Romanoff et Juliette

I first saw this movie in a theater when I was 7. Since then I have watched all or part of the movie more than 20 times. Peter Ustinov is marvelous in this very amusing little film about life and love in a micro-nation in central Europe. Along with the tiny nation of Grand Fenwick (see The Mouse That Roared), Concordia stands as a testimate that bigger nations with more money and higher educations are not necessarily happier or more grounded in reality. Nor that they can wirld their power any more wisely.

This is, of course, a takeoff on Romeo and Juliet (by some English writer or so I hear). This time the Romeo (Romanoff) is son of the Soviet Ambassador to Concordia while Juliet is daughter of his American counterpart. Ustinov is the leader of Concordia with more than a touch of mischief and Cupid in his soul. His character is an observer of people and he knows what makes us "tick."

The scenes where he is going back and forth between the two Ambassodors, playing each against the other, is beautiful and very funny.

Notable in this is the appearance of a young Peter Jones, later to be famous as the voice of the book in Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy, and of John Gavin, then an actor and later an Americal Ambassador himself.

If you are looking for a grandious movie with almost-too-clever-for-its-own-good dialog and huge sets and even extras that don't look at the camera, then you will not like this one. But, if you too have a soft spot for romance, like Peter Ustinov movies (he wrote and directed as well as starred in this) and don't mind having a somewhat haunting musical melody running through you head after seeing this, then get this or tape it on one of the movie channels.

Peter Ustinov is the creative genius behind Romanoff And Juliet which from what I can see doesn't borrow too much from the Bard other than a title and a boy and girl from opposing clans falling in love. The rest is original Ustinov.

Written by him the play has only one set, the village square of the capital of Concordia, smallest country in Europe, on the order of Lichtenstein or San Marino. They've been forgotten by the rest of the world until the big powers need their vote in the UN.

A love offensive is what Ustinov launches trying to get together the son of the Russian ambassador and the daughter of the American ambassador hitched. As the Captain and Tenille sang, 'love can bring us together'.

Some nice barbs about the Cold War and some of the absurdities of the times flavor the script. One could get a lesson in the period from this work.

Romanoff And Juliet ran first on the London stage and then for 389 performances during 1957-58 on Broadway. Of course Ustinov appeared on stage as well.

Some criticize Sandra Dee for being cast. It's obvious it is done for box office and Dee has little to do but be pretty.

She's pretty good at that and Romanoff And Juliet is still fresh as it was in the 50s.

Romanoff and Juliet is one of the best movies I've seen, and had me laughing out loud most of the time. It is both a lighthearted comedy and an excellent satire of both the US and the Soviet Union. A very intelligent and deep satire, at that, which gets just about everything right. Peter Ustinov is very likeable and extremely funny in his role, but so are all the other actors. A true gem. 10/10

We live in a world where politics and agendas influence every facet of our lives. This gentle satire isn't just one about the Cold War, it's about diplomacy in any age at any time.

Ustinov had a unique sense of humor which is evident in this movie. What makes it special is that there is an overwhelming sense of romance in the film too. The running gag line in the movie (we/they know they/we know we/they know their code) comes to my mind in nearly every espionage film I see. I always want to turn to friends and say the line, but as this film has had such limited exposure in the last few decades, I know no one else will get the joke.

Why isn't this movie available on DVD???

Very fond memories of Peter Ustinov getting more and more soused as he's bustling between embassies trying to figure out what the US and USSR are trying to do to his country! He is delightful and the movie's message is sweet. Most memorable, though, is the soundtrack with one haunting tune that I can hear as clearly now as decades ago when I last saw this film. How I wish it were on DVD!

Not nearly as biting as "The Mouse that Roared," though the era and theme are quite similar. "Romeo and Juliet" cried out to be used as a Cold War motif, and this does a very nice job of it, with a much more satisfying ending (if I may say so).