The Prisoner of Zenda

The Prisoner of Zenda (1937) DVD5 Untouched - Ronald Coleman, Madeleine Carroll [DDR]





The Prisoner of Zenda is a 1937 black-and-white adventure film based on the Anthony Hope 1894 novel of the same name and the 1896 play. Of the many film adaptations, this is considered by many to be the definitive version.

The 1937 film starred Ronald Colman, Madeleine Carroll and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., with a supporting cast including C. Aubrey Smith, Raymond Massey, Mary Astor and David Niven.

It was directed by John Cromwell, produced by David O. Selznick for Selznick International Pictures, and distributed by United Artists.

The screenplay was written by John L. Balderston, adapted by Wells Root from the novel, with dramatisation by Edward Rose; Donald Ogden Stewart was responsible for additional dialogue, and Ben Hecht and Sidney Howard made uncredited contributions.



It was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Art Direction and Original Music Score, Alfred Newman's first Oscar nomination. He would go on to receive an additional 44 nominations.

In 1991, the film was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the United States Library of Congress and selected for preservation in its National Film Registry.



   CAST:-

   Ronald Colman as Major Rudolf Rassendyll and King Rudolf V

   Madeleine Carroll as Princess Flavia

   Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. as Rupert of Hentzau

   Raymond Massey as Duke Michael.

   C. Aubrey Smith as Colonel Zapt.

   David Niven as Captain Fritz von Tarlenheim

   Mary Astor as Antoinette de Mauban

   Montagu Love as Detchard

   Philip Sleeman as Albert von Lauengram

   Eleanor Wesselhoeft as Frau Holf, the cook

   Torben Meyer as Max, the butler



Directed by John Cromwell, W.S. Van Dyke

Produced by David O. Selznick

Music by Alfred Newman

Running time 101 minutes



MOVIE PLOT:- The Prisoner of Zenda (1937)

English gentleman Rudolf Rassendyll (Ronald Colman) takes a fishing vacation in a small middle European country (unnamed in the film; Ruritania in the novel). While there, he is puzzled by the odd reactions of the natives to him. Rassendyll discovers why when he meets Colonel Zapt (C. Aubrey Smith) and Captain Fritz von Tarlenheim (David Niven). Zapt introduces him to the soon-to-be-crowned king, Rudolf V (Colman again), who turns out to be not only his distant relative, but also his exact double. Rudolf is astounded and takes a great liking to the Englishman.



They celebrate their acquaintance by drinking late into the night. Rudolf is particularly delighted with the bottle of wine sent to him by his half-brother, Duke Michael (Raymond Massey), so much so that he drinks it all himself. The next morning brings a disastrous discovery: the wine was drugged. Rudolf cannot be awakened, and if he cannot attend his coronation that day, Michael will try to usurp the throne. Zapt convinces a reluctant Rassendyll to impersonate Rudolf for the solemn ceremony.



Rassendyll meets Rudolf's betrothed, Princess Flavia (Madeleine Carroll). She had always detested her cousin Rudolf, but now finds him greatly changed – for the better in her opinion. As they spend time together, they fall in love.



With the coronation a success, Rassendyll returns to switch places with his distant cousin, only to find the new king has been found and kidnapped by Rupert of Hentzau (Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.), Michael's charmingly amoral henchman. Rassendyll is forced to continue the impersonation while Zapt tries to locate Rudolf.



Help comes from an unexpected quarter. To be king, Michael must marry his cousin Flavia. Antoinette de Mauban (Mary Astor), Michael's jealous French mistress, reveals that the king is being held in Michael's castle near Zenda and promises to help rescue him. Since Rudolf would be executed at the first sign of a rescue attempt, she proposes that one man swim the moat and hold off his would-be assassins while loyal troops storm the castle. Rassendyll decides that he is that man, over Zapt's strenuous objections.



Their carefully laid plans go awry when Michael finds Rupert trying to seduce his mistress. When Rupert kills him, a heartbroken Antoinette blurts out enough to alert Rupert to his danger. Rassendyll dispatches two guards, but must fight a prolonged duel with Rupert while at the same time trying to lower the drawbridge to let Zapt and his men in. When he finally succeeds, Rupert flees.



Rudolf is restored to his throne. Rassendyll tries to persuade Flavia to leave with him, but her devotion to duty is too great, and their parting is bittersweet.





The orchestra conductor who is forced to cease and resume conducting the Künstlerleben Walzer by Strauss every time the royal couple stop and start waltzing was played by Al Shean, uncle of the Marx Brothers.



PRODUCTION NOTES:-

This production was "one of the last great gatherings of the Hollywood English" before World War II. Selznick was partly inspired to take on the project because of the abdication of Edward VIII, and exploited this angle in his marketing of the film.



It was considered a difficult shoot. Director John Cromwell was unhappy with his male leads, as he suspected that Colman did not know his lines, and was concerned with Fairbanks' and Niven's late nights on the town. George Cukor directed a few scenes of the film when Cromwell grew frustrated with his actors especially Madeline Carroll's key scene in the film dealing with the Renunciation. Woody Van Dyke was brought in to re-shoot some of the fencing scenes, which are one of the highlights of the film, along with the costume design.



A prologue and an epilogue were shot, but never used. The prologue has an elderly Rassendyll recounting his adventures in his club. In the epilogue, he receives a letter from von Tarlenheim and a rose, informing him that Flavia has died.



TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS:-

Video Codec: MPEG-2

Video Bitrate: 50161 kbps

Video Resolution: 720x480

Video Aspect Ratio: 1.333:1

Frames Per Second: 29.970

Audio Codec:  AC3

Audio Bitrate: 192kb/s CBR 48000 Hz

Audio Streams:  1

Audio Languages: English

RunTime 101 mins

Subtitles: NONE

Ripped by: Trinidad [DDR]