The Swan (film)

Infobox Film
name = The Swan


caption =
director = Charles Vidor
producer = Dore Schary
writer = John Dighton
Ferenc Molnar (play)
starring = Grace Kelly
Alec Guinness
Louis Jourdan
Jessie Royce Landis
Estelle Winwood
Brian Aherne
Agnes Moorehead
music = Bronislau Kaper
cinematography = Joseph Ruttenberg
Robert Surtees
editing = John D. Dunning
distributor = MGM
released = flagicon|USA 26 April 1956
runtime = 104 min
country = USA United States
awards =
language = English
budget =
preceded_by =
followed_by =
amg_id =
imdb_id = 0049815

"The Swan" is a 1956 remake by MGM of a 1925 film (also remade in 1930 as "One Romantic Night"). The film is a romantic comedy directed by Charles Vidor, produced by Dore Schary from a screenplay by John Dighton based on the play by Ferenc Molnár. The original music score was by Bronislau Kaper, the cinematography by Joseph Ruttenberg and Robert Surtees, the art direction by Randall Duell and Cedric Gibbons and the costume design by Helen Rose.

The film stars Grace Kelly, Alec Guinness and Louis Jourdan with Agnes Moorehead, Jessie Royce Landis, Brian Aherne, Leo G. Carroll, Estelle Winwood and Robert Coote.

Plot

The film deals with the story of the daughter of a minor branch of a European royal house who is being considered as a wife for her cousin, the heir to the throne.

Princess Alexandra (Grace Kelly) is the princess, her cousin the crown prince, Albert, is played by Alec Guinness, and her brothers' tutor, a commoner for whom she thinks she may feel more affection than she does for the prince, is played by Louis Jourdan.

The princess's relatives — played by Jessie Royce Landis, Estelle Winwood, and Brian Aherne — are comically eccentric, and Agnes Moorehead, as the queen who shows up near the end to find out if the princess has made the grade, is crankily imperious. Leo G. Carroll plays their butler. Van Dyke Parks also appears in this movie.

Princess Alexandra is urged by her mother to accept Albert so that their family may regain a throne that was taken from them by Napoleon. Princess Alexandra tries to gain Albert's attention; he is otherwise taken with sleeping late, shooting duck and playing football with Alexandra's two younger brothers. Alexandra's mother urges her to show interest in the tutor, Mr. Agi, to make Albert jealous and stimulate a proposal from him.

Agi is already taken with Alexandra and when she invites him to the farewell ball for the crown prince he eagerly accepts. Later when they are dancing at the ball it appears that Albert is getting jealous but instead he is more interested in playing the bass in the orchestra.

Later, Agi tells Alexandra how he feels about her. She tells him that it was all a ploy to get Albert to propose to her and she suspected he felt this way. She realizes that she has some feelings for him but he refuses her. Albert comes to find out about this situation and is a little taken aback. Albert and Agi trade insults. Agi then storms out and tries to leave the next morning.

Alexandra, distraught over what happened, tries to leave with him, but he refuses her again. Albert's mother shows up and gets the entire story and is aghast. Albert gives his blessing to the pair and says that when he is king he will allow them back into the country. However, Agi ends up leaving the mansion without Alexandra.

Albert tries to console Alexandra by telling her she is like a swan: on the water she looks serene, but on land she is more like a goose. Albert then offers Alexandra his arm and they walk back into the mansion together.

Background and production notes

The play on which the film is based is "A Hattyú, Vígjáték Három Felvonásban" ("The Swan") by Ferenc Molnár (Budapest, 1914), and the play "The Swan" , translated and adapted by Melville C. Baker. The original Broadway production opened at the Cort Theatre, New York, on 23 October 1923 and ran for 255 performances. Leading the cast were Eva LeGallienne, Philip Merivale, Basil Rathbone and Alison Skipworth.

The role of Prince Albert was originally offered to Rex Harrison, then to Joseph Cotten, before being given to Alec Guinness, whose first American film this was.

Grace Kelly had previously appeared in the CBS television production of "The Swan" on 9 June 1950.

The film was shot on location in North Carolina, at the 1895 Biltmore Estate of George W. Vanderbilt in Asheville and at Lake Junaluska.

MGM held the release of "The Swan" to correspond with the wedding day of Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier of Monaco, on 18 April 1956.

Other versions

* The 1925 silent film with the same title was directed by Dimitri Buchowetzki and starred Frances Howard as Princess Alexandra and Adolphe Menjou as Crown Prince Albert.
* "One Romantic Night" (1930) starred Lillian Gish as Princess Alexandra and Rod La Rocque as Prince Albert, with Conrad Nagel as the tutor. It was directed by Paul Stein (no relation to the accordionist). This version was adapted from "The Swan" by Maxwell Anderson, a noted playwright himself.

Original Broadway Production

The original Broadway production of "The Swan" opened on Broadway in 1923, with Eva Le Gallienne as Princess Alexandra, Philip Merivale as Prince Albert, and Basil Rathbone as the tutor.

External links

*imdb title|id=0049815|title=The Swan