My current quandary is, “Do I watch Prisoner of Zenda tonight? Or do I watch Prisoner of Zenda?” It’s a heck of a fix I’m in.
There is the 1937 version which, from what I can tell, is the favoured one. It certainly gets a better vote average on IMDb, 7.7 when I looked. The 1952 version gets a mere 6.8 on IMDb.
However (and there is always a “however”) … Much as I like Ronald Coleman (the 1937 Zenda), the 1952 one has Stewart Granger, a pleasant fellow all around. More importantly, 1952 has Deborah Kerr.
Can the 1937 version say that? I think not. 1952 also has James Mason.
Still … 1937 has David Niven, and 1952 can’t make that claim. So …
Which is it to be? Granted, the DVD I have has both movies so I could watch one and then the other right after, or the next day. But that still leaves the question - which to watch first?
Here’s how it is likely to go: I’ll watch the 1937 version of Prisoner of Zenda. It’s the earliest and, as far as I can tell, the one that ranks higher in the esteem of film watchers. Then I’ll watch the 1952 version, though I’m not sure when.
Still … I really do like Deborah Kerr. A lot.
(Either way, I will watch one or the other. Recently I’ve been watching quite a few contemporary movies. Not really sure why. But I feel the need to watch some older ones now. Although I have been watching a lot of the old Sean Connery-James Bond movies lately. I just haven’t been posting about them.)
Alarming and muddling update:
Good grief … I just remembered I also have the Warner two disc set of Mutiny on the Bounty (1962) sitting here waiting for me to watch. Yes, that’s the Brando one. (I’ve seen the 1935 version with Clark Gable and Charles Laughton. And I loved it.)
So again … what to watch? Making things more difficult, the Stanley Cup playoffs have started. Mind you, there are no teams in it I give a damn about so it’s not that hard to say to heck with that.
Dear, dear, dear …
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