When George Arliss, playing one of his two characters in thus droll comedy, tells secretary Rene Ray that he interferes in the lives of everybody he knows, I half expected him to tell her that he did that in all his movies. He did that as Disraeli. He did that as Alexander Hamilton. He did that as both Voltaire and as Cardinal Richilue. And of course, he did that as all his fictional characters as well.
Nearing the end of his acting career (which he ended to tend to his ailing wife), he does that here, both as a British lord and as his twin brother, looking quite different thanks to the art of makeup. But here, he's protecting the life of the man wrongly accused of murdering an Arab sheik, risking war and creating conflict in parliament.
The oddly named Romilly Lunge is the innocent British man who happened to show up as the sheik lied dead on the floor, and the two assassins can be identified by the presence of an Arab style shoe found on the floor. But the killers are the ones who have made the threats against Great Britain, forcing the non lord Arliss to step in to speak for his ailing brother.
Combination Cinderella and Prisoner of Zenda, this comedy works because of Arliss's smirking charm. He knows that he's adorable, and manages a wink to the audience while trying to find him more adorable. Every small detail that goes into his attempts to impersonate his brother, hide from his secretary until ready, and accomplish his goal is greatly detailed. Combining political intrigue with comedy is up there in this fictional story as it was with his historical dramas. That means that everybody else in the cast is pretty much invisible when he's on screen, giving a lot of dramatic meat for Arliss to chew on.
Nearing the end of his acting career (which he ended to tend to his ailing wife), he does that here, both as a British lord and as his twin brother, looking quite different thanks to the art of makeup. But here, he's protecting the life of the man wrongly accused of murdering an Arab sheik, risking war and creating conflict in parliament.
The oddly named Romilly Lunge is the innocent British man who happened to show up as the sheik lied dead on the floor, and the two assassins can be identified by the presence of an Arab style shoe found on the floor. But the killers are the ones who have made the threats against Great Britain, forcing the non lord Arliss to step in to speak for his ailing brother.
Combination Cinderella and Prisoner of Zenda, this comedy works because of Arliss's smirking charm. He knows that he's adorable, and manages a wink to the audience while trying to find him more adorable. Every small detail that goes into his attempts to impersonate his brother, hide from his secretary until ready, and accomplish his goal is greatly detailed. Combining political intrigue with comedy is up there in this fictional story as it was with his historical dramas. That means that everybody else in the cast is pretty much invisible when he's on screen, giving a lot of dramatic meat for Arliss to chew on.