Rating: 3.5/5
Hooptober 4.0 | 21/31 | James Whale
Paris, 1638 Queen Anne, the wife of King Louis XIII, gives birth to two sons: Louis and Philippe. Louis XIV will become the heir to the throne. On Colbert’s advisement, the king sends Philippe to Gascony, where D’Artagnan will raise him in secret. In exchange, the king allows the people of Gascony to live there tax-free. Fouquet, a cardinal’s messenger, spies on the king’s advisors and blackmails them with knowledge of this second son to swindle his way into a higher position.
Louis XIV ascends to the throne at five years old. He develops a reputation for squandering away the kingdom’s money and oppressive ruling. Fouquet becomes Minister of Finance and aids the king in tyrannical tax policies.
1658 Louis XIV and Foquet watch an execution with delight — the executed person could not pay the demanded taxes. In Gascony, D’Artagnan and his people refuse to pay the taxes, citing their agreement with Louis XIII. Though Fouquet keeps the secret of Philippe, he intends to use the circumstances to hang Philippe before he discovers his royal background.
Meanwhile, Phillipe drinks and fights alongside D’Artagnan and the three musketeers. Fouquet sends soldiers to capture them. Louis learns of a plot to assassinate Louis.
Before Louis can execute Philippe, Colbert points out Philippe’s resemblance to Louis. Louis uses Philippe as a decoy and accidentally ushers in a massive upheaval.
I’m cheating a bit on this Hooptober choice — I’ve seen all of James Whale’s horror movies, so I selected this non-horror movie to watch. That said, the idea of slowly suffocating to death in an iron mask is pretty horrifying!
James Whale, being the queen he was, favored the rhetorical spars over the physical ones. The sword fights have swashbuckling air while mostly being clinking swords together.
The film is full of pomp and pageantry — elaborate costumes and lavish locales. As a result, the movie feels split in two: the romantic decadence and the adventure. The former feels more fully realized.
Louis Hayward is outstanding in playing both Louis and Philippe, making the former slimy and queer-coded and the latter blandly charming. He acts against himself in some split-screen magic.
I tried to find Peter Cushing, but I did not spot him. This was his first role!
Overall, I quite liked this! While some may find this boring, folks like me will find it quite enjoyable.