| Mayerling | |
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Theatrical release poster by Tom Jung |
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| Directed by | Terence Young |
| Produced by | Robert Dorfmann Maurice Jacquin |
| Written by | Claude Anet (novel) Michel Arnold (book L'Archduc) Terence Young (screenplay) Denis Cannan (dialogue) Joseph Kessel (uncredited) |
| Starring | Omar Sharif Catherine Deneuve James Mason Ava Gardner |
| Music by | Francis Lai (original) Aram Khachaturian (non-original; Adagio from Spartacus |
| Cinematography | Henri Alekan |
| Editing by | Monique Bonnot |
| Distributed by | MGM |
| Release date(s) | 1968 (France UK) |
| Running time | 140 min |
| Country | UK / France |
| Language | English |
| Budget | US $5,000,000 (estimated) |
Mayerling is a 1968 romantic tragedy film starring Omar Sharif, Catherine Deneuve, James Mason, Ava Gardner, Geneviève Page, James Robertson Justice and Andréa Parisy. It was written and directed by Terence Young. The film was made by Les Films Corona and Winchester and distributed by MGM.
It was based on the novels Mayerling by Claude Anet and L'Archiduc by Michel Arnold and the 1936 film Mayerling, directed by Anatole Litvak, which dealt with the real-life Mayerling Incident. Although not completely historically accurate, the movie was well received, in part because of its lavish sets and costumes.
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Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria (Omar Sharif) clashes with his father, Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria (James Mason), over implementing progressive policies for their country. Ava Gardner plays his mother Empress Elisabeth. Rudolf soon feels he is a man born at the wrong time in a country that does not realize the need for social reform. The Prince of Wales (James Robertson Justice), later to become Britain's King Edward VII, provides comic relief.
Rudolf finds refuge from a loveless marriage with Princess Stéphanie (Andréa Parisy) by taking a mistress, Baroness Maria Vetsera (Catherine Deneuve). Their untimely demise at Mayerling, the imperial family's hunting lodge, is cloaked in mystery, but the film's ending suggests the two lovers made a suicide pact when they decided they could not live in a world without love or prospects for peace.
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