The Return of the Scarlet Pimpernel
Brief Description:
Sir Percy Blakeney, aka the Scarlet Pimpernel, has left off rescuing the French nobility from the guillotine, having promised his wife never to return to Paris. But the villainous Robespierre and his henchman are determined to get hold of Blakeney any way they can and lop off his head from crimes against France.
They lure him to France...
(From Archive)
Sequel to The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934)
Date: 1937
Genre: British action adventure romance drama thriller
Running time: 1 hour 16 minutes
Cast:
Barry K. Barnes (Sir Percy Blakeney)
Sophie Stewart (Lady Marguerite Blakeney)
Margaretta Scott (Theresia Cobarrus)
James Mason (Jean Tallien)
Francis Lister (Chauvelin)
Anthony Bushell (Sir Andrew Ffoulkes)
Patrick Barr (Lord Hastings)
David Tree (Lord Harry Denning)
John Counsell (Sir John Selton)
Henry Oscar (Robespierre)
Hugh Miller (De Calmet)
Allan Jeayes (Judge)
O.B. Clarence (De Marre)
George Merritt (Chief of Police)
Evelyn Roberts (Prince of Wales)
Ben Williams (Robespierre’s Spy)
Director: Hanns Schwarz
Production company: London Film Productions
Based on: The Scarlet Pimpernel and The Triumph of the Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Emmuska Orczy
Setting/Aesthetic/Feel: 4/5
Okay, so this setting is VERY unlike the French Revolution in the books, with all the fine dining and carriage riding and impressive tribunal. I haven’t studied the Revolution enough to say if it’s accurate to history. But given how inaccurate it is to the books, it does jar me a little. However, it fits the style of the film well and lends itself very well to the aesthetic.
ALSO. The opening music is excellent once more.
Characters: 5/5
Barry K. Barnes is the perfect follow-up to Leslie Howard as Percy Blakeney. He may be not tall enough and too slim, but he’s got the twinkle and the smile, and he also captures the personality of the fop and the mastermind perfectly. He’s also an adorable husband. ;) Sophie Stewart doesn’t make a satisfactory Marguerite at all—she’s too sweet and appealing and doll-like, and her face reminds me of Amy from Little Women. But she goes well with Barnes, so I forgive her non-Marguerite-ness. Even if she can’t pronounce a lick of French.
Anthony Bushell is back as Sir Andrew Ffoulkes AND HE’S LITERALLY PERFECT!! And Patrick Barr is a fantastic Lord Hastings. Margaretta Scott (Theresia) can’t pronounce French either but and has no Spanish accent, but I can ignore that. James Mason is fascinating as Jean Tallien (I thought it was Talleyrand the first few times I watched the film) and I absolutely loved his character. Francis Lister looks nothing like Raymond Massey but he captures the suave side of Chauvelin, which I really appreciated. Finally, Henry Oscar is a great Robespierre and Hugh Miller as De Calmet is a GREAT addition which I hope is in the books!
Plot: 5/5
This film, besides The Scarlet Pimpernel and The Triumph of the Scarlet Pimpernel, also drew inspiration from Eldorado and The Elusive Pimpernel—according to me. The plot is a mix of the first two books, but I feel there’s bits from the latter two books as well—Tallien in this film is nothing like in The Triumph of the Scarlet Pimpernel but he is presented rather like Armand from Eldorado, although Theresia is nothing like Jeanne Lange or Désirée Candielle from Eldorado and The Elusive Pimpernel. And maybe there’s a bit of I Will Repay in here as well?
But I like how their version of Marguerite getting caught is similar to the books, yet different… Also Marguerite being pregnant is PRECIOUS and I hope that happens in the books. Anywho. Like The Elusive Pimpernel, this film mirrors The Scarlet Pimpernel while still being quite different, and I loved that. The society scenes are epic, the humour is good, the disguising and spying in Paris is awesome—I didn’t recognize Percy & Andrew at the trial for the first few times!—and finally the ending is super cool. It’s highly inaccurate to reality and slightly to the books but it’s fascinating and done really well. So much action and music and excitement!
But the scene where Lord Hastings tries to convince Marguerite to believe Percy makes me sad, because why didn’t she trust him and obey him? It would have saved so much heartache. Why couldn’t she have been caught a different way? </3
Oh, and the tribunal scene is epic. I need more stirring tribunal speeches in films. ;P
Romance: 5/5
Marguerite & Percy are adorable again. ;) And I love seeing Percy working so hard to save Marguerite and feeling all the emotions, haha.
Content: 4/5 (low)
A few instances of language; a low-necked dress (hardly noticeable because of the black & white of the film); some drinking; kissing & hugging between Percy & Marguerite and Tallien + Theresia.
Violence: 5/5 (low)
Mostly off-screen fighting.
Overall: 5/5
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