IMDb > The Smiling Lieutenant (1931)
The Smiling Lieutenant
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The Smiling Lieutenant (1931) More at IMDbPro »


Overview

User Rating:
8.2/10   1,315 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 15% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Ernst Lubitsch
Writers:
Leopold Jacobson (operetta) and
Felix Dormann (operetta) ...
more
Contact:
View company contact information for The Smiling Lieutenant on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
1 August 1931 (USA) more
Genre:
Comedy | Romance | Musical more
Plot:
Lieutenant Niki of the Austrian royal guard has a new girlfriend, Franzi. He's crazy about her, and is smiling at her while on duty in the street... more | add synopsis
Plot Keywords:
more
Awards:
Nominated for Oscar. more
NewsDesk:
"Kilometre Zero," "Lubitsch Musicals"
 (From IFC. 4 March 2008, 4:00 AM, PST)

User Comments:
Sublime, and almost immoral. more (17 total)

Cast

  (Complete credited cast)

Maurice Chevalier ... Lt. Nikolaus 'Niki' von Preyn

Claudette Colbert ... Franzi
Miriam Hopkins ... Princess Anna
Charles Ruggles ... Max (as Charlie Ruggles)
George Barbier ... King Adolf XV
Hugh O'Connell ... Niki's Orderly
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Runtime:
89 min (cut version) | 93 min (original version)
Country:
USA
Language:
French | English
Aspect Ratio:
1.20 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Noiseless Recording)
Certification:
USA:Passed (National Board of Review)

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
A French version with dialogue and lyrics by 'Henri Bataille (II)' was shown in New York on 15 October 1931, and was also a big hit in Paris. It had the same three leading actors and probably was a dubbed English print. more
Goofs:
Revealing mistakes: In the latter part of the movie Chevalier bounds up a grand staircase painted to appear as marble but the loud clomp-clomp-clomp of his shoes reveals it to be just wood. more
Quotes:
Franzi: Jazz up your lingerie! more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in John Loves Mary (1949) more
Soundtrack:
Ach Du Lieber Flausenthurm more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
13 out of 16 people found the following comment useful.
Sublime, and almost immoral., 28 February 2000
10/10
Author: David Atfield (bits@alphalink.com.au) from Canberra, Australia

This film is sheer perfection - the Lubitsch Touch is here in spades. This must be one of the most charming films ever made, and it is technically brilliant too for the early talkie era. A fabulous show-case for the talents of three new Paramount stars - Maurice Chevalier has never been better, Claudette Colbert is buoyant - and Miriam Hopkins is an absolute marvel as the innocent princess. When will she be given the adulation she deserves - certainly one of the best actresses of her generation. And George Barbier is also brilliant as her father.

This film could only have been made in the pre-code days - it is very very naughty. The mating pillows is only one example of many sexual innuendos and symbols. But it is all too charming to be offensive to even the most prudish person. One of the best films of the early Thirties.

Was the above comment useful to you?
more (17 total)

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