King's Rhapsody (1955) User Reviews (10)

An interesting movie because of the association with Ivor Novello

[Rozinda · 6/10 · 17 July 2008]

What a shame Novello had died before this movie was made. Errol Flynn was near the end of his life and appeared to be inebriated throughout, though admittedly still possessed that well-known charm. I remember Novello from my very early childhood as everyone knew him then, he was so famous and so popular and his death put the country into mourning. I remembered always some of the songs from this musical, that were played over and over of course, and Vanessa Lee singing the poignant Some Day My Heart Will Awake which was a major hit. So it was interesting to see the movie on TV some years ago. But what a shame there isn't some recording of Novello playing the part.

This is of course Novello's most famous musical although I myself think I would place Glamorous Night and Perchance to Dream above it if only I could see a version of them.

Whatever, the music is of course the first and foremost attraction. Beautiful as always. Novello like Johann Strauss and Franz Lehar never failed when it came to music. The story is charming and like so much of Novello's work, bitter-sweet. Wasn't it one of our royals who told Novello after seeing Glamorous Night that she'd love to see a happy ending please so he added that in for her in Careless Rapture?

There is a wonderful and poignant book by Hester W. Chapman based on this musical. Chapman extends the story skilfully and this book of hers is so much less frustrating than some others of her fiction containing as they often do men who seem to be completely heartless, twisted, and severely emotionally damaged individuals who confuse the poor heroine (and the reader) into despair with what seems to be love, and then they walk off uncaring leaving the poor woman totally bereft. In other words, men who are massively emotionally damaged. In Chapman's King's Rhapsody the King has a heart and a soul and is a decent human being - presumably Chapman was determined to keep to Novello's style of hero on this occasion - and his frustrating life is fascinating as in the musical. It was a book I read many years ago after guessing it probably related to the famous old musical and it was and still is a very rewarding read. As I recall, this play was very loosely based on a true story of an Eastern European Prince's love life but I may be wrong about that.

A beautiful bore

[marcslope · 6/10 · 11 January 2016]

Ivor Novello's late stage success gets a sumptuous and reasonably faithful filming with this large Herbert Wilcox production, designed to showcase his muse, Anna Neagle. It's probably the last big British film operetta--miscast, and a muddled story, but there are all those pretty Novello melodies and some gorgeous wide-screen location filming, and a lot of haute couture flitting around on screen from Ms. Neagle and Patrice Wymore. They're both in love with Errol Flynn, who's a little old and dissipated to be playing the dashing young playboy prince about to be crowned king of the fictional nation of Laurentia. Neagle's his longtime mistress and Wymore the princess ordered to marry him, which she doesn't mind at all. It's annoying that Flynn is allowed to love two women simultaneously without penalty, and the talk is generally dull, and the supporting cast--Martita Hunt as Flynn's queen mum, Miles Malleson as a servant--not very exciting. The editing is atrocious, careening from dialog to irrelevant song to dream ballet and back again. Watching it is like watching the operetta genre age before your very eyes, but if you like this sort of thing, and I do, you'll have a good time. And even if you don't, you'll appreciate the Cinemascope vistas.

Wooden acting and jumbled screenplay do this movie in

[SimonJack · 5/10 · 2 June 2022]

'King's Rhapsody" is a musical play and drama that paired Errol Flynn and Anna Neagle for the second time. Their first film, "Let's Make Up" (originally, "Lilacs in Spring") of 1954 was a moderate success. It had a good plot and screenplay to support it, with roles that suited the leads for their ages and appearances at the time. But, the same can't be said about this film. "Rhapsody" is supposed to be based on a successful stage musical of the same title, by Ivor Novello. I don't know if the screenplay of this film follows the play well or not, but the story comes across as a dull jumble of what seemed liked a good idea for a plot. It bombed at the box office, and Herbert Wilcox didn't make the another four films that had been planned for his wife, Neaggle, and Flynn.

One suspects that the script had something to do with that, and it is all too obvious that the cast had a great deal to do with it - especially the two leads. There is no chemistry whatsoever between Neagle's Marta Kariloss and Flynn's Richard, heir to the throne of the mythical kingdom of Laurentia. Both seem quite wooden in their roles, except for Neagle's musical parts. Flynn is especially wooden and almost emotionless.

Flynn was just 46 years old when this film came out, yet he looked like a haggard man in his late 50s or even early 60s. Many leading men of Hollywood aged moderately so that with touches of makeup they could still play handsome, young middle-aged roles. An excellent example is Cary Grant - at age 60, in "That Touch of Mink" with Doris Day. Grant looks like a man of 40 who's just starting to get the slight touch of white on the front side edges of his full head of hair. While Cary Grant had also been married a few times, his lifestyle was not wild and flamboyant as was Flynn's. Heavy drinking, partying, drugs and notorious sex exploits had caught up Flynn. Four years after this, Flynn would die of a heart attack - at age 50.

At the time of this movie, Flynn was married to the second female lead, Patrice Wymore. It is principally her performance as Princess Cristiane and that of Martita Hunt as Queen Mother that save this film from being a total dud.

Here are the better lines from this movie.

Richard, "Oh, no, don't tell me the old goat's dead?" Queen Mother, "Richard, I cannot allow you to call your late father old."

Queen Mother, "Richard, you were born to be king. Time has come to face your responsibility."

King Peter, "I, uh, already signed your marriage contract." Princess Christiane, "Father, do you mean you signed my marriage contract?"

Lombardo, The Prime Minister, "I have already made my humble suggestions to his royal highness, but he was not very polite." Queen Mother, "He called you...?" Lombardo, "Yes, your majesty." Queen Moher, "It's that beard of yours, Lombardo."

Queen Mother, "Why must you be so bitter?" Richard, "Bitter? I haven't got a bitter bone in my body."

Queen Mother, "Richard, for over a thousand years, the new heir to the throne has been shown to the people from the balcony of the palace - by his father." Richard, "Hmm! My father missed a great chance - he could have dropped me."

Queen Mother, "If you don't abdicate, you will be murdered." Richard, "Heh, mothers, kings are never murdered. We're always assassinated."

Tedious

[pmalcolm-58-539968 · 3/10 · 20 July 2014]

Having just watched King's Rhapsody and having waited many years to find a copy, I am sorry to say that it just doesn't work. Flynn is just not there! He seems to have wandered in and just been allowed to continue the role without any real sense of comedy or emotion. The rest of the cast work hard but the fact that the King has no singing voice whatsoever spoils the whole idea of the operetta and an ever convenient band of street singers doing his work just doesn't cut the ice.

I feel certain that Mr Novello would NOT have been happy with his movie despite it's lush and colourful settings. I scored it as a three out of ten and that is because they tried to make a big Hollywood musical and failed miserably. It could be done again but I doubt that it would favour any popularity in today's world and more's the pity.

Not a feel-good movie

[HotToastyRag · 3/10 · 10 June 2020]

Errol Flynn in an operetta? Yes please! Errol Flynn singing? Apparently, not in this one. You only have one chance to hear that, in the cute variety show Thank Your Lucky Stars. In this one, all the singing and dancing are done by Anna Neagle and Patrice Wymore.

As quick as I am to recommend all of Errol Flynn's movies, (because him in a lousy movie is better than nothing) I'm not going to recommend you watch this one. If you didn't like seeing him playing a no-account drunkard in The Sun Also Rises, you're really not going to like seeing him in this movie. There are a few scenes where his character is drunk, and he's so convincing, I had to wonder whether or not such a state was actually written in the script or if it had to be adopted to suite him. Also, since Patrice's character is supposed to have loved Errol from afar for years, and she carefully looks after him, it adds another layer of sadness. In real life, Patrice and Errol were married, and she put her career on hold to look after him towards the end of his life.

If you do want to watch it, here's a quick summary of the plot: Queen Mother Martita Hunt informs her playboy son that his father has died and he's going to be coronated King soon. He must return to his own country and drop his mistress, Anna Neagle, he's been with for years. While he enters into an arranged marriage for the sake of his kingdom (with Patrice) he continually pines away for Anna. Since Patrice has loved him for years, there's a whole bunch of unrequited love in the story. This isn't a light operetta, but instead one that's quite sad with every main character battling heartbreak.

The Playboy Prince

[bkoganbing · 3/10 · 3 May 2009]

The years of good living were galloping up on Errol Flynn when he decided to make the second of two films he did with British musical star Anna Neagle and her producer husband Herbert Wilcox. This film was a disaster for Flynn and unlike his previous work with Neagle, Lilacs In The Spring failed at the box office on the other side of the pond as well.

The plain truth is what was Errol Flynn doing in an operetta? On stage author Ivor Novello played the lead and sang the songs. Here no one had Errol try to sing operetta, nor was anyone's voice dubbed for him either. Instead Wilcox used the rather clumsy device of having a 'street singer' played by Edmond Hockridge sing the duets with both Neagle and Patrice Wymore who was the third and final Mrs. Errol Flynn. It was just plain ludicrous.

I'm willing to bet that Ivor Novello was probably a supporter of the Duke of Windsor because that's what the film is partially based on, an abdication crisis. Flynn's character is based on Windsor and also on King Carol of Rumania and his mistress Marie Lepescu. Martita Hunt plays Flynn's mother, the Queen Mother of the mythical Laurentia where Flynn is king. No one in the United Kingdom could possibly have mistaken the fact that Hunt's portrayal was based on Queen Mother Mary who was still alive in 1949 when King's Rhapsody debuted on the London stage.

The part of the prince, king, and later ex-king calls for Flynn to age several years. The old playboy in Monte Carlo he got down pretty good, but no amount of makeup could get Errol young again, he couldn't convince anyone as the young prince who was exiled to the Riviera because he wouldn't give up his mistress played in this film by Anna Neagle.

If you know the story of King Carol and Lepescu and of course of the Duke of Windsor who wouldn't give up Wallis Simpson, combine them and you have an idea of what King's Rhapsody was all about.

One of the great bad ideas in the history of movies, Errol Flynn in this role. Herbert Wilcox was quoted in the Citadel Film book, The Films of Errol Flynn saying when he heard Flynn had died in 1959 that he could have been a great actor, but his love of high living kept him from it. Errol's high living made him completely unsuitable for this role.

Interesting but not too absorbing

[lora64 · 7/10 · 21 February 2001]

This is the first time I've seen or heard of this movie. I'm just tuned into the middle of the film. It's less of a drama and really more of a musical in a mildly romantic sense. The scenery is sumptuous with an atmosphere of high fashion, moreso since the setting involves royalty, i.e. Errol Flynn is to become king so it's lavish in every way. Anna Neagle sings well; I'd never heard her sing before (at least I hope it is her own voice). It is regrettable that Flynn only had a few more years left in his brief life, brief by our standards today. It's refreshing to see a film I haven't seen before. If you like pleasant songs, gentle romance and pageantry, this is one you ought to see when you can. It's almost like a European Broadway musical!

I Rhapsodize.

[davidallen-84122 · 7/10 · 12 July 2017]

I think I make a fair assumption in saying that one needs to be passionate about the music of Ivor Novello to fully appreciate "King's Rhapsody" on film.I am just that and happy to take his works in any shape or form.In 1949 when Novello's last 'operetta' was first presented on the London stage,it was an immediate success,despite it's quaint,old fashioned theme.Sadly,by the time it reached the screen in the mid-1950's,there was only a limited audience for it outside England. Errol Flynn may have retained a certain box- office appeal at this time but here,his ineffable charm is clearly a thing of the past.He looks dissipated,to say the least and seems to be sleepwalking his way through most of the proceedings. Now,let's move on to the ladies.Anna Neagle is as enchanting as ever and imbues her role with grace and charm.She sings two songs,nicely but there is no dancing for her this time.That is left to the other female lead,Patrice Wymore who dances very well and sings sweetly (the dream scene is a bit odd though). It's not easy to involve oneself in the drama but never mind,there is always Novello's glorious music;the mainstay of the piece. I was delighted to find this film on DVD and the quality is quite satisfactory.

King Errol Flynn at home getting a wife and queen and having a mistress, who leaves him

[clanciai · 9/10 · 10 March 2020]

The first part of the film is of sustained perfection and interest and adorably beautiful in every detail, especially the costumes, the colours, the music and the dances, culminating in the ballet sequence before the wedding. After the wedding the interest drops, as the king gets more melancholy and both his ladies seem to lose interest in him, while he actually never wanted to be king in the first place. Nevertheless, this is a much underrated masterpiece of beauty, unique in its kind, while the film that comes closest to it is Ernst Lubitsch's last film "That Lady in Ermine" seven years earlier. Ivor Novello's music is endearingly delightful all the way and furnishes the film with a golden frame. I couldn't help loving it, in spite of its flaws, its slow tempo, its tedious moments and Errol Flynn's rather disinterested acting, although he is excellent as usual. Both the ladies are adorale, but I think the prize goes to Martita Hunt as the Queen Mother, who always makes a lasting impression.

Better without the music

[schappe1 · 6/10 · 6 September 2021]

This was the second of the Herbert Wilcox features Flynn did with Wilcox's wife, Dame Anna Neagle, in the wake of the William tell disaster. He needed a paycheck and got two of them. As with virtually all of Flynn's perpetually dismissed 1950's films, it is an 'A' level film with a good cast and production values. The problem is, it's also very old-fashioned, a 'Ruritanian romance" complete with some unmemorable songs sung in an operatic fashion, (Maria Callas had nothing to worry about here.) The best musical number, a dream sequence involving Wymore, seems to have been inspired by Oklahoma's "Out of MY Dreams", which is far better.

The film features not only Wilcox's wife but also Flynn's Patrice Wymore, not long before their marriage came apart. Errol plays the crown prince of 'Laurentia' who has never gotten along with his parents or their ministers and has been living in Monte Carlo with Nagle, "the woman he loves". Flynn's Prince Richard is a combination of England's Edward VIII, Austria's Crown Prince Rudolph, (of Mayerling fame) and Egypt's King Farouk, whom Flynn new well. It's also the first film playing a character who drinks a lot. In some scenes he's kind of like the silly character he portrayed in his TV appearances of the time, (see What's My Line, the Steve Allen Show and others). Wymore once said of Flynn: "I found generally that when he was at his lowest ebb or most frightened, he would appear to be at his gayest. I had to know him quite some time before I was able to recognize his low ebbs". Prince, then King Richard has a similar trait: he gets silly when being informed that the King is dead and he must come back to assume that role and when he meets the bride that has been arranged for him. But he can also be quite serious, fall legitimate in love and hate and also be idealistic to battle his father's ministers, (and his mother) to make reforms in the Kingdom.

Unfortunately he loses that political battle and is forced to abdicate when those ministers foment a popular movement against him based on his previous misbehavior as a playboy prince. Neagle plays his long-time love who decides she ahs to give him up so he can attend his responsibilities are King, husband and father. Wymore is the arranged bride who comes to love him, (but was moving in the other direction in real life). This was the second time Flynn had witnessed the coronation of a child king in a film: the first was 1937's 'The Prince and the Pauper'.

It's not all that bad a film and would be better without the musical numbers. Flynn's mercurial performance is the best thing in it. Unlike the first Wilcox film, it was not successful the box office. Flynn's career was slipping but he was still a star and a comeback was just around the corner.