Queen Christina (film)

Queen Christina is a 1933 Hollywood feature film, starring Greta Garbo and John Gilbert. This highly fictionalized feature film was based on the life of the 17th century Queen Christina of Sweden. It was billed as Garbo's return to cinema after an eighteen-month hiatus.

Related Topics:
1933 - Hollywood - Greta Garbo - John Gilbert - Queen Christina

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One could imagine why Garbo would be intrigued by this project. She was given the opportunity to play a queen from her homeland of Sweden. And as such, Garbo was in total control of Queen Christina. She chose the director, cameraman, and cast. One of the screenwriters, Salka Viertel, was a personal friend. She had initially requested that Sir Laurence Olivier play the part of Christina's lover, since she was impressed with him in a previous film. But during rehearsals in August 1933, Garbo and Olivier did not have any chemistry. Instead, Garbo requested that Gilbert (who was once her fiance) get the part.

Related Topics:
Sweden - Salka Viertel - Sir Laurence Olivier

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In the feature film, Garbo's Christina is made to abdicate her throne for the love of a Spanish ambassador, Don Antonio, played by Gilbert. There is also no mention of the real Christina's conversion to Catholicism. The conclusion of Queen Christina contains one of the most famous scenes in the history of feature film. In the scene, Garbo is standing on the brow of a ship, gazing out at the horizon. It has been interpreted in many different ways, mostly due to Garbo's own ambiguity as an actress. According to the director, he told Garbo to think of absolutely nothing, to have her face be a mask, and never to blink in order to create this final shot.

Related Topics:
Catholicism - Film

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Fairly or unfairly, this film was snubbed at Oscar time, and it did not do that well at the box office either despite good reviews from critics. Many consider Garbo's performance in Queen Christina to be among her best. Its director was Rouben Mamoulian, and the screenwriters were Viertel and Margaret "Peg" LeVino. It was adapted from Faith Compton's Sybil of the North.

Related Topics:
Rouben Mamoulian - Margaret "Peg" LeVino - Faith Compton

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Sources: IMDB.com

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