No matter what you may think of this meticulously over-burdened drama inspired by the personality and fate of the empress Elizabeth of Austria in the 19th century, and set in the romantic environment of her world (like the 'Sissi' films with Romy Schneider), the idea here is ingenious. The empress has been in mourning since ten years after her husband was assassinated, and she lives only for continuing to grieve for him while she never appears in public any more except concealed by a veil, when one night, as she is going to celebrate his memory with a lonesome supper in the company of his imagined ghost, an anarchist breaks in to her castle on a mission to assassinate her, but he is badly wounded. The strange thing is that he looks exactly like her martyred husband. That is the spring of this tale.
The music is fantastic (composed by George Auric), and the most impressing scene is when she gives a ball with grand festive music for all the society, while the anarchist makes his surprise visit in her private quarters, while the ball goes booming on, and his failed mission turns into a drama. The settings are also marvellous with sumptuous decorations and great flamboyant cinematography, while also the dialogue throughout the film is extremely intensive and over-loaded. The drama is by Jean Cocteau himself, and it is a good example of filmed theatre, while at the same time he consistently sticks to perfect realism - all this could have happened. There is much of the Mayerling atmosphere here. The films is perhaps a bit too long, the subplot of the intrigues by the chief of security police goes maybe at bit too far and feels rather unnecessary, while the main theme could have been made more and better of. Anyway, it's a marvellously interesting film for its creative imagination and typically Cocteauan great innovative spirit.
