She (1935)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Directors:

Lansing C. Holden
Irving Pichel

Writers:

H. Rider Haggard (novel)
Ruth Rose (adaptation)

Release Date:

12 July 1935 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Fantasy | Romance

Tagline:

From H. Rider Haggard's weird, wondrous story of the beautiful woman who bathed in flame and lived 500 years .. at last to find her first love at this very hour!

Plot:

Leo Vincey, told by his dying uncle of a lost land visited 500 years ago by his ancestor, heads out...

Plot Keywords:

Ancestor | Hidden Civilization | Arctic | Uncle | Queen

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 1 nomination

Cast

Helen Gahagan	...	She
Randolph Scott	...	Leo Vincey
Helen Mack	...	Tanya Dugmore
Nigel Bruce	...	Horace Holly

Runtime:

USA:101 min (original version) | USA:95 min (reissue)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Victor System)

Certification:

UK:PG | USA:Approved (PCA #985)

Filming Locations:

Prudential Studios - 5300 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

RKO Radio Pictures

Trivia:

This film is listed among The 100 Most Enjoyably Bad Movies Ever Made in Golden Raspberry Award founder John Wilson's book THE OFFICIAL RAZZIE® MOVIE GUIDE.

Quotes:

She, Queen Hash-A-Mo-Tep of Kor: I am she . . . she, who must be obeyed!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Tarzan's Magic Fountain (1949)

Visually & Sonically Spectacular

This is an uneven movie, with an uneven script and uneven acting (Randolph Scott is particularly unconvincing too much of the time), but its strengths are remarkable.

She's music and sets are astonishingly good. Steiner's score is aptly suited to the twists and turns of the action, and at times it even sounds as though there's a theremin playing, although it's probably just a violin at the high end of its range. (Note/wuestion: why doesn't the spellchecker for a film website not recognize the word "theremin"? Surely that instrument has been used to notable effect in many movies.)

The "natural" sets (ice cliffs, snowy plains, and spooky caverns) are dramatic and artful, and the architectural sets, influenced by cubism, expressionism, and art deco, are among the finest pieces of design in the history of film. The abstract costumes of the inhabitants of She's kingdom (desighed by Aline Bernstein) are also breathtaking in their stylishness and imaginativeness. The lighting and cinematography is also noteworthy, and the special effects are very good for their time.

This may sound like I'm dwelling on peripheral issues, but when the score, art direction, and camera-work are this inventive, they turn an OK film into a wonderful one. Few movies have ever been such delights to the eye and ear.