The Prisoner of Zenda (1937)
- Directed by
- John Cromwell
- Genre
- drama film, swashbuckler film, romance film
- Country
- United States
- Runtime
- 1h 41m
- Rated
- NR
- Rating
- 7.5 of 10 from 61 voters
- Elsewhere
- IMDb
The catalogue in 3D
The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.
How it feels
A British gentleman on vacation in a small European country is asked to impersonate the king after the real king is kidnapped. He must navigate royal politics and a love triangle while keeping up the ruse.
swashbucklingromanticsuspensefuladventurouscharmingclassicdramaticwhimsical
What happens
The Prisoner of Zenda is a 1937 American black-and-white adventure film based on Anthony Hope's 1894 novel and the 1896 play. A lookalike impersonates his royal distant relative when the royal is kidnapped to prevent his coronation. This version is widely considered the best of the many film adaptations of the novel and play. The film stars 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 dramatization by Edward Rose; Donald Ogden Stewart was responsible for additional dialogue and Ben Hecht and Sidney Howard made uncredited contributions. Alfred Newman received the first of his 43 Academy Award nominations, for Original Music Score, while Lyle R. Wheeler was nominated for Best Art Direction. In 1991, this 1937 version was deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" by the United States Library of Congress and selected for preservation in its National Film Registry. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)
More like this
The Prince and the Pauper (1937)
The Prisoner of Zenda (1952)
The Exile (1947)
Under the Red Robe (1937)
The Prisoner of Zenda (1922)
Fit for a King (1937)
Jump for Glory (1937)
If I Were King (1938)- More like this film, on a shelf you can walk up to.It's the lit case on the top shelf.