The Green Goddess (1930)

An airplane carrying three Brits--Major Crespin, his wife Lucille, and Dr. Trahern--crash lands in the kingdom of Rukh. The Rajah holds them prisoner because the British are about to ... See full summary »

Director:

Alfred E. Green

Writers:

William Archer (by), Julien Josephson (screen version),

Stars:

George Arliss, Ralph Forbes, H.B. Warner

Nominated for 1 Oscar.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
George Arliss	...	The Raja
Ralph Forbes	...	Dr. Traherne
H.B. Warner	...	Major Crespin
Alice Joyce	...	Lucilla
Ivan F. Simpson	...	Watkins (as Ivan Simpson)
Reginald Sheffield	...	Lieut. Cardew (as Reggy Sheffield)
Betty Boyd	...	An Ayah
Nigel De Brulier	...	Temple Priest (as Nigel de Brulier)
David Tearle	...	High Priest

Storyline

An airplane carrying three Brits--Major Crespin, his wife Lucille, and Dr. Trahern--crash lands in the kingdom of Rukh. The Rajah holds them prisoner because the British are about to execute his three half-brothers in neighboring India. His subjects believe that their Green Goddess has given them the lives of the three Brits as payment for the lives of the Rajah's brothers. They will execute them when the brothers are executed. Trahern and the Crespins must figure a way to use the Rajah's radio to call India for help.

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Plot Keywords:

india | pre code | british colonial | based on play

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Genres:

Adventure

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Certificate:

Passed

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 February 1930 (USA)

Also Known As:

I ekdikisis tou maharagia

Filming Locations:

Iverson Ranch - 1 Iverson Lane, Chatsworth, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros, Vitaphone Corporation, The

Technical Specs

Runtime:

73 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Apparatus)

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Filmed in 1929 and completed before Disraeli, but was held out of release until later at the request of George Arliss because he felt the other film was a better vehicle for his talkie debut.

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Quotes

The Raja of Rukh: [Last line] Well, well, she probably of been a damn nuisance.

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Connections

Version of Adventure in Iraq (1943)

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Soundtracks

"Funeral March of the Marionettes"
(1872) (uncredited)
Music by Charles Gounod
Played on the phonograph

User Reviews

An entertainingly exotic mixture of drama, comedy and melodrama.

Although it doesn't start too promisingly, interest rises dramatically once Arliss enters the picture. With his sly, cunning portrait of a well-mannered but vicious despot, Arliss easily out-acts every other member of the cast, though Ivan Simpson enjoys some splendid moments as his dressed-to-the-nines flunky.

The direction, alas, is dull and static.

Production values, laced with obvious footage from Arliss' 1923 version, appear surprisingly meager.

Nonetheless, Arliss is such a skilfully charismatic lead, it would be a shame to miss his fascinating interpretation.