Kino has released on Blu-ray one of director James Whale's rarest titles: the 1933 Universal light romantic comedy BY CANDLELIGHT.
Josef (Paul Lukas) is the butler to a playboy European prince (Nils Asther). Josef tries to emulate his master's ladykiller ways by wooing a beautiful woman named Marie (Elissa Landi) that he meets on a train. Josef poses as the prince while with Marie, because he thinks she's a countess--but she's actually a maid. Various complications and misunderstandings ensue until the couple finally learns and accepts the truth about one another.
BY CANDLELIGHT feels more like a Ernst Lubitsch film made at Paramount than a James Whale film made at Universal. It has a very European atmosphere to it (the three main stars were born on that continent), and the movie is filled with elegant drawing rooms, tuxedo-wearing gentlemen, and evening-gowned ladies. Needless to say, there's no ordinary working-class folk to be found in this tale....but the quirky English eccentrics one usually finds in a film directed by James Whale are missing as well.
There's not much of a story here--Paul Lukas and Elissa Landi dominate the film--but thankfully they are both appealing enough to pull it off. (I do have to say that from my perspective Landi seemed more comfortable with this material than Lukas did.) The movie only runs 72 minutes, which is good, since the slight plot would have worn out its welcome if it had gone on longer. It helps that Whale keeps the pace up, and from time to time the director and cinematographer John Mescall spice things up with a few notable shot compositions.
According to James Curtis' excellent biography of Whale, this production was actually begun with Robert Wyler (brother of William) as director. Universal induced Whale to take over the project. Whale started from scratch, deciding not to use any footage already shot. BY CANDLELIGHT may not have been initiated by Whale, but he truly made it "his" film, stamping it with his distinctive sensibility.
According to Kino, for this Region A Blu-ray release Universal Pictures restored BY CANDLELIGHT in 4K from 35mm original film elements. I have to say that the picture quality is stunning--this is one of the best looking (and sounding) films from this period that I have seen presented on Blu-ray. It makes me wonder what other unearthed treasures Kino and Universal might have for us in the future.
The main extra on this disc is a brand new commentary by Troy Howarth. Troy's talks are always well-paced and informative, but here he provides much welcome analysis on James Whale's directorial style and overall career. A few trailers for other films from the 1930s released by Kino are also included.
I wouldn't rate BY CANDLELIGHT as one of James Whale's best films, but it is a diverting light comedy that will best be appreciated by lovers of 1930s Hollywood. (I must say to those who are expecting this film to have all sorts of ties to Whale's famous horror films...there really isn't any.) James Whale's non-horror films have been sorely under-represented on home video, and here's hoping that Kino and Universal have more of them on the way. What really sets this disc apart is the magnificent restoration of the film and the audio commentary.
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