Click here to copy URL

Tabu: A Story of the South Seas

1931

F.W. Murnau

Matahi, Anne Chevalier, Bill Bambridge, Hitu ...

7.8

2,378

Drama. Romance. Adventure In one island of Bora Bora lagoon, a young fisherman, Matahi, is in love with Reri. But she is chosen to be the holy maid and therefore becomes "tabu". They ran away from that tradition. Will they be happier and luckier in the more "civilized" society?

	Media	Author	Review
		Mordaunt Hall The New York Times	"It is an enchanting piece of photography synchronized with a most pleasing music score arranged by Dr. Hugo Riesenfeld (...) It is like a picture poem"
		Jonathan Rosenbaum Chicago Reader	"The exquisite tragic ending —conceived musically and rhythmically as a gradually decelerating diminuendo— is one of the pinnacles of silent cinema."
		Philip French The Guardian	"[A] supreme example of poetic cinema (...) Crosby's images (...) are shimmering, silvery, blindingly hypnotic."
		Tony Rayns Time Out	"The film is a rhapsody of textures and an exceptionally sensuous play of light, rhythm and composition (...) It's extremely beautiful."
		Jake Cole Slant	"The story is simple to the point of universality (...) The feature is most fascinating as a showcase for a master challenging himself (…) Rating: ★★★½ (out of 5)"
		Variety	"A strong love story"

Return to movie

We encourage you to check the reviews' original sources. Intellectual property rights of these reviews belong to their authors and/or the correspondent media from which they have been extracted. If you'd like to help us to add more reviews to your favorite movies, just send us a message.