This film is an interesting little diversion from the usual picture you'd expect to see Boris Karloff in during the 1930s. Instead of yet another horror film, this story is more or a standard costume drama done with a B-movie budge --a story that proves that your fate cannot be avoided.
When the film begins, the Baron learns that his wife has had identical twins. Instead of being excited, the poor guy is heartbroken, as an old family superstition is that the family will end in tragedy, as the younger twin will kill the older. However, this seems very unlikely since the younger brother seems like a nice guy and appears to have no ambitions to rule. It's even more unlikely when the evil older brother kills the younger one in an unexpected twist. Despite all this, the story goes on to illustrate like the age old tale of Oedipus that no matter what you try to do to avoid your fate, your actions only serve to seal it! Both roles are very ably played by Boris Karloff and the film is very brief and fast-moving--like most other B films. Combined with a good script and interesting ending, this is a very enjoyable flick that deserves to be seen more often--even if it's rather difficult to believe such a tale could really occur.
FYI--If you look closely at the clips of Karloff driving through the countryside of his mythical kingdom, you may notice that this is very clearly the Columbia back lot where they filmed many Westerns. Despite a few religious monuments scattered about, it's pretty obviously a Western set in California--though the rest of the buildings and sets looked pretty good. I chalk this up to a low budget and it's easy to overlook this.
When the film begins, the Baron learns that his wife has had identical twins. Instead of being excited, the poor guy is heartbroken, as an old family superstition is that the family will end in tragedy, as the younger twin will kill the older. However, this seems very unlikely since the younger brother seems like a nice guy and appears to have no ambitions to rule. It's even more unlikely when the evil older brother kills the younger one in an unexpected twist. Despite all this, the story goes on to illustrate like the age old tale of Oedipus that no matter what you try to do to avoid your fate, your actions only serve to seal it! Both roles are very ably played by Boris Karloff and the film is very brief and fast-moving--like most other B films. Combined with a good script and interesting ending, this is a very enjoyable flick that deserves to be seen more often--even if it's rather difficult to believe such a tale could really occur.
FYI--If you look closely at the clips of Karloff driving through the countryside of his mythical kingdom, you may notice that this is very clearly the Columbia back lot where they filmed many Westerns. Despite a few religious monuments scattered about, it's pretty obviously a Western set in California--though the rest of the buildings and sets looked pretty good. I chalk this up to a low budget and it's easy to overlook this.