THE PRISONER OF ZENDA
A film review by Andrew Hicks
Copyright 1996 Andrew Hicks / Fatboy Productions
(1937) ***1/2 (out of four)
Of at least five filmings of the Anthony Hope novel, this 1937 version is the most famous and -- I'm sure -- the best. Ronald Colman (not to be confused with sci-fi schlock director Roger Corman), one of those great old-time actors with a distinctive Shakespearean voice, plays a dual role as the King of Ruritania and traveling Britishman Rudolf Rassendyll, a fisherman with an uncanny resemblance to the king.
Indeed, it is the resemblance that gets him into the king's castle for a private party the night before the coronation, when the alcoholic king drinks a cup of drugged wine. It's all part of an insidious plan by the king's evil brother Michael and his henchman Rupert of Hentzau (Douglas Fairbanks, another great old-time actor) to gain control of the throne. When the king's aides realize this, they call on commoner Rudolph to impersonate the king. (Almost sixty years later, a guy named Dave would be in a similar situation.)
So Rudolph attends the coronation and meets Princess Flavin (Madeleine Carroll), who may or not be marrying the king. He, of course, instantly falls in love with her and she with him, noticing how incredibly different he has become (what a difference today makes). This causes the usual romantic complications, leading Rudolph to ask the immortal question, "Would you love me if I weren't king?" before an all-knowing aide whisks him away.
This great old-time drama continues, with Michael and Rupert kidnapping the king and Rudolph going in to rescue him. Even in the 30's movies had those overblown climax scenes, THE PRISONER OF ZENDA's featuring a swordfight, several shootouts and even an army on horseback. The movie is almost entirely entertaining even today, with only a few romantic melodrama scenes with the obligatory string score in the background seeming laughable today, probably more laughable than the 1979 comedy version of THE PRISONER OF ZENDA starring David Niven.
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