Princess Charming (1934)

Sadly Over-hyped

Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

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.

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.

If I didn't know better, I'd have sworn I was watching a Jeanette MacDonald/Nelson Eddy flick here. The plot is simple, the singing is divine, and anything that can go wrong - WILL.The basic plot goes thus: a beautiful princess, who is to be married off to some prince that she has never met, is suddenly forced to flee her castle and home town as the villagers revolt, many with the intention to capture the poor princess. She has to get herself to neutral ground as quickly as possible, but then, once there, finds that she is still not safe, and can still be captured as she is not a citizen of the neutral territory, merely a refugee. Of course she can become a citizen by marrying someone who lives in the neutral territory, but then, what will her betrothed have to say about that idea?A thoroughly enjoyable musical that I would gladly recommend to anyone. Princess Charming has 'charmed' 9 out of 10 stars from me.