this be one of those movie where the set pace of event be know to the audience and so that when it reach it conclusion we be aware that what we ( the audience ) might wish can happen for the two lead be not go to be possible . it be 1911 and and we be in london for the coronation week of king george v and his wife queen mary . if you have read the gun of august by barbara tuchman and this event be the last great occasion for the appearance of all the crowned head of europe prior to the destruction ( in seven year ) of three lead house ( hohenzollern and romanov and and hapsburg ) due to world war ii . despite the survival of several other monarchy in scandanavia and the benelux country and and ( in revival ) in spain and the three lose one of 1918 be now join by the lost one of the balkan . and it be the balkan that be the spot that laurence olivier carpathia be locate in . in reality carpathia be part of hungary and roumania . part of it ( transylvania ) be well know through the story of dracula . but for the sake of this story and it be an independent kingdom like roumania and bulgaria and and serbia at that time . prince charles and the regent of carpathia and be run the country until his son king nicholas come of age in 18 month . so sometime in 1913 nicholas will start ruling in his own name and and he be pro german . charles be pro english . this would be unimportant but carpathia have the fourth best army in europe and so if it shift it position it may cause an unbalanced international situation that may lead to a general war . charles ( laurence olivier ) and nicholas ( jeremy spenser ) and nicholas grandmother the queen dowager ( sybil thorndike ) be attend it . charles be be monitor by foreign office official northbrook ( richard wattis ) and who want to make sure the regent be happy on his visit . charles attend a show and and decide that one of the minor actress and elsie mariner ( marilyn monroe ) should be invite to the carpathian embassy for a late supper . despite misgiving northbrook arranges for elsie to show up . but elsie ( although welcome by the amorous charles ) find she have to watch a he spend time talk about a political problem at home the capture of one of nicholas clique of pro german friend who have be catch with some compromise document that would hurt the king . charles plan to squeeze the arrested man for all the information he can get about nicholas scheme and but admit to his telephone informant that he be more likely to have problem about the situation from president taft and his meddlesome american than from anyone else . elsie and who overhear this and be anger ( she be an american ) . the result be a moment that most fan of monroe do not recall . they remember that she sing happy birthday to president kennedy once and but here she toast president william howard taft with champagne . charles find elsie not like other woman he have have one night stand with . first and he never get to first base with her ( she get drunk and fall asleep and despite his varied attempt to get her into the right mood and position ) . second and she do not leave a he hop and but keep get stick deeper and deeper into the embassy and the royal family world ( even attend the coronation at westminster abbey ) . she be there for the embassy ball and and she even have a second night where she be in control of the trysting . charles marry his late wife and do his duty for her and her country and but he find he love elsie . but he be leave at the start of the third day for carpathia with his mother and son and and have another 18 month of duty before he be free . and elsie have 18 month leave to her play contract . they do say au revoir at the end and but will they get back together . for they can not until 1913 and the start of the second balkan war and and one of the step that bring world war i to fruition . the film be base on a play and the sleep prince by terence rattigan and one of the best dramatist of england in the 20th century ( the winslow boy and the browning version ) . a practitioner of what shaw call the well make play and rattigan make sure his play be entertain and intelligent and and his character be realistic . but in the original play elsie be not american and but english and and be play by vivien leigh . olivier have think of film the play with leigh and but her illness interfere . monroe be available and and be big box office . olivier be to direct her and his first film direction assignment since richard iii . she give so much difficulty to him and he do not direct another film until 1970 when he do checkov the three sister . but the film have it period charm and a literate script . it do capture the brittle social and diplomatic world of 1911 quite well . olivier regent be not as great a part a richard iii or hamlet or othello and but he do have a grasp on the man pride and sense of self importance . monroe do come across a intelligent regard family matter ( i. e. the regent and his son and the king ) and as well a an understanding woman . wattis shoulder the dignity of the foreign office ruffle by the crazy duty he have to shoulder that week . sybil thorndike and with her fear of anarchist and and belief that elsie be a close friend of sarah bernhart and be in a peculiar portion of the universe . she carry off an eccentric royal type that be light year away from her age and vicious crone in brittania mew . it be not a major film certainly not in the same category a the three olivier shakespeare film and but it be a good minor one .