Jacksonville Public Library

Alexander Korda's Private lives, A London Film Productions Limited ; ITV Global Entertainment Limited ; Janus Films ; directed by Alexander Korda, Paul Czinner

Label
Alexander Korda's Private lives, A London Film Productions Limited ; ITV Global Entertainment Limited ; Janus Films ; directed by Alexander Korda, Paul Czinner
Language
eng
Characteristic
videorecording
Intended audience
Not rated
Main title
Alexander Korda's Private lives
Medium
videorecording
Oclc number
320966223
Responsibility statement
A London Film Productions Limited ; ITV Global Entertainment Limited ; Janus Films ; directed by Alexander Korda, Paul Czinner
Runtime
http://bibfra.me/vocab/marc/unknown
Series statement
Eclipse, Alexander Korda's Private Lives, Series 16
Summary
Though born to modest means in Hungary, Alexander Korda would go on to become one of the most important filmmakers in the history of British cinema. A producer, writer, and director who navigated toward subjects of major historical significance and mythical distinction, Korda made a name for his production company, London Films, with the Oscar-winning The Private Life of Henry VIII. He then continued his populist investigation behind the scenes and in the bedrooms of such figures as Catherine the Great, Don Juan, and Rembrandt. Mixing stately period drama with surprising satire, these films are exemplars of grand 1930s moviemaking. The Private Life of Henry VIII: Charles Laughton gulps beer and chomps on mutton, in his first of many iconic screen roles, as King Henry VIII, the ultimate anti-husband. Alexander Korda's first major international success is a raucous, entertaining, even poignant peek into the boudoirs of the infamous king and his six wives. The Rise of Catherine the Great: A quick-witted and compelling dramatization of the troubled marriage of Catherine II (played by German actress Elisabeth Bergner, in her English-language debut) to Peter III (a randy Douglas Fairbanks Jr.) and her subsequent ascension to the throne as Empress of Russia. The Private Life of Don Juan: Douglas Fairbanks Sr. makes his big-screen swan song with Korda's deliciously satiric deflation of the Don Juan myth. After having faked his own death and escaped Seville, the aging lothario returns, only to find that he has been forgotten; perhaps Merle Oberon's beauty can coax him back. Rembrandt: Charles Laughton once again teams up with Korda for this moving, elegantly shot biopic about the Dutch painter. Beginning when Rembrandt's reputation was at its height, the film then tracks his quiet descent into loneliness and isolated self-expression
Target audience
general
Technique
live action
resource.variantTitle
Private lives
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