The Queen of Spades
- 1949
- 1h 35m
An army officer becomes obsessed with learning the secret to a card game for which an elderly countess sold her soul years earlier.An army officer becomes obsessed with learning the secret to a card game for which an elderly countess sold her soul years earlier.An army officer becomes obsessed with learning the secret to a card game for which an elderly countess sold her soul years earlier.
- Nominated for 1 BAFTA Award
- 3 nominations total
- Countess's Lover
- (as Yusef Ramart)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe studio was right beside a train line and very badly sound-proofed. They had to post a man on the studio roof to watch out for trains so filming could be suspended while the trains went past.
- Quotes
Capt. Herman Suvorin: [he surprises the Old Countess] Don't cry out! Don't be alarmed, please, don't be alarmed. I don't mean you any harm. I've come to ask a favour of you. That's all. A favour. It'll cost you nothing. But to me, it will bring happiness for the rest of my life. I want the secret of the cards. That's all. Come, what is it? The three cards. The names of the three cards. Please! Oh, it's no use pretending you don't know anything about it. I know you were given the secret. And I know who gave it to you. Please! Just think those three words aloud. And I'll trouble you no more. I'll go. What good is the secret to you? For whom are you keeping it? For your grandson? He's rich enough. What would another fortune mean to him, a wastrel and a spendthrift? But I'm not a man of that sort. I know the value of money. I could do great things, I tell you. Great things! If only I had money.
Capt. Herman Suvorin: [sinking to his knees, he continues] For the love of God! If you've any human feeling in your breast, you can't refuse me. I beg. I beseech you. I know why you won't speak. The secret is connected with some terrible sin. That's it, isn't it? I'll make a bargain with you; tell me your secret and I'll take your sin upon my soul. Do you hear me? I mean it. A bargain. I'll take your sin upon my own soul. Oh, speak! Speak to me! You old sphinx.
Capt. Herman Suvorin: [he brandishes a pistol and continues] By God, I'll make you. I ask for the last time, are you going to tell me the secret of the cards? Or are you not?
- Crazy creditsThe opening credits, rather than simply reading "Screenplay By", "Music By", "Director of Photography", etc., as in most films, read "The Screenplay By", "The Music By", "The Director of Photography", "The Art Director", etc.
- ConnectionsReferenced in Letter from Siberia (1958)
Anton Walbrook may have played more multi-dimensional characters in other films, but never with the same frightening intensity as in this one. The cast is uniformly excellent, but it's his performance as Hermann that really makes the film memorable. Hermann is a strange sort of cinematic hero with no redeeming characteristics whatsoever. His personality is dominated by four of the seven deadly sins: pride, envy, wrath, and greed. As for lust, he lusts only for power, money and influence, his declarations of love being completely false. Gluttony is not an issue, as he lives in poverty in order to horde what money he has. As for sloth, he exerts extraordinary effort into fulfilling his schemes, which are entirely self-serving. Sounds like a thoroughly unpleasant fellow. But Walbrook makes this brooding, scheming, petty, and utterly reprehensible nonentity with a Napoleon complex into a fascinating character study -- a real tour-de-force. The Vienna-born Walbrook (originally named Adolph Anton Wilhelm Wohlbrueck) exaggerates his Teutonic accent to Peter Lorre-like intensity, to great effect. It's this film that made him one of my all time favorite actors.
The look of this film is also extraordinary. Even in this pristine presentation, the cinematography is very dark and deeply shadowed. The shadowy look of the film, along with some oddly angular or distorted shots, is suggestive of expressionist style. The story is told very directly and the plot moved along efficiently, with no superfluous action, which adds to the unreal atmosphere of the piece. Everything associated with the story seems to take place in quick succession. In a city as huge as St. Petersburg, Hermann wanders from the spooky booksellers' shop directly to the old countess's house purely by chance. Every element of the story is essential, and executed with maximum effect and style. The funeral scene in particular is unforgettable.
What a pleasure to find that this terrific, but relatively obscure, film has finally gotten a DVD release, and looks better than I've ever seen it looking. Almost everyone who's commented on it cites the fact that it is little known, and maybe this new DVD will change that a bit.
- Bobs-9
- Jun 2, 2003
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Pikova dama
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 35 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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