Walbrook’s performance itself is the dark heart of the film. The fact that their performances seem so confident and accomplished seems to have been as much down to leading man Anton Walbrook’s patience and generosity off camera as Dickinson’s carefully guiding hand. The fact that he pulled everything together in just a few days goes quite some way to prove what a remarkable director he was, and it is a crying shame that his work (which, alongside The Queen of Spades, most notably includes the original British version of Gaslight) is not better known.Īdding to Dickinson’s list of challenges is the fact that the film boasts two debut film performances from theatrical legend Edith Evens (playing The Countess) and Yvonne Mitchell. It feels like Dickinson had been planning it for months. As Scorsese notes in his introduction to the film (included on the disc) what makes this so remarkable is how precise and controlled The Queen of Spades is. He hadn’t even read Pushkin’s original short story, so he had to cram a hell of a lot of research and prep into little under a week before he turned up to the set to begin filming. When the film’s original director was fired, Dickinson was hired with only five days notice. Wonderfully atmospheric lighting in conjunction with bold, authoritative camera work ensures that The Queen of Spades positively drips with atmosphere, reaching impressive crescendos towards the latter third of the film, when the more supernatural aspects begin to make themselves felt.Īll of this would be impressive enough, but perhaps one of the most startling facts about The Queen of Spades, and Dickinson’s involvement, was how quickly the director jumped on board.
The opulence of the sets is matched by Dickinson and DP Otto Heller’s (famous for shooting a whole range of classics, from Peeping Tom to The Ladykillers) striking photography. This is very much a far cry from the stereotypical kitchen sink fare of British post war film making The Queen of Spades, in bringing its historical setting to life, emerges as one of the most impressive and ambitious British films of the 1940s. The magnificence of the sets and costumes often threaten to take the breath away. You wouldn’t guess that watching The Queen of Spades. At times, it is very easy to forget that this is a British film from the 1940s, made by a film industry and country still feeling the privations of the war that ended only a few years previously. Perhaps one of the key things that strikes you about The Queen of Spades upon a first viewing is the opulence and grandeur that oozes from almost every frame. Herman attempts to seduce the Countess’ Ward Lizaveta (Yvonne Mitchell) in the desperate hope that this might allow him to gain access to the Countess and thus learn the dark secret that will finally bring him a fortune of his own… He hangs around smokey clubs each evening, watching superior and aristocratic officers gamble away vast sums of money playing Faro (a hugely popular 19th century Russian card game) knowing that until he gains a fortune of his own, he will never be able to be one of them.Īnton soon learns, however, of a local Countess (Edith Evans) who, legend has it, sold her soul to the Devil for a secret card trick that would help her win back her family fortune. Desperate to improve his social standing, Herman knows that he will never achieve the respect and status he deserves because he has no access to wealth or fortune.
Set in Russia during the Napoleonic Wars, the film centres around Herman (Anton Walbrook) an Army Officer with a serious chip on his shoulder. Benefitting from a new 4K restoration from StudioCanal, a prestigious slot at least year’s BFI London Film Festival and now a new Blu Ray and DVD release, The Queen of Spades is finally looking to escape from the confines of cinephile discussions and gain the appreciation of the wider public. This is a situation that hopefully won’t continue for much longer.
Despite its reputation, however, this 1949 adaption of Alexander Pushkin’s short story by British director Thorold Dickinson has proven to be, if not exactly elusive, then at least far less well known than it should be. Starring: Anton Walbrook, Edith Evans, Yvonne Mitchell, Ronald Howard, Anthony DawsonĬhampioned for years by none other than Martin Scorsese, The Queen of Spades has generally been revered as one of the jewels of supernatural cinema. Writers: Rodney Ackland, Arthur Boys (script) Alexander Pushkin (story)
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