The Smiling Lieutenant

The Smiling Lieutenant

22/5/1931 1h 29m 6.9/10

Overview

An amorous lieutenant is forced to marry a socially awkward princess, though he tries to keep his violin-playing girlfriend on the side.

Director

Ernst Lubitsch

Top Billed Cast

Miriam Hopkins

Miriam Hopkins

Princess Anna

Claudette Colbert

Claudette Colbert

Franzi

Charles Ruggles

Charles Ruggles

Max

Maurice Chevalier

Maurice Chevalier

Lt. Nikolaus 'Niki' von Preyn

George Barbier

George Barbier

King Adolf XV

Hugh O'Connell

Hugh O'Connell

Niki's Orderly

Reviews

CinemaSerf

CinemaSerf

5/4/2024

7/10

How many films are you ever going to watch that have songs rhyming "liver" with "quiver" - or that quote Emperor Napoleon's last words before entering exile on Elbe - "so long!"? "Niki" (Maurice Chevalier) is a happy-go-lucky military officer in love with "Franzi" (Claudette Colbert) and all is set fair with their lives until a state visit to the Emperor by the princess "Anna" (Miriam Hopkins) lands him in hot water. He smiled at her as the carriage carrying her and her father, the King (George Barbier) passed by. His Majesty is outraged at such a diabolical liberty and si "Niki" is duly summoned. Luckily, he can think on his feet and he can also spell, so is spared death and becomes the apple of the princess's eye! Next thing, wedding bells are being readied and he is swept back to their home land of Flausenthurm a married man. "Franzi" follows and they try to keep something illicit going, but "Anna" is no fool and soon we have a sort of reverse love triangle as the two woman and their hapless hero try to work things out in quite an unusual fashion. Oscar Straus and Clifford Grey provide the musical numbers and though they are pretty unremarkable by themselves, they give the charismatic Chevalier a chance to grin quite a lot, wink now and again and for Colbert and Hopkins to shine. The humour is gently paced, and the whole thing looks like it was shot on the sound stage of the "Prisoner of Zenda". Sure, the story is a bit old hat but it has plenty of charisma to keep it going and is worth a watch.

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