Az élet királya
1918 film
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Az élet királya (transl. The Royal Life)[2] is a 1918 Hungarian film directed by Alfréd Deésy. It is an adaptation of The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde.
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Tibor Rákosi
| Az élet királya | |
|---|---|
| |
| Directed by | Alfréd Deésy[1] |
| Screenplay by | József Pakots[2] |
| Based on | |
| Produced by | Richárd Geiger Tibor Rákosi |
| Starring |
|
| Cinematography | Károly Vass |
Production company | Star[2] |
Release date |
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| Country | Hungary[2] |
The film premiered in Budapest January 21, 1918 and was described as an "almost unprecedented success" in local Budapest press.[3] It received a positive review in Pesti Napló.
Plot summary
Cast
Cast adapted from the books Lugosi : His Life in Films, on Stage, and in the Hearts of Horror Lovers and Becoming Dracula: Volume 1.[2][1]
- Norbert Dán as Dorian Gray
- Bela Lugosi as Lord Harry Watton
- Annie Goth as the Duchess of Marlborough
- Ila Loth as Sibyl Vane, színésznõ (the actress)
- Kamilla Hollay as Hetti
- Gusztav Turan as Basil Hallward, festõmüvész (the painter)
- Richard Kornai as A herceg (the prince)
- Viktor Kurd[4]
Production
Az élet királya was based on Oscar Wilde's novel The Picture of Dorian Gray (1891). In the film, Norbert Dán plays Dorian Gray while Bela Lugosi portrayed Lord Harry Watton, known in the novel as Lord Henry Wotton.[1]
Release
Az élet királya was previewed at the Uránia in Budapest on October 23, 1917. It was officially released on January 21, 1918, at Budapest's Corso Theater.[5][6] The film was described as an "almost unprecedented success" in local Budapest press.[3]
In some ads, the film was referred to as simple Élet királya.[7] The film was released in Germany as Die Spur seiner Sünden.[8] Outside of Hungary it was also known as Dorian Gray Arckepe.[2] As of 2022, as with nearly all of Lugosi's Hungarian film productions, no copy of the film is known to exist.[9]
Reception
In the Hungarian newspaper Pesti Napló, a critic declared the film "a great psychological drama" and declared it an interesting comparison with the German film Das Bildnis des Dorian Gray by Richard Oswald.[10] Other reviews praised the work of Bela Lugosi, who performed in the film under the name Arisztid Olt.[5] A critic in Mozihét Kino-Woche stated Lugosi played Lord Watton "with an artfulness of the highest quality"[5][11] while another called his acting "most noble."[5][12]