Mayerling (1968)

41% of users liked it
(135 ratings)

This romantic tragedy concerns the Archduke Rudolf (Omar Sharif) and his mistress, the Baroness Maria Vetsera (Catherine Deneuve), and their untimely demise at Mayerling, the sight of the Austrian royal family's hunting lodge. Rudolf verbally spars with his father Emperor Franz-Josef (James Mason)… More This romantic tragedy concerns the Archduke Rudolf (Omar Sharif) and his mistress, the Baroness Maria Vetsera (Catherine Deneuve), and their untimely demise at Mayerling, the sight of the Austrian royal family's hunting lodge. Rudolf verbally spars with his father Emperor Franz-Josef (James Mason) about wanting to implement progressive policies for his country. Ava Gardner plays his mother Empress Elizabeth. Rudolf also contends with the fallout from a loveless marriage with Princess Stephanie (Andrea Parisy). Respectful of the centuries-old Hapsburg family rule over Austria, Rudolf soon feels he is a man born at the wrong time in a country that will not realize the need for social reform. The Prince of Wales (James Robertson-Justice), later to become Britain's King Edward VII, provides the only comic relief with his dialogue. The deaths remain a mystery, but director Terence Young suggests the two lovers made a suicide pact when they decided they could not live in a world without love where the prospects for peace were dubious at best. ~ Dan Pavlides, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: PG-13, 2 hr. 20 min.
Directed By: Terence Young
Genres: Romance, Classics, Drama

In Theaters: Oct 22, 1968 Wide

Critic Reviews

Phil Hall, Film Snobbery
Visually opulent but emotionally inert.
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)
Mostly a pretty bore -- enlivened by bizarre casting and amusingly stilted dialogue.

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Cast

            Omar Sharif as Crown Prince Rudolf

            Catherine Deneuve as Maria Vetsera

            James Mason as Emperor Franz Josef

            Ava Gardner as Empress Elizabeth

            James Robertson Justice as Prince Of Wales

            Geneviève Page as Countess Larisch

            Andréa Parisy as Princess Stephanie

            Ivan Desny as Count Josef Hoyos

            Fabienne Dali as Mizzi Kaspar

            Jean-Claude Bercq as Duke Michael of Braganza

            Jacques Ciron
            
            Bernard Lajarrige as Loschek

            Charles Millot as Count Taafe

            Moustache as Bratfisch

            Roger Pigaut as Count Karolyi

            Jean-Michel Rouziere as Police Superintendent

            Alain Saury as Baltazzi

            Maurice Teynac as Mortiz Szeps

            Véronique Vendell as Lisi Stockau

            Howard Vernon as Prince Montenuevo

            Irene von Meyendorf as Countess Stockau

            Jacques Berthier as Prince John Salvator

            Roger Lumont as Inspector Losch

            Jacques Dorfmann as Rioting Student

            Mony Dalmes as Baroness Helen Vetsera

            Stuart Anthony as Head Gardener
See full cast

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