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Rasputin & The Empress
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by MGM (Warner)
Sales Rank: 24693
Price: $19.98
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This is the only sound film in which the three legendary Barrymore siblings ever appeared together. Never considered a dynamic classic, it nevertheless gives viewers a glimpse of America's Royal Family of the Theatre at work. In 1913 Russia, Czar Nicholai Alexander and Czarina Alexandra opulently celebrate 3OO years of the Romanoff dynasty, unaware that their empire is crumbling down all around them.The working title for this film was simply RASPUTIN. Although Charles MacArthur is solely credited for the dialogue, Lenore Coffee, Mercedes de Acosta & John Meehan were all originally involved with the screenplay. The film took 17 weeks to film: both John and Ethel earned $1OO,OOO apiece, Lionel's salary was $4,OOO a week (!). Princess Irina Romanoff Youssoupoff - who was the model for Princess Natasha in this film - filed a damage suit against M-G-M in 1933. She was awarded a hefty quarter million dollars. Now for a REAL piece of trivia: this was NOT the three Barrymore's only film together. They appeared in a 1917 silent allegorical film entitled NATIONAL RED CROSS PAGEANT - the purpose of which was to raise money for the Red Cross during WWI.
Viewer Reviews
The main interest in this film is to see the three renowned Barrymore siblings act together, and though it is rather stiff and heavy handed, ultra melodramatic, and the direction often looks "staged", as if it were a play rather than a film, it also has lavish sets and costumes, and some history on the side.
The plot starts in 1913, and runs through the assassination of the Romanov family in 1918. Rasputin is here portrayed as part Svengali, as he hypnotizes Alexis with a big watch on a chain, part debauched barbarian, and mostly, a power-mad nut case.
Lionel Barrymore plays the Mad Monk almost to the point of caricature, and his hands are fascinating to watch, and often take on the appearance of talons.
John Barrymore is Prince Paul Chegodieff, and is sporting rather a lot of makeup, even along the hairline. "Prince Chegodieff" was a thinly veiled alias for Prince Felix Yusopov, who saw Rasputin for what he was, and who finally arranged and had a hand in Rasputin's death; the studio changed his name to avoid a law suit, but to no avail, as Yusopov sued them anyway . Ethel Barrymore plays the Czarina theatrically, as a doting, emotional mother. Diana Wynyard as Princess Natasha comes off the best, in a sincere and lovely performance.
Crisp and with a lot of definition, the restoration of this film is miraculous; only the sound is lacking in some clarity and depth. I don't think I have ever seen a film of this age look this good. Of great interest to anyone who is fascinated by the Barrymore family, and interpretations of what happened to the Romanov Dynasty. Total running time is 101 minutes.
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Rasputin & The Empress
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