Madame Du Barry (1934)

Director:

William Dieterle

Writers:

Edward Chodorov (story), Edward Chodorov (screenplay)

Stars:

Dolores del Rio, Reginald Owen, Victor Jory

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dolores del Rio	...	Madame Du Barry (as Dolores Del Rio)
Reginald Owen	...	King Louis XV
Victor Jory	...	Duc Armand d'Aiguillon
Osgood Perkins	...	Duc de Richelieu
Verree Teasdale	...	Duchess de Granmont
Ferdinand Gottschalk	...	Lebel
Anita Louise	...	Marie Antoinette
Maynard Holmes	...	The Dauphin
Henry O'Neill	...	Duc de Choiseul
Hobart Cavanaugh	...	Professor de la Vauguyon
Dorothy Tree	...	Adelaide, the King's Daughter
Virginia Sale	...	Sophie, the King's Daughter
Camille Rovelle	...	Victoria, the King's Daughter
Helen Lowell	...	Countess de Berne
Joan Wheeler	...	Florette, Young Girl at Dear Park

Storyline

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Plot Keywords:

18th century | courtesan | 1700s | robbery | social climber | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | History

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Certificate:

Approved

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 October 1934 (USA)

Also Known As:

Die Courtisane des Königs

Filming Locations:

Warner Brothers Burbank Studios - 4000 Warner Boulevard, Burbank, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

79 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The movie was placed on the Catholic Church's "condemned list."

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Connections

Version of DuBarry (1915)

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Soundtracks

"Scherzo"
(uncredited)
from "A Midsummer Night's Dream"
Music by Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy
Played as background music

User Reviews

Fine - And Funny - Historical Drama

MADAME DU BARRY, a wanton, vivacious young woman, catches the eye & the heart of the aging Louis XV and quickly becomes his mistress. Through guile & intelligence, she soon finds herself the most powerful woman in France.

Dolores Del Rio shines in this funny, lavish & sadly neglected film. Her Mexican accent is more than compensated for by her fiery beauty & fine acting. She is perfectly matched by Reginald Owen as Louis, in one of his finest roles, somewhat ribald & ridiculously in love. An odd cinematic couple they may be, but they are never less than entertaining.

An excellent cast supports them: Maynard Holmes & Anita Louise as the childish Dauphin & strong-minded Marie Antoinette; Victor Jory, Osgood Perkins, Verree Teasdale, Henry O'Neill & Ferdinand Gottschalk as sundry court officials & hangers-on; Dorothy Tree, Helen Howell & Joan Wheeler as Louis' spiteful daughters; Halliwell Hobbes as the English Ambassador; and Arthur Treacher as the snooty Master of the Bedchamber.

Movie mavens will spot, in uncredited roles, Doris Lloyd as the madam of the royal brothel; and Robert Greig, as Louis' chef, who shares a hilarious omelet-making scene with Reginald Owen.

Curiously, the film takes great pains in making the Dauphin & Marie Antoinette into sympathetic figures, especially during their bizarre wedding night sequence, only to turn them into villains in the very last scene.

Warner Bros. must have spent a pretty penny on this film - and it shows. Its pre-Production Code status is also very evident from the somewhat salacious content & dialogue.

What really happened to Marie Jeanne Bécu, Comtesse Du Barry, after the death of Louis XV in 1774? She retired to a life of luxury in her private château and kept up a schedule of intrigues & dalliances throughout the reign of Louis XVI. With the outbreak of the Revolution, Du Barry escaped to England in 1793. Foolishly, she returned to France & was arrested on charges of conspiracy against the New Order. Du Barry had her appointment with Madame Guillotine on December 8, 1793. She was 50 years old.