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By
NICK ZEGARAC
Director Henry Hathaway's
film version of cartoonist Hal Foster's
Scandinavian hero, "Prince Valiant," is one of
those over-blown, wacky-tacky epics; impossible to
take seriously, but oh, so much fun to watch.
Robert Wagner is the rather effeminate looking
title character that takes Camelot by storm.
Determined to regain his own throne, Valiant
uncovers the treachery of the Black Knight (James
Mason, in a toss away role) and challenges him to
a showdown. Of course, there's also time for love
with bombshell Princess Aleta (Janet Leigh -- who
quite often found herself squeezed into a corset
during the 1950s.)
The film veers wildly between comic book pulp and
self-conscious seriousness, but Hathaway's
direction ensures that neither becomes the vice to
sink his epic. Brian Aherne, as a credible King
Arthur, and Sterling Hayden, a not so credible,
Sir Gawain also costar.
The transfer is good. Colors are generally bold,
vibrant and well balanced. Flesh tones seem a bit
pasty but that's in keeping with early
Cinemascope/Eastman color dye transfers. Shadow,
contrast and black levels are generally solid.
Rear projection photography is more obvious than
it should be. Pixelization and edge enhancement
are present but do not terribly distract. The
audio is 5.1, delivering a nice spread in the
music tracks. Dialogue is not natural sounding,
but again, this was usually to be expected for the
vintage of the film.
This prince is worth a second glance, but it's not
quite as glamorous as, say, "Scaramouche" so much
as it belongs as the bottom half of a double bill
at an old-time drive in. |
