The King's Thief

source: The King's Thief

Trailer—The King's Thief

The King's Thief

How bad is this thing? Well, let's just say Robert Z Leonard was brought in to rescue it. Just think about that for a second. I mean, to paraphrase George Clooney in "Michael Clayton", Robert Z Leonard isn't the guy you bring in to RESCUE a piece of crap. He's the friggin guy you FIRE so you can bring in a guy (like Vince Minnelli on "The Bribe") to rescue a piece of crap. Also, it's most disconcerting to see David Niven in a moustache twirling villain part. He's such a good actor that he's ok but it speaks volumes about how his career was languishing at this mid 50s point, before Hecht Hill Lancaster rescued him and it in "Separate Tables", that he was consigned to parts that Christopher Lee would have spat upon. C minus. PS...A previous reviewer wrote that this is his favorite Robert Z Leonard film. That's like saying Chad is your favorite poverty stricken nation.

With also the curious THE BRIBE, starring Bob Taylor and Vincent Price. This film belongs to the costume genre in Hollywood and related to history of England - it could have been France too. The rest of Leonard's filmography was most of all bland musicals or comedies, more or less the same as another director of this time, David Butler. So, back to this one, as I said, it is bland, as was Leonard's career, but if you like costume, historical - without any accuracy nor faithful links to real history - atmosphere, especially filmed in Cinemascope ( LBX frame) this talkative and false action adventure film may be for you, to fill a sunday afternoon. Beautiful photography and I repeat, the fifties charm will enchant you. But this remains a agreeable and also forgettable B movie from Lion studio MGM. In the same kind, also with Roger Moore, you had DIANE, directed by David Miller.

This is an old-fashioned adventure movie, but there's nothing wrong with that! Our time period is the 1660's or so, with Charles II on the English throne. That the film is in color helps a great deal, allowing us to fully enjoy the fine costumes and the beauty of the leading lady. There is some good swordplay and other good action scenes. The knowledgeable film fan will spot a number of familiar faces in the cast. This film puts many of the backlot locations of MGM to good use. They're gone now; you can appreciate them here. Recommended.

Even lavish sets and costumes and a background score by Miklos Rozsa can't save THE KING'S THIEF from the boredom of a banal script. Lots of flashing swordplay takes place, but none of it has enough sizzle to make up for a tiresome story about a scoundrel (David Niven) who is keeping his thievery a secret from Charles II (George Sanders). The best sequence involves an adventurous escape from heavy chains in a prison dungeon and a final encounter in a tower holding fabulous jewels whereby our hero ultimately wins the approval of Charles II. David Niven does well enough as the charming thief, handsome Edmund Purdom is nimble and rugged enough as a swashbuckling highwayman, and Ann Blyth is pretty in her costume finery. But none of them have more than cardboard characters to work with and the end result is a routine period adventure wasting a talented cast. Even Rosza's score is less memorable than most of his work for this kind of swashbuckler.