Mary of Scotland

"History called her "The Temptress"!"

1936 2h 3m EN

😐

6.2

MID

★6.2TMDB · 43

DramaHistoryRomance

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

The recently widowed Mary Stuart returns to Scotland to reclaim her throne but is opposed by her half-brother and her own Scottish lords.

“History called her "The Temptress"!”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Katharine Hepburn
Mary Stuart
Florence Eldridge
Elizabeth Tudor
Fredric March
Bothwell
Douglas Walton
Darnley
John Carradine
Rizzio
Robert Barrat
Morton
Gavin Muir
Leicester
Ian Keith
Moray

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: John Ford
Writers: Dudley Nichols
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

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

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.9M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

90 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by John Ford, shot by Joseph H. August. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Nathaniel Shilkret. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Katharine Hepburn and Florence Eldridge and Fredric March carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "History called her "The Temptress"!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0027948 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

Only 43 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

John Ford directs. Joseph H. August behind the camera. Nathaniel Shilkret scores. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $0.9M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
290 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Directed by John Ford, shot by Joseph H. August. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Nathaniel Shilkret. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Katharine Hepburn and Florence Eldridge and Fredric March carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "History called her "The Temptress"!".
7IMDB entry: tt0027948 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Only 43 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
9Classified under 8 themes, including "england", "scotland", "queen", "tudor".

The technical file

Cinematography: Joseph H. August
Original score: Nathaniel Shilkret
Costume design: Walter Plunkett
Runtime: 123 min · 2h 3m
Status: Released
Budget: $864,000
Box office: $1,276,000
Return: 148% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Mary of Scotland (1936)

Also by

John Ford

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2022-04-27
★ 6/10
I'm not sure how much whisky the studio bosses must have had before alighting on the choice of Katherine Hepburn and Fredric March for this telling of the story of Mary, Queen of Scots - but it was either too much, or not enough! Beginning after her return to her kingdom following the death of her French husband, Francis II, it tells the tale of her battles with her nobles; her hapless drunken husband Darnley (Douglas Walton); her lover Bothwell (March) and of the plentiful court intrigues that mired her reign. There is no disguising the strong accent of the former, nor the drawl of the latter. and there is virtually no chemistry between them - particularly as the story evolves and the precarious nature of Mary's grip on power becomes evident. John Ford creates an image that uses the sets and interiors to convey the rather basic existence of both the Scottish court and of the country in general, but that's about all I can say in it's defence. The opportunities to capitalise on some of the most famous and notorious events in history is really wasted - and we even get a maudlin song for good measure from a disappointing John Carradine as the ill-fated "Rizzio". Plenty of rousing bagpipe music, though...!

Production companies