An Englishman vacationing in a Ruritarian kingdom is recruited to impersonate his cousin, the soon-to-be-crowned king when the monarch is drugged and kidnapped.
This version of "The Prisoner of Zenda" used the same shooting script as the 1937 David O. Selznick film directed by John Cromwell and starring Ronald Colman and Madeleine Carroll. Slight variations in the screenplay were added by Noel Langley. In addition to the dialogue, the same film score, composed by Alfred Newman for the 1937 version, was also used for this version. A comparison of the two films reveals that settings and camera angles, in most cases, are the same.
Now, the consensus is that the 1937 version is the superior and definitive version. Typically, I agree with critics and tend to think older versions of films are generally better (though not always). On this one, though, I simply found the remake more engaging. The lead was more persuasive and I think there was just more emotion conveyed. It was more passionate than the original and this kept me far more interested.
This version of "The Prisoner of Zenda" used the same shooting script as the 1937 David O. Selznick film directed by John Cromwell and starring Ronald Colman and Madeleine Carroll. Slight variations in the screenplay were added by Noel Langley. In addition to the dialogue, the same film score, composed by Alfred Newman for the 1937 version, was also used for this version. A comparison of the two films reveals that settings and camera angles, in most cases, are the same.
Now, the consensus is that the 1937 version is the superior and definitive version. Typically, I agree with critics and tend to think older versions of films are generally better (though not always). On this one, though, I simply found the remake more engaging. The lead was more persuasive and I think there was just more emotion conveyed. It was more passionate than the original and this kept me far more interested.