Glamorous Night

"A King gives up his throne for the girl he loved!"

1937 1h 21m EN

🙌

7.5

BANGER

★7.5TMDB · 2

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Based on Ivor Novello's hit stage play: an opera singer and her gypsy friends try to rescue their king from the clutches of a would-be dictator.

“A King gives up his throne for the girl he loved!”

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Cast

Mary Ellis
Melitza Hjos
Otto Kruger
King Stefan
Victor Jory
Baron Lyadeff
Barry MacKay
Anthony Allan
Trefor Jones
Lorenti
Maire O'Neill
Phoebe
Anthony Holles
Maestro
Charles Carson
Otto

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Brian Desmond Hurst
Languages: English
Countries: United Kingdom

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

81 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

89 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Brian Desmond Hurst, shot by Fritz Arno Wagner. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Flora Newton shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Mary Ellis and Otto Kruger and Victor Jory carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "A King gives up his throne for the girl he loved!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0028936 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Brian Desmond Hurst directs. Fritz Arno Wagner behind the camera. Flora Newton cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United Kingdom. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

181 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
289 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
4Directed by Brian Desmond Hurst, shot by Fritz Arno Wagner. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Editor Flora Newton shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Mary Ellis and Otto Kruger and Victor Jory carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "A King gives up his throne for the girl he loved!".
8IMDB entry: tt0028936 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 2 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Fritz Arno Wagner
Editing: Flora Newton
Runtime: 81 min · 1h 21m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Glamorous Night (1937)

Also by

Brian Desmond Hurst

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2022-06-20
★ 6/10
It was probably a little unfortunate for soprano Mary Ellis (who only died in 2003 - aged 105!) that opportunities to star in these kinds of semi-operatic films were starting to become thin on the ground. Partnered with Otto Kruger ("King Stefan" - who has shades of Leslie Howard about his, I thought)) she portrays the Gypsy leader "Melitza"; his lover and supporter against the ruthless Prime Minister "Lyadeff" (Victor Jory). It turns out that the scheming PM knows that there be oil in them thar hills, it's just that despite hiring two experienced oil men - Barry MacKay and Finlay Currie, he is struggling to find it. One of her people sees an eye for an easy fortune and tells the Minister that the oil is actually on their land, and soon some treasonous shenanigans are afoot to remove the king, his lover and exploit these resources. It'a got a hint of menace to it, but essentially it's a gentle adaptation of a short play with a couple of decently performed (if oft repeated) musical numbers from Ivor Novello and Christopher Hassall. The quality of the production has suffered a bit with age, but it is certainly not lacking in creative ambition and I rather enjoyed it.

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