Ivanhoe

"Ivanhoe," filmed in bright techicolor was nominated for best picture in 1952.

Miklos Rosza again provides us with a major musical score. I always felt that his scores, so rich in textures, would be a prelude to his Oscar-winning score in "Ben-Hur." (1959)

The film deals with the ongoing fight between the Anglo-Saxons and Normans, the latter having ruled England since the infamous Battle of Hastings in 1066. While fighting in the crusades, Richard the Lionhearted has been kidnapped and held captive in Austria. This has been done with the help of the Austrian emperor Leopold and Prince John, Richard's evil brother, who assumes the throne in his brother's absence.

I laughed at the beginning of the film when Robert Taylor, who plays Ivanhoe, loyal to Richard, asks someone for a translation as he doesn't read Austrian. Didn't they mean German? While it is true that Germany did not become a unified country until 1871 following the Franco-Prussian war, the dialect spoken in the entire region was German.

Taylor rallies to the aid of his people. Hurt, he is given refuge by the Jewess Rebecca, played with warmth and skill by Elizabeth Taylor. Her father, Isaac the Jew, played by the always serious Felix Aylmer, promises to help pay the ransom for Richard so that his people can have religious toleration in England. Naturally, Rebecca loves Ivanhoe but so does Lady Rowena played by a much reserved Joan Fontaine. Her guardian, the father of Ivanhoe in the film, is portrayed by Finlay Currie, who played in numerous bible films.

The Technicolor and cinematography are breathtaking in the film.

A story of love and devotion, especially that of George Sanders, who sacrifices all for Rebecca.

I can't comment on the film as an adaption but I did find that it was quite entertaining standing alone. Some have criticized Robert Taylor for being too stiff, but I found him to be suitably formal and chivalrous. Elizabeth Taylor and Joan Fontaine both provided ample glamour and grace to their roles. They are also both very photogenic to say the least. The performance of George Sanders intrigued me the most. Though a villain, he actually became more sympathetic to me as the movie progressed. The relationship of the four major characters was what kept me interested. Although I am sure it took careful planning and execution (and a lot of extras) to stage the fight scenes, I actually thought they were quite perfunctory. Solid if not spectacular, 7/10.

An engrossing movie about 12th century England. It has everything you would want to see in a movie about medieval Europe: knights, fair maidens, jousting tournaments, battles, and feuding crowns. Yet the movie is not boring in any way. I enjoyed every minute of it. The title character is an Anglo-Saxon knight who's on a mission to return the imprisoned king, Richard the Lionhearted, to his throne. Along the way, Ivanhoe encounters some obstacles that may endanger his own life and threaten the future of England. Everything about this movie is enchanting. The movie is very colorful, the score is outstanding, and it's exciting to watch the battle scenes. I really enjoyed seeing one of my favorite actors, George Sanders, playing yet another villain. It was also great to see the always ravishing Elizabeth Taylor (at a very young age), who plays a jewish maiden. I liked the way the movie demonstrated the persecution of jews living in England at the time, and how they were looked down upon in spite of the different ethnic groups that made up the English population. Above all, I really liked the ending--it was awesome. Interestingly, this movie (which is from 1952) is more entertaining than and not as theatrical as some of the historical dramas that were made AFTER this movie.

It was in this film that the legendary stuntman, Paddy Ryan, did a spectacular fall into an amazingly small amount of water. I started working in the UK in 1960 and there was still talk among casts and crews of Paddy's famous fall. I met Paddy a few times and asked him about the stunt dive. He said it was no big deal. He remembered being asked by some publicist why he did such dangerous things. He replied that he looked down from the great height, imagined he saw his pay check lying there, and took off! I suggested that he should write his memoirs. He said he had started and had spent a long time writing it all out by hand and had almost finished when his manuscript was stolen from, if I remember correctly, his car. He said he was too fed up to sit down and do it all again. What a loss!

The basic plot:Ivanhoe tries to restore the throne to Richard the Lionhearted and away from his Evil brother John,who isn't very cool about that idea.

The praise:A big,glamorous,technicolor,adventure movie,(this is one of those films that's a movie,not a film).Suspenseful,action -packed plot has romance in terms of the jewish Rebbeca(Elizabeth Taylor),with thick jewish eyebrows,and the Lady Rowena(Joan Fontaine),a blonde.Just the right mix of perfectly staged ,suspenseful,action-packed raids,battles,jousts and trials,combined with romance,comic-relief, and Ivanhoe(Robert Taylor) himself. Miles of on location scenery.

The flaws:Too minor to quibble about.