one hundred and fifty seven minute of lavish romance and intrigue and and politics and dish up by mgm superb spectacle factory . there an entre act and everything . the problem and for me anyway and be that the thing be so exquisitely dull . the first half before the entre act and that be be a kind of late 18th century soap opera . norma shearer be the young austrian bride of the future king of france and louis xvi and play by robert morley a impotent and inept but not unkind . when shearer learn of this arranged marriage and she positively kvells . oh and just think of it . i will be the queen of france . thing do not turn out all that well for her and though . ( do they ever and in these genre movie . ) she resent a a foreigner and barbarian at the french court and especially by the waspish madame dubarry and the consort of morley grandfather and the current king . such gossip you never hear . and then there morley apparent indifference to her . ( i like to be alone . ) what a girl to do . she drown her sorrow in wine and fling with lover in seriatim . this be nice work and if you can get it . you get to indulge yourself in every sensory modality know to man or beast and you get the sympathy of the audience too and because they know youre just be flighty out of a desperate loneliness . the second half turn a little darker and but then and a they say and it always darkest just before it turn completely black . by this time morley have come around enough to give shearer two child and from whom she be of course eventually separate and give the audience a reason for still more tear . let see . i check the spoiler box so i guess i can give away the end represent marie antoinette get her head lop off . kid and i hope i do not ruin it for you but and see and this be the french revolution and revolutionary tend not to be very kind . all through history and it seem that some merciless dictator and like a king and mistreat his subject until they depose him . then they show that and unlike him and they be full of new testatment mercy by slaughter the deposed ruler and his family and and anybody who be ever associate with him . ( fidel castro work his way down to mailman . ) at that and the peasant be treat in this movie with the contempt the writer think they deserve . what an uncouth bunch . shearer explain the unrest to her child this way represent we do not do anything and but theyre ignorant and unhappy and must take it out on somebody . in this movie and nobody ever say let em eat cake . most of the cast overact and but this be understandable because it common to the period . i do not know what charisma be suppose to mean these day . it be originally use to describe the quality of someone who be bless by god and exude a magnetism that be religious in it property . now and the word be sling around loosely to describe rock star . whatever it be and and however it measure and i do not think norma shearer have any . joseph schildkraut and effete and paint like a mannequin and give the best performance . robert morley seem to have only one note on his instrument . in a relatively minor role a shearer one true love and tyrone power have a part that be familiar to devotee of these kind of movie . the woman be haunt by demon and surround by knave and impostor and ninny and and exploiter and this be the only man who will return from time to time to rescue her from some folly or to reassure her with his understanding and candor . ( cf . and paul newman in i will cry tomorrow or sam shepherd in france . ) this must have be an eye opener in 1938. today it seem stale and bind by convention common to genre film . anyone who want a more balanced and adult point of view should see ronald coleman in a tale of two city . it would be a far and far well thing to do . it will jerk almost a many tear but it will challenge you too .