Princess Charming (1934)

Don't Believe the Hype

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Revolution threatens! In the main it can be averted only by Princess Evelyn Laye marrying King George Grossmith, although stopgaps like Max Miller selling someone insurance or Miss Laye singing a revolutionary song or even marrying Captain Herbert Wilcoxon will get everyone to the the next scene.This movie is adapted from a stage show. Miss Laye had been a musical-comedy star in the West End for a decade and a half and was making her big move in the talkies and this operetta was clearly chosen as a major vehicle for her; the director was Maurice Elvey, who directed impeccably, as he always did, but seems to have had no idea of what to do other than keep the camera moving as Miller wanders across the studio, babbling about insurance, kittens and elbows. It's entertaining, but after it's all over, it left me with the feeling that I had had my pocket picked.

A first rate cast - lead by the lovely Evelyn Laye (the heroine of Evergreen as the Princess who weds in haste to avert assassination in a revolution) and George Grossmith (son of the great Gilbert & Sullivan comedian repeating the role of the know-nothing king the princess is betrothed to which he had created in London and on Broadway [56p. at the Imperial Theatre, 13 Oct.-29 Nov. 1930]) and filled up with players not normally associated with musicals, Henry Wilcoxin (Anthony to Claudette Colbert's Cleopatra, here the princess' emergency groom), Frances L. Sullivan (the original stage Sir Wilfred in Agatha Christie's Witness for the Prosecution and Pothinus in the film of Shaw's Caesar & Cleopatra here as a revolutionary) and the great British actress Yvonne Arnaud (as the fumbling king's real long-time love), SHOULD have spelled a sure fire mini-classic of its genre, but edited from a full evening's musical entertainment to a bare hour and a quarter, the piece never really has a chance to show off its most pleasant virtues.The British made film is as elaborately set as one could wish for the era, solidly acted and while lack of familiarity leaves the music (the original score was thrown out in favor of some acceptable Ray Nobel tunes) feeling rather minor (it is beautifully, if briefly sung), and the blending into the mix the farcical (music hall) characters of the inappropriately brash (note the intentionally obnoxious insurance salesman - a bit of genuinely classic business) which were a staple of the period humor will mystify some modern juvenile audiences, the real problem with Princess Charming is the break-neck editing which crams what seems like all the plot and a good solid third of the score into a time frame too short to absorb it all.Well worth seeking out for the genuine student of musical theatre, but perhaps a bit too special for those who don't appreciate theatrical history or movies that don't blow things up or get their leads naked.

Many films of the mid-1930s offer light easy entertainment. In addition Princess Charming has more unusual attributes: a deliberate take on the Ruritanian plot lines of operetta is pointed out by intentionally placing instances of incongruous singing with dialogue that is usually spoken straight but is sometimes in a mixture of blank and rhyming verse. The then (1934) modern concept of background music in films is exposed, see the opening scene in the Prince's palace - is it diegetic or non-diegetic, and predates High Anxiety and other such more obvious spoofs by 40 odd years.All in all an intelligent and well-worked little story that doesn't tax the attention but repays anyone digging it out. Buy a copy of the video (probably a 2nd hand one) and see if you agree it is worth nine out of ten.It also has the peerless Max Miller - not a great screen performer but a this offers small memento of this unique Music Hall talent.

Take a hatchet-faced leading lady, a few uniformed nonentities to fawn over her, an unfunny cheekie chappie, some nondescript music, and a tinny orchestra to play it, and you've got Princess Charming, which typifies the British musical of the time.The plot is inspired by the Prisoner of Zenda type of books, but totally lacks the tension. There is revolution in the air - and no wonder. Those poor peasants having to pay their taxes to keep this bunch of singing, fawning, backstabbing parasites. No wonder they are in revolt.The film has a sad ending. The revolt is quelled,they get married and live happily ever after. The happy ending would be if the revolutionaries got to leave a bomb in the palace and blow the whole lot of these cut-glass voiced poseurs to kingdom come.