Rent A Tale of Two Cities Online DVD & Blu-ray Rental

A Tale of Two Cities (1935)

4.0 of 5 from 49 ratings
2h 8min
Not released
  • General info
  • Available formats
Synopsis:
This adaptation of the classic novel by Charles Dickens finds courageous British lawyer Sydney Carton defending French aristocrat Charles Darnay from false accusations of treason against England. Carton also becomes enamoured of Darnay's beautiful bride-to-be Lucie but she and Darnay marry and begin to raise a family in France. Then, when Darnay falls into the hands of French revolutionaries, Carton once again comes to his rescue.
Actors:
, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Directors:
,
Writers:
Charles Dickens, WP Lipscomb
Others:
Conrad A. Nervig
Genres:
Classics, Drama, Romance
BBFC:
Release Date:
Not released
Run Time:
128 minutes

More like A Tale of Two Cities

Reviews (1) of A Tale of Two Cities

Historical Spectacular. - A Tale of Two Cities review by Steve

Spoiler Alert
08/05/2021

MGM drafted in the ranks of British expats, for this exuberant telling of the Dickens classic. Ronald Colman even shaved off his trademark moustache to play the complicated, fascinating tragic hero Sidney Carton. He is most charismatic and sympathetic and the calm centre of much flamboyant character acting. Basil Rathbone also makes a mark as the aloof, tyrannical aristocrat Evrémonde.

 The film is full of rich historical detail that brings the Paris and London in the brutal regimes of the eighteenth century to life in all its various social strata. The graverobbers, the bankers and the highwaymen. The sets are magnificent and the action scenes hugely ambitious, particularly the storming of the Bastille by a cast of many thousands.

 The main weakness is the curiously un-starry casting of b-film stalwart Elizabeth Allen as Lucie Manette. Perhaps the second half of the film isn't quite as stunning as the first as it cuts out the rich historical detail in order to get the story done. But I think it is easily the best of the run of classic European historical yarns produced by Hollywood in the 1930s.

 And it is the ultimate adaptation of this thrilling story. It is curious that MGM presented this film of a starving proletariat sparking a revolution to an American public suffering the Great Depression. I don't think it is too far fetched to read the film as support for Roosevelt's New Deal. But primarily, this is an exciting, inspiring and flavourful spectacle.

0 out of 0 members found this review helpful.

Unlimited films sent to your door, starting at £15.99 a month.