The Guardsman (1931)

Director:

Sidney Franklin

Writers:

Ferenc Molnár (play)
Ernest Vajda (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

7 November 1931 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama

Plot:

An acclaimed actor and his equally acclaimed actress wife, who have been married for less than a year...

Plot Keywords:

Actor | Russian | Actress | Marriage | Infidelity

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Oscars.

Cast

Alfred Lunt	...	The Actor
Lynn Fontanne	...	The Actress
Roland Young	...	Bernhardt the Critic
Zasu Pitts	...	Liesl, the Maid
Maude Eburne	...	Mama
Herman Bing	...	A Creditor
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Ann Dvorak	...	Fan Saying 'There He Is' (uncredited)
Michael Mark	...	The Actor's Valet (uncredited)

Directed by
Sidney Franklin

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Maxwell Anderson		excerpt from play "Elizabeth the Queen" (uncredited)
Ferenc Molnár		play "A testör" (as Ferenc Molnar)
Ernest Vajda		screenplay
Claudine West		continuity

Produced by
Albert Lewin	....	producer (uncredited)
Irving Thalberg	....	producer (uncredited)

Cinematography by
Norbert Brodine

Film Editing by
Conrad A. Nervig

Art Direction by
Cedric Gibbons

Costume Design by
Adrian		(gowns)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Harold S. Bucquet	....	assistant director (uncredited)

Sound Department
Douglas Shearer	....	recording director

Other crew
Albert Lewin	....	supervisor (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (controlled by Loew's Inc.)

Distributors

• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) (1931) (USA) (theatrical)

Other Companies

• Theatre Guild  presented by courtesy of

Runtime:

82 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #1972-R, 17 January 1936 for re-release) | USA:Passed (National Board of Review)

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

The play from which a scene is shown at the beginning of the film is Maxwell Anderson's "Elizabeth the Queen", in which we see Lynn Fontanne and Alfred Lunt recreating the roles of Queen Elizabeth I and Lord Essex, which they had played on Broadway in the actual original production of "Elizabeth the Queen" the year before.

Quotes:

[the Creditor has seen through the Actor's disguise]
A Creditor: Your own mother might not know you. Your own wife might not know you. And you might put on all the uniforms and all the whiskers and all the wigs in the world. But, as long as you owe me money, I would know you.

Movie Connections:

Remake of Der Gardeoffizier (1925)

A Classic in Every Regard

Many people seem to regard this film as important simply because it is a living testament to Alfred Lunt and Lynne Fontaine's acting. After all, it is the only preserved sound performance in which they have starring roles. In reality, however, the film is not only historically important because of the legends in it; it is one of the most fresh and funny films to emerge from the pre-Code period. The story is irresistible: a vain acting couple constantly insult and tease one another. In order to test his wife's fidelity after a bout, the Actor (Lunt) disguises himself as a foreign guardsman, goes out of his way to meet his wife in disguise, and furthermore goes on to try and seduce her. After he succeeds, he reveals himself, furious at her perfidious attitude. The Actress (Fontaine) begins laughing, claiming that she knew all along. At first dubious, the Actor is eventually convinced that his wife was playing along with him, and the two romantically embrace. The Actress looks at the camera and gives the most priceless look, letting the audience know that she may not have really known all along... Lunt and Fontanne make this film come to life. There dominating presence creates a satirical and realistic portrait of what an egomaniacal acting couple's life might really be like.

In addition, there are some priceless supporting roles: Maude Ebourne as a sarcastic maid, Zasu Pitts as a strange (to say the least) servant, Roland Young, and always-reliable Herman Bing as "a creditor." Sidney Franklin, perhaps the most unjustly forgotten of all screen directors (his classics include Private Lives, Smilin' Through, The Good Earth, The Barretts of Wimpole Street, and The Dark Angel), adroitly guides the ensemble, allowing the acting to take center-stage but never neglecting the details so important to cinema. In all, this short, fast-paced romp with two bona fide legends of American stage history is an essential lesson in screen comedy and romance. Although the Lunts, when asked to do later film work, replied "We can be bought but we can't be bored!" there is absolutely no sign of unenthusiasm on screen here. Each earned an Oscar nomination for their performance in The Guardsman, and they left their indelible stamp, albeit only for a short eighty some-odd minutes, on American motion picture history.