The Prisoner of Zenda (1937 and 1952 Versions)

"Prisoner of Zenda" is a story about a time long ago which no longer exists, a time when kings and queens lived in castles and ruled their subjects with absolute authority. But produced David O. Selznick makes it work, for two reasons: 1) a great story, and 2) a great cast. (Please note: I deducted one star from this review because of the MGM version.) Rudolph Rassendyll (Ronald Colman) happens to be vacationing in a Ruritarian kingdom at the same time as his identical cousin Rudolf V (also Ronald Colman) is about to be crowned king. Black Michael, the king's half-brother (Raymond Massey) also wants to be king, so he devises a simple plan. During the celebration the night before the coronation, his assistant gives the king drugged wine. With the king incapacitated for an entire day, he will of course not be crowned at the cathedral, and Michael will declare himself king. In this plan Michael is assisted by Rupert of Hentzau (Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.)But the king's men, including Colonel Zapt (C. Aubrey Smith) and Fritz von Tarlenheim (David Niven) come up with a plan of their own. The will substitute Rudolph for the real king. Then, after the coronation, the fully recovered Rudolf V can assume the throne. But things go wrong when they find out that Rupert has kidnapped the king and taken him to a cottage in Zenda (Zenda is a place, not a person). So Rudolph must continue to pretend he's still the king. And it's not so bad, especially after he meets his fiance, the beautiful Princess Flavia (Madeleine Carrol). Almost immediately she notices that this is a different king, who treats her with kindness, unlike the real one, who was quite mean. And yes, with all the other problems these people have, Rudolph and Flavia are falling in love. ("I don't know why I love you now, when I never even liked you before.") This cannot be. Flavia must marry Rudolf V, and no one else.Now you might think, who cares? But if you you like great acting, you'll love this picture. Ronald Colman, of course, was great in every picture he was ever in, even the fantastic (and ridiculous) "Lost Horizon." C. Aubrey Smith was one of those character actors who were never young (when he was born, he was already 70 years old!). David Niven, on the other hand, never seemed to grow old. Like Cary Grant, in the 1950's he looked almost exactly the same as he did 20 years before. But my favorite actor in the whole movie is Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. He's a liar, a womanizer, and a murderer (when Michael catches him making love to his girlfriend Antoinette de Mauban (Mary Astor), Rupert pulls out his knife and stabs him to death), but he's so honest about it all. He even jokes about how rotten he is!When MGM re-made the movie in 1952, they used the same exact script and the same locations as the original. They even did it in Technicolor, which doesn't help. The problem is the cast. Deborah Kerr is very beautiful and very good as Flavia, but Stewart Granger is no Ronald Colman. Michael and Fritz are played Robert Douglas and Robert Coote, hardly major stars. But perhaps one of the worst pieces of miscasting in Hollywood history is James Mason as Rupert. He's pompous and arrogant, but lacks the wry sense of humor that Fairbanks brought to the part. In fact, every time I saw him on the screen, I was hoping that Fairbanks would show up to replace him. No such luck.

"The Prisoner of Zenda", based on the first of Anthony Hope's 'Zenda' novels, has been filmed at least six times since 1913, but the first two 'sound' versions, from 1937 and 1952, are the most popular versions of this timeless tale...and having them, packaged together, at LAST on video, is a cause to celebrate!The story is simple, and has been done many times before; a drugged and kidnapped monarch-to-be must be impersonated by look-alike at the coronation, lest his kingdom fall into ruin at the hands of an evil half-brother!The David O. Selznick-produced 1937 version offers the immortal Ronald Colman in the dual role of Rudolf, European crown prince, and Rudolf Rassendyll, his look-alike British cousin, end product of a brief affair of an ancestor; the radiant Madeleine Carroll is the royal betrothed, who falls in love with the pretender; Raymond Massey portrays Black Michael, Rudolf's scheming half-brother; and, best of all, a youthful Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., son of silent Hollywood's greatest swashbuckler (and a pretty fair swashbuckler, himself), is the definitive Rupert of Hentzau, the suavely villainous ally of Michael.In the hands of this PERFECT cast (with terrific support by C. Aubrey Smith, a young David Niven, and Mary Astor) "Zenda" becomes a stylish tale of love, intrigue, and derring-do. High points include an astonishingly beautiful Royal Ball, where Colman and Carroll reveal their love; a very funny yet menacing meeting between Colman and Fairbanks, as they discuss the real King's potential fate; and best of all, a MAGNIFICENT climactic swordfight between the pair, as they lunge and parry furiously through the halls of a castle, while exchanging quips and one-liners about a British education!MGM, in their 1952 remake, tried to surpass the earlier version by creating a technicolor 'scene-for-scene' duplicate of the film, utilizing some of their biggest stars, and reworking Alfred Newman's original musical score. The end result, however, was a mixed bag...Stewart Granger, MGM's resident 50s swashbuckler, certainly was more athletic than Colman, but lacked the older actor's panache, and more importantly, 'The Voice', that distinctive, oft-imitated but never duplicated speaking voice that made Ronald Colman so unique. While Deborah Kerr was as regally beautiful as Madeleine Carroll, she lacked Carroll's fragile quality, which made the doomed love so heartbreaking. Robert Douglas was excellent as Black Michael, but James Mason, as Rupert of Hentzau, was miscast in the role. While a brilliant actor, Mason was too old, and actually TOO villainous! While Rupert is jaded and unscrupulous, he also has to be such a young, likable scoundrel that his escape, after the climactic duel, disappoints no one, not even the hero he nearly defeats, which ideally suited the cocky, younger Fairbanks. Seeing a malevolent Mason escape 'justice' seems unfair!David Niven, in his autobiography, said he thought MGM's remake was a ridiculous idea, and that he was pleased that the newer production, even as a scene-for-scene copy, failed. While I think he was, perhaps, too hard on the Granger film, which is still entertaining, I have to agree that it doesn't even come close to the magic of Ronald Colman's 1937 classic!But better yet, potential buyer...At this terrific price, you can judge for yourself!

Can't believe I haven't written a review before now. My wife and I viewed the 1952 version last night on first evening of 2nd "lockdown" - to cheer me up! This version is not only my personal favourite of the two, but also one of my top 20 favourite films (the list does alter every now and then). Gorgeously photographed in wonderful colour (4.3 ratio), showing of the magnificent costumes, and sets, this has all the makings of a splendid romance/adventure, and succeeds in spades. Granger and Kerr were magical together, and Mason is just amazing as the villain of all villains, Rupert of Hentzau. When you also have superb backup from Robert Douglas/Jane Greer/Louis Calhern and Robert Coote and even the legendary Lewis Stone in a small role as "The Cardinal", a great plot a strong direction from Richard Thorpe then you are on to a real winner. Finally, surely the saber duel between Granger and Mason MUST rate as one of the very best ever filmed (NB I didn't say it was THE best - so discuss if you wish......)The 1937 version in B/W is also a great film, even if Fairbanks does make me think of "Flashheart" from The "Blackadder" series. Also excellent quality both with good subtitles. Highly recomended.

Two classic films! Okay, so they are almost scene-for-scene word-perfect fifteen years apart. But the classic tale of Ruritanian shenanigans is here brought to life and Stewart Granger certainly personifies Rudolf Rassendyll so well - and James Mason the suave Ruprecht (Rupert) von Hentzau - that the later 1979 Peter Sellers version was frankly insulting. Adapted from the classic late-19th Century novel, this is glorious Technicolor swashbuckling of a bygone age, and attempts to 'bring it up to date' should not be attempted; in the digital age it simply will not work.

With this DVD you get two versions of the Prisoner of Zenda, derived from the splendidly dashing novel by Anthony Hope. You get Ronald Colman in a Black and White 1937 version and Stewart Granger in a colour 1952 version. Both are terrific films which use an almost identical script and very similar production techniques - Both films start with the image of a train hurtling across a map of Europe. Both have a scene in which the whole screen is filled with an image of an invitation card to a ball given by the supposed King of Ruritania, with just a hand and a pen visible as Colman/Granger amends the invitation with his own handwriting.Colour obviously gives the later version an advantage but ultimately the difference boils down to an evaluation of the two casts.Colman is naturally posh and conveys the impression of being a cultured English gentleman with exquisite ease. He has no problems impersonating a King, or being an action hero.Granger certainly looks the part but I can't get out of my head an image of him as an higher class villain such as in his spiv role in 'Waterloo Road'. Not quite the English gentleman. Where Granger comes into his own is the magnificent sword fight against the villainous Rupert of Hentzau. Granger's natural athleticism really shows.As villains we have as Rupert of Hentzau Douglas Fairbanks junior in the 1937 version and James Mason in the 1952 version. No one can match Mason in silky smooth villainy.The other members of the casts in both films match each other scene for scene.if you want a DVD of The Prisoner of Zenda then go for this version and you get two magnificent films

two good films the 1952 film prisoner of zenda is a scene for scene remake of the 1937 film .but i think Ronald Colman 1937 version is slightly better. but Stewart Granger does have a better sword fight at the end of the 1952 film. two excellent picture quality films both has extras side A,a Pete Smith short ,cartoon Wayward Pups,audio-radio Adaptation with Ronald Colman..side B a traveltalk short Land of the Taj Mahal,and Oscar Winning cartoon Tom and Jerry johann Mouse,and trailer.both films are on separate disc and plays on my region 2 player

I saw the 1952 version over 60 years ago. It was widely supposed to be Hollywood's answer to the Coronation! Now I have seen the 1937 version and I am not disappointed. Ronald Colman handles the dual role well. David O Selznick shows his love for bestseller fiction by surrounding Colman with an outstanding supporting cast. I particularly liked C Aubrey Smith - he never lets you down.