Lola Montès **** (1955, Martine Carol, Peter Ustinov, Anton Walbrook) – Classic Movie Review 6190

Director Max Ophüls creates one of his most poignant works in this 1955 film fantasia on the life of the celebrated Irish dancer, courtesan and femme fatale Lola Montès (1821–1861).

As Lola, Martine Carol provides beauty if not sparkle, while Peter Ustinov’s circus ringmaster character introduces flashbacks about how she fell in love with King Ludwig I of Bavaria (Anton Walbrook), the composer Franz Liszt (Will Quadflieg) and a handsome student (Oskar Werner).

But the film’s true ringmaster is Ophüls who, in his final film, once again shows his mastery of the camera and elegant storytelling.

It is a French production, with dialogue mostly in French and German, and a few English language sequences. The most expensive European film produced up to that time, alas it was an expensive flop. It originally ran 140 minutes but a much cut (110 minute) version circulated abroad. The use of flashbacks was criticised on release and the producers re-cut the film and shortened it with a more chronological story line, against the director’s wishes.

Christian Matras’s lovely CinemaScope cinematography format begs for a theatrical showing.

Also in the cast are Ivan Desny as Lt. Thomas James, Claude Pinoteau as conductor Claudio Pirotto. Henri Guisol as Horseman Maurice, Lise Delamare as Mrs Craigie, Lola’s mother, and Paulette Dubost as Josephine, Lola’s maid.

It is written by Ophüls, Annette Wademant and Franz Geiger, based on the novel La vie extraordinaire de Lola Montès by Cécil Saint Laurent, and scored by Georges Auric.

It was filmed in Paris, Nice and Munich.

It was restored in 1968 and finally fully in 2008, and was released on DVD and Blu-ray in North America by The Criterion Collection in February 2010.

© Derek Winnert 2017 Classic Movie Review 6190

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Ludwig I, king of Bavaria from 1825 until 1848.