The Emperor's Candlesticks

The plot of "The Emperor's Candlesticks" is total nonsense in the 1930s Hollywood fantasies about benevolent despots, courteous kidnappers, and gallant spies. The story is only an excuse for a masquerade ball and a dash across Europe in pursuit of two candelabras that do not belong to the Russian czar or the Austro-Hungarian emperor, but are a gift from an Austrian nobleman to a Russian noblewomen. The carriers (the Polish Baron Wolensky and the Russian Countess Mironova, played by the stars, William Powell and Luise Rainer) lose and find and mistakenly switch the pair of candelabras.

Powell was unflappable in the midst of many ludicrous plots during the 1930s, often with Myrna Loy as a co-conspirator. Here, he is pitted against a lovely czarist secret agent, played, in a large wardrobe, by the great Luise Rainer. In the two immediately preceding films for which she won back-to-back Oscars ("The Great Ziegfeld" with Powell and "The Good Earth" with Paul Muni) and in her only other readily available film, "The Great Waltz," she suffered mightily. In "Candlesticks" she got a chance to play the kind of glamorous clothes horse role in which Marlene Dietrich specialized, with no occasion for jealousy at all. Dietrich and Greta Garbo both played spies in 1930s movies. Each appeared more sophisticated than Rainer's, but I find Rainer more credible as a spy with regrets about the consequences of her occupation than either Dietrich or Garbo. Rainer was also quite beautiful with high cheekbones and eyebrows as plucked as Dietrich, and received star keylighting from MGM.

Back in a gilded cage, Robert Young got a chance to be charming and gallant, impeded by the humorous bumbling minder played by Frank Morgan.

The beginning of The Emperor's Candlesticks shows Prince Robert Young and his manservant Frank Morgan at a masked ball. Bob gets distracted by a pretty face, Maureen O'Sullivan, and they enjoy a whirlwind romance that evening. Just when you think it's a cute movie, Maureen turns into a villainess and kidnaps him! This is an espionage thriller that shows you from the beginning you don't know who to trust and you don't know what to expect.

With a ransom note written to Bob's father tucked into a secret compartment of a pair of candlesticks, William Powell is supposed to smuggle the sticks out of the country so that the royal family can rescue the young prince without any scandal. There's another spy in pursuit of the candlesticks, and for a different reason: Luise Rainer. She and Bill don't know each other are spies, so there's quite a bit of tension as they try to get around each other while fighting for their own countries.

The plot of this movie can become a bit confusing if you're not fully paying attention, but if you're awake and alert, it's quite exciting. I liked the all-star cast, including Henry Stephenson, and the twists and turns along the way. It's refreshing to see Bill Powell without a martini in his hand, and this is a nice change of pace for him. Check it out if you're a fan.

The handsome Prince (Robert Young) has been kidnapped and will be killed unless a Polish secret agent (William Powell) is able to sneak a ransom note to the Czar. Unfortunately, he chose a rather silly place to hide the note (inside a specially created candlestick) and it is lost. At the same time, a Russian spy (Luise Rainer) is trying to sneak in letters incriminating Powell as a spy--and also hides them inside the matching candlestick--which also is lost. Lots of intrigue follows--as well as some MGM style romance.

This film should have been better. After all, it starred the wonderful William Powell and had such supporting stars as Maureen O'Sullivan, Robert Young, Frank Morgan and Henry Stephenson--all fine actors. However, despite a decent script idea and such talent, the film was only okay. Much of this is because the script was rather tepid and talky--with too many scenes listening to the characters play verbal chess--trying to outfox each other. There was little 'zip' or excitement.

In addition, some of the blame probably resides with co-star Luise Rainer. While Ms. Rainer only made a small number of Hollywood films, she had the distinction of winning two straight Best Actress Oscars. However, when you see these two performances as well as her subsequent films you wonder why she received such accolades. The performances just didn't age well. In the last week or so I have seen six of her more famous films, I can't help but think that she was a terribly over-rated star. I'm sure she's a nice person and is still thriving today at 98 years-old. But her style of acting usually included staring wide-eyed into space and often reciting her lines in an over-eager fashion--more like a girl in a high school play than someone trying to play a realistic performance. While Ms. Rainer was better in THE EMPEROR'S CANDLESTICKS than in some of her other films (particularly DRAMATIC SCHOOL and BIG CITY), she still was not up to starring against Powell.

Now all this is NOT to say that this is a bad film--it's enjoyable enough. But there just isn't much spark or energy and could have been a lot more interesting. A decent time-passer and that's about it.

The grand duke of Russia. Peter (Robert Young) is kidnapped by Polish nationalists using the oldest trick in the book. He believes that a beautiful woman (Maureen O'Sullivan) who is a complete stranger to him is in love with him at first sight. He is shocked! Shocked I say! To find out that rendezvousing with her is a trap and she does not find his physique and witty repartee irresistible. The Polish nationalists have Peter write his dad the Tsar a letter saying that he must release a member of the Polish resistance scheduled to be executed or Peter will be killed. They give Baron Stephan Wolensky (William Powell) the task of getting the letter to the tsar. Wolensky is a secret agent for the Poles and unknown to the Russians. That is until...

... the Russians uncover letters in Wolensky's handwriting that prove he is a spy. They give these papers to one of the agents of the Russian secret police, Countess Olga Mironova (Luise Ranier), and she is tasked with taking these papers to the authorities in Russia.

They both hide their papers in the secret compartment of one of two different candlesticks headed back to Russia from Vienna. Neither one knows about the other's mission although they are both aware of whom the other is secretly working for. And then on the way back to Russia the candlesticks are stolen by a common thief and they both are on the trail - all over Europe -to find those candlesticks. Rather Slavic complications and Eastern European sounding symphonic music ensues.

I was actually surprised I liked this one as much as I did, and that was mainly due to William Powell's great performance as the charming and sophisticated baron and the cleverness of the plot. As for what I did not like - I've never "gotten" the appeal of Luise Ranier. During her and Powell's cat and mouse game through most of the film, she simpers and whimpers annoyingly. But then I thought she did the same in "The Great Zeigfeld" and she won a Best Actress award for that role. Also, MGM's sappy happy ending department decided to make the Tsar of Russia have the disposition of Judge Hardy. Any history book will tell you that was not the case.

Back in the '30s, the studios made dozens of movies that were set in Europe to give Americans during the Depression a sense of fantasy and other world glamor, and to keep their foreign market. "The Emperor's Candlesticks" starring William Powell and Luise Rainer is such a film, with supporting roles featuring two young stars, Robert Young and Maureen O'Sullivan. Powell and Rainer are opposing foreign agents who each hide their documents in a pair of candlesticks to be brought to Russia as a gift to a noblewoman. The candlesticks were to be delivered by Powell, but Rainer talks the Austrian who has given him the task to let her do it. They are stolen by her maid and her boyfriend, and both Powell and Rainer try to be the first to recover them.

Powell and Rainer are delightful in this crazy story. Rainer, with her small face and enormous eyes, is gorgeous, playing the part of a spy with charm. Powell is always good and plays off Rainer very well. Robert Young and Maureen O'Sullivan portray a prince and his kidnapper's accomplice, respectively, who meet at a masquerade ball, he dressed as Romeo and she as Juliet. Their last scene together is very sweet.

This movie is odd for one reason. The stars all lived for a very long time, and in fact, Rainer at this writing is still alive at the age of 96. Young lived to 91, O'Sullivan to 87, Powell to 91. Must have been something in the water on the set. Wish it had been present on more films!