beauty (in my opinion). If only Mary had stayed out of trouble. In my opinion (again), she was a first rate actress who was being given yet another chance to make good. She had been sacked from the Ziegfeld Follies a few years earlier for "disorderly conduct", she fled to the continent where, under another name, she became a popular film star. Fleeing bad debts she slunk back to America where under yet another name, she was given a Universal contract. Her two biggest successes were "West of Zanzibar" and "Desert Nights" both at MGM, the cream of the studios. If she had knuckled down to work, I feel sure she would have been offered an MGM contract as her talkie films show she had nothing to fear from the mike. But Universal was already tired of her shenanigans and by 1930 had let her go.Lord Stonehill and his daughter, Diana (Ernest Torrence and Mary Nolan) are due to arrive at the Crown Diamond Mine but as Hugh Rand (John Gilbert) jokes she must be cross eyed, bow legged and an old maid as no beauty would come to this God forsaken place. Being Mary Nolan of course she is a raving beauty and Hugh falls for her hard.In reality they are diamond thieves as Hugh finds out when he receives a wire from the real Lord Stonehill saying they have been delayed. This movie is lots of fun as Hugh is taken hostage on a safari. Hugh manages to untie his bonds and proposes to Diana that they both flee and leave the old "Lord" to take his chances - "Diamonds and youth, the world is ours" - he doesn't fall for the line that Steve is her father. Ernest Torrence adds another impressive evil villain to his rogue's gallery. Just when you think his Steve is a bit of a buffoon, one of his gang (who has opted to split the diamonds and head of on their own to Cape Town) staggers back to camp to die, revealing that the rest of the gang are dead because of a poisoned water hole. Steve then admits he did it and a stunned Hugh cries that he is a murderer and a fiend!!!Hugh promises to lead them out of the desert as long as "Baby" is part of the deal. There seems to be a bit of missing footage (I'm thinking a fight scene) because one moment Diana is pleading to Steve that they should give themselves up, seeing Hugh has the gun and the diamonds, the next scene Steve has the gun and has accidentally walked right back to the diamond mine. As for Diana - she has been back long enough to have a shower and to look very cool and inviting, and as Hugh says "I will give you your freedom but you will have to report to me every day - for the rest of your life".This was an excellent film and it had something for everybody. Adventures in the desert, Mary Nolan looking very easy on the eyes as she battled thirst, mirages and fending off the amorous advances of John Gilbert, who looked very handsome in his safari gear. There is even a partial nude scene involving Nolan (who else) when they finally found an oasis that wasn't a mirage. And also Ernest Torrence who boosted any movie he happened to appear in.

Good-looking diamond miner Jack Gilbert (as Hugh Rand) shows visiting dignitary "Lord Stonehill" Ernest Torrence (as Steve) and his daughter around the South African "Crown Diamond Mines" before taking them out on a hunting trip. While looking forward to seeing a white woman, everyone expects "Lady" Mary Nolan (as Diana) to be unattractive, but she is unveiled as a beautiful blonde. As you might expect, Mr. Gilbert and Ms. Nolan are mutually aroused...All is not, however, as it seems...Nolan is revealed not to be the daughter, but the lover of dastardly "father" Torrence. The criminal pair plotted to abduct the real Lord Stonehill, and rob Gilbert at gunpoint. Succeeding in their deception, Torrence and Nolan take Gilbert hostage, and flee across the hot Kalahari desert. Then, "Desert Nights" becomes a tale of greed and desire, as the three struggle to survive with dwindling water in the hot sands. Gilbert's last "silent" is a fairly sound production.****** Desert Nights (3/9/29) William Nigh ~ John Gilbert, Ernest Torrence, Mary Nolan, Claude King

If Desert Nights had come out in 1926 instead of 1929 people would be far less critical of it. I thought it was a super sexy melodrama and romance, with great performances by John Gilbert, beautiful Mary Nolan, and Ernest Torrence, the perfect villain with a touch of humor.My favorite scene is in the beginning, before the trouble begins, when Ernest is playing the piano and the young couple, played by Mary and John, waltzed on the front porch. John Gilbert could have been a professional dancer, he was that good.The story is about a bunch of jewel thieves caught in the desert, but you really won't care. Just watch it for the stars, and to see just how gorgeous John Gilbert still looked in 1929. Sigh.9 out of 10 stars.