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With: Elissa Landi, Paul Lukas, Nils Asther, Dorothy Revier, Lawrence Grant, Esther Ralston, Warburton Gamble, Lois January
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Written by: F. Hugh Herbert, Ruth Cummings, Hanns Kräly, Karl Farkas, Karen DeWolf, based on a play by Siegfried Geyer
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Directed by: James Whale
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MPAA Rating: NR
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Running Time: 70
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Date: 12/18/1933
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Waxing Poetic
By Jeffrey M. Anderson
James Whale directed this elegant, sly pre-code romantic comedy with a great deal of grace and class, elevating its silly premise to sublime heights. Arriving just months after The Invisible Man, By Candlelight focuses on the servant Josef (Paul Lukas), who works for the Casanova-like Prince Alfred von Rommer (Nils Asther). He knows all the Prince's tricks and is able to help set up temporary love nests (the power goes out, and he provides candles) as well as deflecting unwanted visitors. When he meets the beautiful Marie (Elissa Landi), and is himself mistaken for the Prince, he decides to go with it and try to have as much fun as possible. Of course, Marie is not quite what she appears to be, and even the Prince must pretend to be the servant to get out of another sticky situation. Whale keeps up a sense of sheer delight for 70 minutes, celebrating in the abandon of social mores and class privilege. Kino Lorber released it on a sparkling new Blu-ray for 2022; it includes a commentary track by film historian Troy Howarth, optional subtitles, and a selection of trailers.
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