JohnHowardReid Producer: George Arliss. Copyright 8 October 1929 by Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc. New York opening at the Warner's Theatre, 2 October 1929. 9 reels. 8,044 feet. 89 minutes. (Available on an excellent Warner DVD).SYNOPSIS: Disraeli buys the Suez Canal.NOTES: Prestigious Hollywood award, Best Actor, George Arliss (defeating himself in The Green Goddess, Wallace Beery in The Big House, Maurice Chevalier in The Big Pond and also in The Love Parade, Ronald Colman in Bulldog Drummond and also in Condemned, and Lawrence Tibbett in The Rogue Song).Also nominated for Best Picture (won by All Quiet On the Western Front); Best Writing (won by Frances Marion for The Big House). Best Film of 1929 — Film Daily poll of U.S. film critics. Best Film of 1929 — Photoplay Gold Medal Award (voted by the U.S. public). Best Talking Film of 1929 — Mordaunt Hall in The New York Times.Re-make of 1921 silent movie, also starring George Arliss.COMMENT: Very much a film of its period. There is no camera movement at all except for a slight pan when one of the players is slightly off-center in the middle of a shot, the film being lensed from the restrictive sound booth. The director has tried to give the camera the appearance of movement by sharp inter-cutting between long shots and close-ups, especially in the early part of the film, but the copious use of sub-titles often defeat his efforts.Arliss is introduced in much the same manner as in the later House of Rothschild (and there is even the same business with the flower) but it is not until the play itself starts (and the film is really not much more than a photographed stage play) that the film really grips, thanks almost entirely to the grand dramatic opportunities the script gives Arliss and the way he seizes them with force and power.Miss Bennett looks old in her introductory scenes but she is lit and costumed more attractively as the film progresses. Bushell has a part right up his street and the support players are uniformly competent.Of course, the script is almost entire pure fiction — but don't let that worry you — Arliss turns it into grand entertainment.

edwagreen Story of how British Prime Minister, Benjamin Disraeli, outwitted the Russians and was able to purchase the Suez Canal.Arliss won the Oscar for best actor. He was the first Jewish person to win the Academy Award. (I know the Oscars had been business for a mere 2 years.)Arliss showed comedic gifts in his Oscar-winning performance. His stalwart behavior in defense of England will always be an endearing quality. He was ably supported by his wife, Florence, and especially by Russian spy, Doris Lloyd. Joan Bennett did fine in her part of the girlfriend of an aide to Disraeli.Unfortunately, Vitograph's sound has not withstood the passing years. The film needs to be preserved with sound improvement.There are overtones of anti-Semitism in the film. It is never explained how Disraeli was able to outmaneuver Gladstone for the Prime Minister's position.The ending is really a miracle at its nicest.

calvinnme This is one of the few very early talkies that is neither a musical nor an overly dull stage production. It is a fascinating look into a very brief episode in the professional life of British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli - specifically his effort in obtaining the Suez Canal for Great Britain. Arliss gives a well-deserved Academy Award winning performance as the prime minister, and he is so adept at dialogue and with conveying his mood with glances and small gestures and the pace of the film is so brisk that you hardly notice the 1929 movie camera that cannot budge an inch. In this short 90 minute film Disraeli plays matchmaker, mentor, breaker of a spy ring, and master dealmaker with a sophistication of dialogue and acting that is rarely seen in films for another ten years. Particularly moving is the portrayal of Disraeli's relationship with his wife, played by Arliss' actual wife to whom he was wed in 1899 until his death. The mutual respect and tenderness the couple show for one another is quite touching.The audio and video of the VHS version of this film is really in bad shape. There is very bad background hissing in the audio which can make the dialogue - so important to the development of the plot - sometimes difficult to understand. The video doesn't have much scratchiness to it, but there are periods of time when blurry areas will appear on the screen that can be quite distracting, and the contrast is quite poor. However, this film is quite enjoyable 80 years after it was made. Seeing that it is much more than a rickety curio, it would be nice to see Warner Home Video clean up the film technically as much as is possible and put it on DVD.

Bucs1960 Don't be put off by the age of this film....it is magnificent. And the reason is George Arliss! This is his show and his alone. Granted, the film is talky and basically uses 2 sets BUT listen to the dialogue and watch Mr. Arliss spin his magic as he immerses himself in the Benjamin Disraeli character. Bringing his stage interpretation to the screen, it translates surprisingly well......that is not always the case in screen adaptations. What a fantastic face he had....certainly not pretty but very expressive. He won a well deserved Oscar for this role. He had a string of movies in late silent and early talking films and now, unfortunately, he seems to be forgotten except by us film buffs who treasure him. So if you wish to be entranced by the acting skills of a master, see this film. You won't regret it!