Disraeli

Plot synopsis:
In 1874, Disraeli's ambitious foreign policy, aimed at creating a British empire, is voted down by the House of Commons after a speech by his great rival, William Gladstone. Later, Disraeli receives the welcome news that the spendthrift Khedive of Egypt is in dire need of money and is willing to sell the controlling shares in the Suez Canal. The purchase of the canal would secure control of India, but Michael Probert, head of the Bank of England, makes it clear to Disraeli that he is vehemently opposed to any such plan. Disraeli then summons Hugh Myers, a leading Jewish banker.
Meanwhile, Lord Charles Deeford proposes to Lady Clarissa Pevensey. Although she is in love with him, she turns him down. He is content to enjoy his wealth and high social standing, and lacks the ambition she wants in a husband; further, she is a great admirer of the Prime Minister and Charles has no strong opinion about him. Disraeli, seeing promise in the young man and wanting Clarissa to be happy, convinces Charles to come work for him, and tells him about the canal purchase.
But he does not tell him about the spies. Russia, eager to seize India for itself, has assigned two spies to watch Disraeli: Mrs. Travers, who has entree to the highest social circles, and Mr. Foljambe. Disraeli was not fooled; he has hired Foljambe as his personal government secretary, the better to deceive him. When Foljambe asks Charles if Myers is there to provide financial backing for the purchase of the canal, Charles says nothing, but his manner makes it clear that Foljambe has guessed correctly. Mrs. Travers orders Foljambe to leave the country and warn their masters.
Disraeli soon discovers what has happened. When he decides to send an agent to the khedive immediately, Clarissa suggests he send Charles. Charles persuades the khedive to accept Myers' check in exchange for the shares, also proving his own worth to Clarissa.
Disraeli is elated when he receives the news. However, Myers comes and informs him that his banking house has been driven into bankruptcy by sabotage; the check is worthless. Disraeli tells him to keep his situation secret for the moment. When the prying Mrs. Travers arrives, Disraeli allows her to learn of the purchase, and she exultantly admits to her key part in sabotaging Myers.
Thinking quickly, Disraeli summons Probert. Though the banker initially refuses to help, Disraeli forces him to sign a paper giving unlimited credit to Myers by threatening to have Parliament revoke the bank's charter. (After Probert leaves, Disraeli confesses to his wife and Clarissa that he was bluffing.) Myers' solvency is restored, the deal is completed, and as a result of Disraeli's success, Queen Victoria can add Empress of India to her other titles.

Tags: historical

Review:
George Arliss at 61, Joan Bennett at 19.
The speaker is British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, played by George Arliss.
Disraeli was a clever and ambitious politician, heartily disliked by a great section of the English ruling class because his background was Jewish, "not one of us, you know," cleverer than anyone, and with a vision of British imperial destiny that encouraged many and made many more nervous.
George Arliss was as much a film phenomenon as Dizzy was a political marvel.
Arliss gained a great stage reputation in England, came to America and repeated the trick on Broadway, made a handful of silent films to acclaim and, with his first talking movie, this one, won an Academy Award for best actor.
With a commanding acting style and diction as precise as an accountant's penmanship, Arliss is definitely old school by today's standards.
From Disraeli in 1929 to his last movie, Dr. Syn, in 1937 when he was 69, he became the most successful older actor Hollywood has ever seen, before or since.
His wife had played opposite him in a number of his stage and film vehicles.
He played the drama many times on stage and again in a silent version.
It's the story of Disraeli's determination to secure ownership of the Suez Canal for Britain.
Still, Arliss gives his man so much charm and wit, so much cleverness and power that the movie becomes something more than an artifact.
One of George Arliss's best known stage roles was portraying the title role in the Louis N.
This is not a biographical film per se, it fictionalizes Disraeli's acquiring the Suez Canal.
It was quite the diplomatic coup d'etat in its day, but this version brings in a lovely lady spy in Doris Lloyd in the service Czarist Russia.Throughout the 19th century it was a paradigm of British foreign policy that the Russians were constantly looking to undermine British interests in India.
The same theme was found in Rudyard Kipling's Kim.In this film Disraeli has an opportunity to acquire the canal from the Egyptians and the French company that built it which has financially gone belly up.
He goes to a private banker Harry Meyers (Rothschild)played by Ivan Simpson for the money.A lot of games, financial and political, get played out before foxy old Benjamin Disraeli gains the canal for the United Kingdom.
Dizzy proves quite up to the challenge at the same time worried about the health of his beloved wife Maryanne, played her by George Arliss's wife Florence.There's also a small romantic subplot involving Disraeli's aide Anthony Bushell and young Joan Bennett.
The couple are an attractive pair.This was the second version of this story, Arliss had made a silent version in the early Twenties that was well received.George Arliss won the third Academy Award for Best Actor given out with this performance.
Though by today's standards some might consider it hammy, Arliss was of the Victorian classical school of acting and I for one appreciate the care he took in presenting one of his most acclaimed roles of the day.Disraeli is dated and it's hardly history, but it is a fascinating performance nonetheless..
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.
This was one of the first talkies, and acting was still informed by the flamboyant physical gestures that were the language of silent cinema and necessities of the stage, where actors had to project themselves without benefit of a big screen's projecting them with closeups.
Not an action hero.What you've got here is a play with snappy dialog brought to film with great stage actors.
They focus on the key character in the drama: Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli.
And this film brings to life the intrigue and romance of the life of a man at the central of English political life at a time when British power reached its zenith.A fine movie..
George Arliss is bewitching as "Disraeli".
Mr. Arliss' character secures control of the Suez Canal for Great Britain, outmaneuvering Russian spy Doris Lloyd.
He also plays "matchmaker" for Joan Bennett and Anthony Bushell.
Arliss' performance is captivating, despite the datedness of this early "talking" movie.Nobody can equal Arliss, but I did like Ms. Lloyd as his sparring partner.
Ms. Bennett was good, also - a cut above her average "stand around and look beautiful" films from this period.
I would like to see the film restored; moreover, I would accept some tinkering/editing for a new version (while preserving the original, of course).If you like classic "one-man-show" acting performances, it's hard to beat Arliss in this movie.
Green ~ George Arliss, Joan Bennett, Anthony Bushell, Doris Lloyd.
George Arliss' Most Famous Role.
The old man sits in the great office, endlessly plotting & planning, benevolently scheming for the good of Queen & Empire.
Will he fail & suffer political disaster, or triumph & forever make famous the name of Prime Minister Benjamin DISRAELI?Reveling in his most famous film role, George Arliss gives an Oscar-winning acting lesson.
It is their loss.Although George Arliss is the main reason to watch any George Arliss film, he is given good support here from Florence Arliss, his real-life wife, playing Disraeli's wife Mary.
Also appearing are Doris Lloyd as Mrs. Travers, the convivial spy; Joan Bennett & Anthony Bushell as the two young lovers; and Ivan F.
Simpson as a Jewish financier.If the production appears rather stiff & stagy, it must be remembered that this is a very early talkie, and that directors & performers were still adapting to the demands & restrictions imposed upon them by that new tyrant, the microphone.
Just keep your attention on Arliss - his acting skills transcend the limitations.It must be mentioned that the film distorts historical reality in two very significant areas.
Opening in 1874, it portrays Disraeli as a very happily married man with a loving, elderly wife.
The great and unfortunately forgotten George Arliss.
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.
"Disraeli" is a fictional story about Benjamin Disraeli's efforts to have the Suez Canal (called "a ditch covered in sand" by a skeptic) purchased for Britain.
The story has a number of interesting turns as Disraeli's aspirations are antagonized by people around him, including Russian spies.
There are great moments of tension when it seems Disraeli's aspirations have become impossible or other times such as when he receives a telegram near the end of the film regarding his wife's health.
Whether or not you agree with Disraeli's imperialist aspirations, you will find yourself engrossed in Disraeli's struggle and hoping for his success.The film features a solid cast, but the focal point of the film is George Arliss' portrayal of Disraeli.
Arliss gives an excellent performance in all aspects: the speech, mannerisms and even the look of Disraeli.
It also shows Disraeli as a forceful man of conviction that relentlessly pursues his design to purchase the Suez Canal despite skepticism and even prejudice against him for being Jewish.
"Disraeli" is worth seeing for George Arliss' strong performance as Benjamin Disraeli and its engaging story..
Get yourself through the first 10 or 15 minutes of kind of boring babble and get set to totally enjoy the performance of George Arliss (as well as he real life wife playing his wife).
This was a script that was meant to be spoken, and George Arliss was an actor who knew how to handle it.
Tackling the political intrigue that surrounded Britain's purchase of the Suez Canal, the story centers on Prime Minister of England, Benjamin Disreali (Arliss).
He plays these parts so well that we almost forget he is also Prime Minister until he is forced to reveal how powerful he can truly be at a critical moment.
Disraeli (1929) ** (out of 4) Creaky, early talkie won George Arliss the Best Actor Oscar but outside of his performance there's very little to recommend here.
In the film he plays British prime minister Benjamin Disraeli who not only tries playing match maker (to Anthony Bushell and Joan Bennett) but also trying to cool the political climate in the country.
Disraeli's main challenge comes when he tries to buy the Suez Canal as he's not prepared for the battle that will come.
I did love the performance of Arliss who is the main reason to watch this.
Apparently Arliss played this role several times on stage and even did a 1921 movie version, which is sadly now lost except for one reel.
He certainly knows this role and feels very comfortable playing it and this comes across on the screen as he appears to just float from one scene to the next.
Both Bushell and Bennett are charming in their roles and they look great together but I must admit that I found their relationship to be rather lacking and not at all interesting.
"Disraeli" is an odd sort of film that was quite popular during the 1920s-1940s.
One of the earliest of these films is "Disraeli" (1921 and 1929) but there also are many other examples, such as "Gunga Din", "Wee Willie Winkle" and "Lives of a Bengal Lancer"...all very popular films promoting the notion of British uniqueness and supremacy.This story is about a portion of Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli's career--around the time that the British essentially bought the Suez Canal out from under the French.
In sharp contrast, William Gladstone also served as Prime Minister (both alternating in this role many times) and Gladstone thought the colonial policy was a most unbecoming and unchristian notion...yet, sadly, this great politician did NOT get an expensive biopic!
Niceness isn't all that interesting, apparently!This 1929 version is the second starring George Arliss.
He made a silent version earlier in the decade and because this film is an early sound picture it has many of the usual features--it's much more set bound and actors tend to stand close together at times because microphones were not especially good.
So, while Warner Brothers was the best company in the world in 1929 when it came to sound pictures, it still had a few shortcomings which a viewer might notice in this film.So is it any good?
By 1929 standards, it's exceptional and you can see why Arliss took the Best Actor award.
However, just a few years later, Arliss' acting became even more natural (with less speechifying) in front of the camera and he was glorious in films like "The Working Man", "The King's Vacation" and "Mister Hobo".
My biggest complaints are not about the acting or sound but simply the notion of making a film to celebrate British global rule...something which seemed so natural and acceptable back in the day but which seems very anachronistic given today's sensibilities..
George Arliss' portrayal of Disraeli is brilliant; he had absolute control over his actions and gestures.
How close to reality the description of the woman traitor is to real life in the purchasing of the Suez Canal, I don't know, but it makes for an intriguing movie......replete with signaling taps on the table.AS we await tomorrow's presidential election with little hope for any improvement in representation of we the people, I can only get a little comfort from the knowledge that ethics have never bothered politicians in the past.
Just so was Disraeli.Whoever wrote the screen play was inspired and the editors didn't try to dumb him down, as opposed to today's movie producers/establishment.
The picture of the devotion Disraeli had to his wife is also inspiring.The wooden performances and highly stylized acting were true of the time, and is a hoot in and of itself.
In it's history, this is a good film, encapsulating Disraeli's nature and his steadfastness in pursuing the purchase of the Suez Canal.
A greater focus on the rivalry between Gladstone and Disraeli would have made this film more interesting..
"Mr. George Arliss" was perhaps the most distinguished thespian of his generation; when he won the Best Actor Oscar for his Talkie portrayal of England's Jewish Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli (whom he had already incarnated in a 1921 Silent), he was the first British performer to be such honoured and, at 61, the oldest to receive this accolade!
Arliss was another legend whom I had only ever read about in movie reference books; since the introduction of the internet, I have managed to acquire 10 of his films – but only got to one of them now as part of my Academy Awards marathon!
For the record, the other movies I own featuring him are the following: THE GREEN GODDESS (1930; he competed against himself at the Oscars in this remake of a 1923 picture!), Alexander HAMILTON (1931), THE MAN WHO PLAYED GOD (1932), VOLTAIRE (1933), THE HOUSE OF ROTHSCHILD (his rosette in the "Halliwell Film-goer's Companion"), THE IRON DUKE (both 1934), CARDINAL RICHELIEU, THE TUNNEL (both 1935) and his swan-song, DOCTOR SYN (1937).
Incidentally, in the past I had already watched John Gielgud in Thorold Dickinson's later Disraeli biopic THE PRIME MINISTER (1941) and Alec Guinness portrayed him in THE MUDLARK (1950)Anyway, I must admit that I expected this to be a chore to sit through – but was pleasantly surprised with the end result (which was also nominated for Best Picture, yet inevitably lost out to Lewis Milestone's ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT {1930}).
Though undeniably stilted in presentation and necessarily talky in approach, it nevertheless proved an interesting history lesson (detailing the tortuous purchase by the British Empire – against stiff Russian competition – of the Suez Canal) as well as, obviously, a valuable record of a famous characterization (Arliss coming across as alternately wily, fiery, devoted and sentimental).
When the spies are finally routed and the transaction completed, he is received with full honours by the reclusive Queen Victoria (herself now dubbed "Empress Of India") – accompanied by his ailing wife (played by the star's real-life spouse Florence Arliss), financial allies (who are bestowed with a peerage!) and the film's obligatory romantic interest (supplied by Anthony Bushell and Joan Bennett)..
In this filmed stage play, Arliss enacts the celebrated British statesman as he outsmarts a glamorous spy (Doris Lloyd) working for Russia who is trying to disrupt Disraeli's attempts to arrange for Britain to purchase the Suez Canal.
He performs this role which he had played on stage and in the silent era with energy and relish.
His real-life wife, Florence, plays his wife here and seems to spend half of her screen time chuckling at her husband's utterances.
Joan Bennett in the full bloom of late teenage loveliness does "British lady" very well as a noblewoman whom Disraeli takes under wing, as does the strapping Anthony Bushell as her love interest who also works as Disraeli's secretary and agent..
I just watched DISRAELI on TCM last night, as I was once interested in the work of George Arliss, but no more.
I DO enjoy films with historical significance, and political intrigue.
This may have been Arliss' finest piece, but it was painful to sit through, the story of a man who rarely ever leaves his office, and the endless politico-babble/machinations about the Suez Canal.
Otherwise, the wooden acting, and the inactivity of 90 minutes of watching a man talk, simply put me to sleep.
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.
(I know the Oscars had been business for a mere 2 years.)Arliss showed comedic gifts in his Oscar-winning performance.
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.
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..
Producer: George Arliss.
(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 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.
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.