The Man in the Iron Mask

Director: James Whale James Whale

Overview

In this version of the Dumas classic, the title character is the rightful King of France, imprisoned by his pretender-to-the-throne twin brother. Warren William plays musketeer D'Artagnan, who rallies his now aged swashbuckling companions Porthos, Athos, and Aramis to rescue the real King, whom they have raised from infancy.

Product Details

Release Date:	02/14/2012
UPC:	0759731413428
Original Release:	1939
Rating:	NR
Source:	Henstooth Video
Presentation:	[B&W]
Language:	English
Time:	1:52:00
Sales rank:	29,360

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Louis Hayward	Louis XIV, Philippe
Joan Bennett	Maria Theresa
Warren William	D'Artagnan
Joseph Schildkraut	Fouquet
Miles Mander	Aramis
Bert Roach	Athos
Walter Kingsford	Colbert
Marion Martin	Mlle. de la Valliere
Montagu Love	Spanish Ambassador
Doris Kenyon	Queen Anne
Albert Dekker	Louis XIII
William Royle	Commandant of Bastille
Fred Cavens	Francois
Boyd Irwin	Royal High Constable
Howard Brooks	Cardinal
Sheila D'Arcy	Actor
Ian MacLaren	Valet de Chambre
Dorothy Vaughan	Woman
Emmett King	Actor,King's Chamberlain
Harry Woods	King's Officer
Bob Milasch	Actor,Torturer
Lane Chandler	Palace Guard
Peter Cushing	Second Officer
Reginald Barlow	Jean Paul
Wyndham Standing	Doctor
Sheila Darcy	Maria Theresa's Maid
D'Arcy Corrigan	Tortured Prisoner
Dwight Frye	Fouquet's Valet
Nigel de Brulier	Cardinal Richelieu
Alan Hale Jr.	Porthos

Technical Credits

George Bruce

James Whale	Director
George Bruce	Screenwriter
Howard Anderson	Special Effects
Edward Small	Producer

Editorial Reviews

Director James Whale's career and reputation had declined considerably by the end of the 1930s, but he was still more than enough of a highly-skilled craftsman to helm independent productions of this sort. The screenplay, as with most film adaptations of the Alexandre Dumas story, departs significantly from the book (which had enough twists and turns to fill several TV mini-series), mostly in the name of simplicity and maintaining the easy-to-identify heroism of the Musketeers. Even so, producer Edward Small didn't have the kind of money that MGM would have been able to put into a swashbuckler of this sort, but Whale had enough talent to make it look like he did. His clever and graceful camera moves (especially those dolly-shots) make the sets look twice as big and lavish as they ought to have, and his eye for characters and close-ups lends this movie a good level of emotional intensity, helped not a little bit by Louis Hayward's successful portrayal of a pair of identical (but emotionally and morally very different) twins. Joan Bennett's Infanta of Spain is not quite as central to the action as one would expect of the leading lady, but she makes the most of her scenes; and Warren William makes an excellent D'Artagnon, supported by Alan Hale, Miles Mander, and Bert Roach as the other aging Musketeers. And the action sequences are well-handled also, so that there is more than enough excitement to sustain the 110 minute running time. The picture is great fun and fine cinematic story-telling, with William's turn as D'Artagnon recalling both Douglas Fairbanks Sr. and John Barrymore at different points -- and at the risk of revealing too much, the last ride of the Musketeers makes for a suitably poignant and sentimental ending.