Sissi impératrice

Contemporary critics, including ones on this site may describe as "kitsch" the Sissy series (Princess of Bavaria, Queen of Hungary, and Empress Consort of the Hapsburgs). But this is unfair. Everything must be seen in its time frame, and not retrospectively. The fact is this three part series was highly successful. So much so, it has been available in subtitled video in at least three languages I speak, Spanish, French, and English, for years. Speak to any older movie goer, who was a kid in the late 50's from Buenos Aires to Montreal to Paris, and he or she will remember Sissy fondly. I have seen many tourists in Vienna using the Sissy series as their total source of references while touring this city. This movie and the others, not only provided popular entertainment, historical education, and restored pride in German speakers in the post-war period. It made an international star of Romy Schneider, while she was still in her teens! The trio of Sissy features, prominently including the installment this IMDb page describes, made between 1955 and 1957 were edited together in 1962 into a 140 minute feature. I had previously seen all three individual installments about the Elizabeth (Sissy) and Franz Josef of Austria, dubbed in Spanish. They are beautiful films, recreating the entire period of history of the romance between young Sissy, Princess of Bavaria and the young Franz Josef, from the very beginning to the period after the "Ausgleich" (establishment of the dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary). It ends on a high note, while all involved was at its peak, leaving out the all the subsequent tragic events that marred Sissy's life, and that of Franz Josef, indeed the entire Empire. While some historic details are simplified, the bulk of the story is pretty well told, despite the teenage puppy love and later melodramatic elements thrown in to please the audience, and make the most of Schneider's incomparable charm, youth and beauty. See the condensed video if you are an English speaker. In fact I believe that is your only option. The three separate films, as described on this site are available in Spanish, French, Italian, and German only to my knowledge. But the 140 minute English-dubbed version is even available in NTSC now. It is sold in the USA. I hope American Amazon.com soon offers it, hopefully once this comment appears. Enjoy it! It's a classic.

Princess Sissi pretty much follows the well known story of the Austrian monarch, with few unpredictable moments and some unwelcome comedy acts. But, overall, it isn't a bad movie and the settings were breathtaking.

I grew up with the Sissi movies and was a big fan of Romy Schneider in my youth. Later in life I researched the life of the Empress and the life of King Ludwig II a little bit more thoroughly. Of course I found out that the multiple movies made about these two popular royalties were all sugarcoated and in many aspects far from reality. This said, up to today I put on the Sissi movies to relax. I enjoy just about everything in it and like them as a fairy tale. A fairy tale with castles, kings, princesses and the wicked mother in law. I never visited Hungary and thoroughly get pleasure from the scenes showing this beautiful land. In many ways the movie is also realistic.

My father grew up under a Kaiser, so the lifestyle is not too far removed from what I experienced. Children of influential families were nearly always brought up by governesses and saw their parents only at "audiences". Duty to the Fatherland was something which was taught to everybody and of course even more so to the royalties. Marriages in high circles were always arranged and a marriage out of love practically unheard of. So the film paints also a picture of the time these people were living in.

I think the Sissi trilogy may be the only movies which stayed with me all my life.

Romy Schneider is "Sissi: The Young Empress," Empress Elisabeth of Austria, in this 1956 film, the second of the popular trilogy. Schneider was nearly 18 at the time, and absolutely beautiful and charming in the role.

I need to say here, for anyone non-European or anyone who has not spent time in Austria, Germany, Hungary, etc., Sissi was the Princess Diana of her day and in fact, remains popular. Her face is on everything from candy wrappers to pins, pocket watches, necklaces - she's everywhere. She's been the subject of musicals, countless books, TV miniseries, plays, and films.

As others have pointed out, this is an idealized story of Sissi, with lots of facts left out as well as the more negative aspects of Sissi's personality - her anorexia, for one. Here, she is still in the honeymoon phase with her husband, the Emperor Franz Josef; and she is also anxious to help to build a good relationship with Hungary.

Sissi runs into problems when she becomes pregnant with her daughter Sophie, and her mother-in-law, convinced that Sissi is too young to be a good mother, takes the child from her in order to raise her. Angry that Franz will not stand up to his mother and instead, takes her side, Sissi leaves him and returns home to her family. It's pointed out to her that she has duties as a royal that must be fulfilled.

In actuality, Sissi's mother-in-law was worse to her than shown in the film. Also, by the time she becomes Queen of Hungary, she has three children but the film only speaks of one, Sophie, who by then is deceased.

These films are incredibly popular in Europe and I believe are shown at Christmas. The color is beautiful, the costumes and furnishings are gorgeous - these films are truly a treat for the eyes.

Read up on Sissi to get the real story, and enjoy these romanticized films for what they are: Sissi-lite.

This movie continues the tall tale begun in SISSI as the adorable Imperial lovebirds move into the Schonbrunn Palace and all is hunky-dory for a year. When their daughter is born, however, up pops the Evil Mother-in-Law Trope, as Archduchess Vilma Degischer moves the baby to her wing of the palace. Maternal love cannot bear this, so Sissy flees back to Bavaria.

Will the Emperor follow? Will the Archduchess admit she's made a mistake? Will the Hungarians walk out on the Spanish Reception when they think they've been snubbed, threatening the Dual Monarchy?

Given the rough relationship of actual history to this spun-sugar confectionery, the best one can hope for is an exercise for old people tired of devastation by two World Wars talking about how it was better back in the Good Old Days. That's what one gets here in spades, with beautiful actors in beautiful clothes in beautiful settings, gemutlichkeit family relationships and beer and ham hocks at formal dinners, because under it all, that's what people really like. As a follow-up to the earlier movie, it's fine, but breaks little fresh ground on its own.