Comwayon A Disappointing Continuation

TrueHello Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

Neive Bellamy Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

Isbel A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

phillylilypad I watched this delightful film on TCM last night. What a revelation! Although the print quality has clearly suffered over the years, the high quality of the original production values shines through. The famous Lubitcsh Touch is all over this sweet, moving film.The acting is also superb! Navarro and Shearer give believable performances as a star-crossed couple in turn-of-the-century Germany. Navarro, in particular, gives a pitch-perfect portrayal of a reluctant prince who longs only for a simple life surrounded by school-friends and his first love.Also giving a beautiful performance as the prince's tutor and mentor was Jean Hersholt.I have never particularly enjoyed silent films - many seem to me to be overly melodramatic. But this film changed my opinion. The actors and director were able to communicate so much with very few dialog cards. It made me realize what was lost when talking pictures took over and everything became more literal.Even if you don't think you like silent films, give this one a try.

FerdinandVonGalitzien From time to time and in order to remember older better times, it is good to watch again those films that the European aristocracy and especially this German count likes most. Such is the case with "The Student Prince In Old Heidelberg", film directed by Herr Ernst Lubitsch during his Amerikan career.And this German count especially likes this silent film not only because in the oeuvre can be seen Teutonic aristocrats and even crowned kings, not to mention stiff laws about etiquette, uniforms with plenty of medals, tradition, obligation and, last but not least, royal duties. Another reason is because the film has style and classic elegance, primal emotions in motion, beautiful scenery and almost real decors, an impossible but idealistic true love story and memorable and skillful direction. There are a lot of superb silent moments, as for example, the first and unseen kiss in the garden, the night meadow scene, each and every shot starring the heartbreaking Dame Norma Shearer and a charming Herr Ramon Novarro. Besides those indispensable and unforgettable supporting silent actors, there is finally a magnificent, cruel, real and sorrowful ending."The Student Prince in Old Heidelberg" is a film about youthful dreams, the first painful love and the greatness and illness of falling in love. It's about the passing of time and those glorious memories of loves past that nobody can take away in spite, after all, of those unbearable and unjust social actions of people in high places against working class folk.Obviously this German count is talking about a classical, universal, wonderful masterpiece, a joy to the eye of a serious Teutonic aristocrat.Herr Graf Ferdinand Von Galitzien http://ferdinandvongalitzien.blogspot.com/

Neil Doyle Watching PYGMALION after seeing MY FAIR LADY is one thing. Both films stand on their own two feet--and besides, PYGMALION came first. Even without Lerner and Lowe's music, PYGMALION is a truly wonderful film.Watching a silent STUDENT PRINCE without a Romberg melody blasting away from Carl Davis' score is another matter. Nor does NORMAL SHEARER, sporting an unattractive hairdo that makes her look matronly, look the part of a youthful barmaid, Kathi. RAMON NAVARRO plays the prince with a puppy dog eagerness and a winning smile but nothing to suggest believable chemistry with him and the dowdy looking Shearer. Surely, there must have been a better hairdresser for this particular film to at least give her a more youthful look. She ovedoes the coy flirtatiousness of the early scenes, batting her eyelashes at every drinking student.There's a certain heavy-handedness to Ernst Lubitsch's direction and an excessive amount of men doffing their hats to each other. And the final reunion scene with Navarro not getting the warm welcome from friends that he expected, is a bit overdone. These are things the silent technique probably could not avoid, even with a director like Lubitsch who is known for "that touch." On the plus side, JEAN HERSHOLT is excellent as an amiable and kindly adviser to the prince and gives warmth to the role. The Carl Davis score played by a full orchestra is delightful but one does miss hearing the hero and heroine sing the familiar operetta songs by Romberg, especially during the student drinking scenes.One has to wonder what the film was like on original release without a score like Davis wrote for the restored version. Strange indeed to have a silent film based on a famous musical.Needless to say, not my favorite Shearer film--and I enjoyed Navarro more in BEN-HUR.

chuck-61 An involving, clever, romantic, and sometimes very funny film featuring two of the era's most popular stars. Forget all the other silent starlets; Norma Shearer is the Queen of the silent movies! I'd never seen her in anything but dramas, and was delighted to see what a great comic actress she was. Ramon has some great moments, too. The end of the movie was a bit of a surprise, and is just one more reason to view this charming romantic comedy-drama.