Bird of Paradise (1932)
A yachtsman cruising the South Seas falls for Luana, a Polynesian chief's daughter, after she pulls him from a shark attack. Their island idyll defies both her people's customs and a marriage already promised elsewhere, until an erupting volcano is said to demand a sacrifice only Luana can give.
King Vidor directed this pre-Code romance for producer David O. Selznick at RKO, pairing a young Joel McCrea with Dolores del Río over one of Max Steiner’s first major film scores. Bird of Paradise drew censors’ attention for del Río’s moonlit nude swim and its open sensuality, and its non-renewed copyright later placed it in the public domain.
Background
King Vidor directed Bird of Paradise for RKO in 1932, produced by David O. Selznick, with a score by Max Steiner that was among his early major film scores. Joel McCrea plays the yachtsman who falls for Dolores del Rio’s island heroine after she pulls him from a shark attack. The film is set in the South Seas and was made during the pre-Code period, when its sensual content drew scrutiny from censors. Its copyright was not renewed, which placed it in the public domain.
What to watch for
The romance is shaped by the clash between Luana’s world and the yachtsman’s, which the film presents with a mix of romantic idealism and melodrama. Del Rio’s performance carries the emotional weight, and McCrea’s early screen presence is part of the film’s appeal. The volcano climax turns the story’s tensions into spectacle. The tropical setting is idealized, and the film’s view of island life reflects the romantic conventions of its period, which is worth noticing today when watching how it frames Polynesian characters and customs.
