A Woman Commands

Pola Negri stars as Maria, a singer and "user of men" whose latest consort has been Russian military Captain Alex (Basil Rathbone). Alexei has disgraced himself by going into debt to provide for Maria's lavish lifestyle, and when Alexei is basically banished to a remote outpost by his commanding officer (H. B. Warner), Maria leaves town as well. She later meets a new lover, one who turns out to be none other than King Alexander (Roland Young) himself. Despite the scandal, the two wed, but when Alex returns it might not be the end of just the King's marriage, but his kingdom as well. Also featuring Reginald Owen, Anthony Bushell, May Boely, Frank Reicher, George Baxter, and David Newell.

This was the first sound film for international silent star Pola Negri. I can see how she was a silent star, but her thick accent makes some of her lines unintelligible, if not laughable. Rathbone is good, at times desperate, at other times vengeful, ably playing a romantic lead. Less easy to take as a serious romantic figure is Roland Young as the King, and I wanted to chuckle through many of his scenes. The costumes are opulent and the sets large and exquisitely appointed. Some of the larger crowd scenes, with dozens of extras, are impressive in scale.