The Student Prince

Fans of Mario Lanza and operetta will find The Student Prince a treat to watch and to listen to. The Student Prince is not a faithful treatment of Romberg's operetta('mangled' is pretty apt here), but to me that didn't matter, what was more important was how The Student Prince fared on its own merits as a film and it fares very well.

It has sumptuous production values in costumes, lighting and most sets(apart from a couple of very studio bound-looking outdoor exteriors) and is shot in lavish Technicolour, so it looks pleasing. Romberg's score is stylish and whimsical and his songs wonderful, both in the operetta and in the film. In the film, the standout songs and renditions are Deep in my Heart, Dear, Serenade and the very emotional I'll Walk with God. The Student Prince also boasts some very witty dialogue, an engaging story that still resonates today and is less creaky than the story of the operetta(better than any of the stories from any of the films with Mario Lanza on screen) and the ending is heart-breaking.

Even when Lanza is not on screen(he was meant to originally star in the leading man role) and present in voice only, he still makes a great impression. Lanza had one of the most beautiful and most immediately recognisable voices for any tenor and even singer, and he sounds magnificent here as to be expected, his phrasing, vocal emotion and musicality also top-tier. Edmund Perdum had a truly daunting task replacing Lanza and then having to act to his singing voice, and he does a more than credible job with it, while stiff in demeanour at times(but that worked for the character actually) he plays the role with more likability and and charm than Lanza most likely would have done if he did it. Ann Blyth is radiant and noble as well as playing with natural spunk, her voice blending very nicely with Lanza's. Edmund Gwenn, Louis Calhern, John Williams and SZ Sakall provide seasoned support.

On the other hand, Richard Thorpe's direction is very limp and lacking inspiration in places, some scenes that came over as a little tedious as a result did cry out for a more light-footed and wittier touch, something that Vincente Minnelli would have brought if he'd been chosen. Some of the additional dialogue veers on a bit banal and corny, though most of the dialogue sparkles.

In conclusion, looks and sounds wonderful and an entertaining film. 8/10 Bethany Cox

This is a sparkling, romantic and heartwarming musical love story. Edmund Purdom makes a very charming, handsome and charismatic prince. Ann Blyth is wonderful and very beautiful as the little barmaid he falls in love with. I don't think it could have been better cast. Purdom perfectly lipsinks Mario Lanza's singing, and you are so consumed by the beautiful love story and the chemistry between Ann Blyth and Edmund Purdom, that you truly believe that it is Purdom singing. Even to this day when I hear the soundtract, I envision Purdom singing. I am a great Lanza fan and I am not one bit disappointed in this film without him. I do not believe that had Lanza done this movie it would have been as good as it is. Purdom, Lanza and Ann Blyth are all at their best in the wonderful musical.

One of the most beloved of operettas is The Student Prince and for a combination of reasons no sound film was made of it until this one in 1954. I venture to say that somewhere in North America or Europe there is some stock company giving a performance of it right now.

One of those reasons was a little thing called World War II. As Nazi Germany rose in power, stories with a German background weren't a real big sell in Hollywood. MGM which had produced a silent version of The Student Prince in 1927 with Ramon Novarro and Norma Shearer, held on to the property all that time. No doubt Louis B. Mayer thought the story perfect for either Nelson Eddy or Allan Jones. I have a recording of Jones singing Deep in My Heart and he would have been a fabulous Prince.

Edmond Purdom is the heir to the throne at mythical Karlsberg, one of the many minor kingdoms that made up the new Second Reich. It's been pointed out to the King, Louis Calhern,that Purdom lacks certain social graces and charm. The remedy suggested by Purdom's tutor Edmund Gwenn is to go to the University at Heidelberg which by coincidence is the alma mater of Gwenn.

He gets quite an education at Heidelberg including one from the innkeeper's niece played by Ann Blyth.

Of course what makes the Student Prince the classic it is are the words and music by Dorothy Donnelly and Sigmund Romberg. All the main songs of the score are retained with a few new ones added by Nicholas Brodzsky and Sammy Cahn.

Purdom's singing is of course the glorious voice of Mario Lanza who was originally supposed to do this. Lanza at the same time the film came out released an RCA Victor Red Seal album of The Student Prince which was a big hit, movie and album, reinforcing the success of the other.

Lanza was having a lot of trouble controlling his appetites for all the fleshly pleasures and was proving impossible to control. He got out of the film, but he had already taped his soundtrack singing. MGM settled with Mario with them retaining the rights to those recordings for the film. Good thing they did, because it's Lanza's singing voice as the Prince that makes this film.

If you like operetta and Mario Lanza, do not ever miss this one when it is on.

This is the only talking film version of Romberg's famous 1924 operetta--unfortunately, and it took MGM thirty years to get around to making it after they did a silent version. Although from all reports the silent version, directed by the great Ernst Lubitsch is excellent (I haven't seen it), in spite of the fact that it IS a "silent operetta", this 1954 sound version is a considerable letdown. Mario Lanza was supposed to have played the Prince, but his temper and weight problems got him fired, so the film was released with Edmund Purdom acting the role and lip-synching to Lanza's singing. Purdom is a considerably better actor than Lanza, but that's really not saying much. Ann Blyth, who does her own singing, is very good. However, the MGM adapters and screenwriters have done their dirty work. New, hopelessly bad dialogue has been added, as in the 50's remakes of "The Desert Song", "Show Boat", and "Rose Marie", but in this case the adapters have gone a few steps further. Only about half the original music (the score alone is ninety minutes long) is used; only Purdom/Lanza, Blyth, and the chorus sing, and they even filch the songs given to other characters in the stage version. Worse yet, new songs (not by Romberg and Dorothy Donnelly) have been added,and in EVERY SINGLE ONE of the original songs, only the first few lines of the lyrics have been retained----the rest have all been changed.

Audiences who are undemanding or completely unfamiliar with even a recording of the songs won't mind, but although the original lyrics weren't on the level of Hammerstein, Porter, Berlin, Ira Gershwin, Larry Hart, or Alan Jay Lerner's efforts, "Student Prince" fans will--and should---be outraged at this musical mangling.

THE STUDENT PRINCE should have been a lot better. After all, it's based on a famous operetta with music by Sigmund Romberg, features the golden voice of Mario Lanza at his singing peak, is cast with competent enough MGM players, and is filmed in glorious Technicolor.

But something happened--the uninspired Richard Thorpe was chosen to direct (Vincente Minnelli, where were you???) and the result is a tedious, slow-paced musical with stagebound sets and much of the Romberg score either missing or drastically altered with the insertion of two new songs (which, by the way, aren't bad at all). One of them, BELOVED, is sung with great feeling and style by Mario.

Lanza was at a difficult stage of his career by the time THE STUDENT PRINCE was set to roll, and his temperament and weight problems made it impossible for the studio to let him play the lead, even after he'd recorded all of the songs. EDMUND PURDOM, a relatively unknown newcomer, was given the chance to step in and, in all fairness to Purdom, it must be said that he does a commendable enough job in the acting department and does the lip-sync thing with professional results (he's right up there with Larry Parks in that department!) ANN BLYTH, never a particular favorite of mine, does her own singing with a pleasant soprano voice but is less than satisfying as the barmaid. She looks much too sophisticated and stylish for her lowly status to be believable and is rather arch and patronizing in her attitudes.

The rest of the cast isn't handed the best of material but they do workmanlike jobs with it: EDMUND GWENN, LOUIS CALHERN, JOHN ERICSON, S.Z. SAKALL and EVELYN ARDEN--but the extensive faults lie with the limp direction unable to give any luster to the proceedings. And the soundstage look for outdoor scenes doesn't help.

Worth hearing (if not watching) for Lanza alone on some delightful Romberg songs. His soundtrack recording of the music was a big seller and it's easy to understand why.