The Student Prince in Old Heidelberg (1927)

The Student Prince in Old Heidelberg
Directed by Ernst Lubitsch and John M. Stahl
Written by Marian Angle and Ruth Cummings from the book by Karl Heinrich
1927/US
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
IMDb Page
First viewing/YouTube

Dr. Jüttner: Boy, do you know what it means to go to Heidelberg?

I had never seen an Ernst Lubitsch silent movie before and now I want to see all of them.

The story is basically a fairy tale.  Prince Karl Heinrich is the nephew and heir to the throne of the King of Karlsburg.  A nanny has raised him until maybe age 8 and then he is shipped off to the court where he is kept behind palace walls until he graduates from secondary school and grows up to be Ramon Navarro.  Uncle is cold and very formal as are all of his retainers.  Karl’s loneliness is relieved by the arrival of Dr. Juttner (Jean Hersholt), possibly the most lovable and warm tutor ever.  It is feared that he will return to his lonely existence when he passes his exams.  Instead, it is decided he will go to university in Heidelberg accompanied by Dr. Juttner.

Upon arrival, Karl decides to live in a simple inn after first glimpsing the owner’s lovely, charming daughter Kathi (Norma Shearer).  He is accepted immediately into the company of his school comrades and falls deeply in love with Kathi. He is able to live a normal life at last. He vows never to leave Kathi. What will happen when he is called back to the palace to take over from the dying king?

The best word to describe this film is “delightful”.  It is loaded with the Lubitsch touch and full of subtle innuendo.  I don’t think I have ever seen Norma Shearer this feminine and enchanting.  I always like Jean Herscholt and this was no exception.  Ramon Navarro was perfect.   The production values were pure MGM and the print on YouTube is stellar.  I was engaged enough to be yelling at my screen during the last ten minutes.  Warmly recommended.

None of the clips was in a print worth watching so here is a tribute to Ramon Navarro

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I’m going to Costa Rica tomorrow to look at birds.  Hope to be back March 12.  I think I’m on a movie watching roll.