Lumsdal Good , But It Is Overrated By Some

Invaderbank The film creates a perfect balance between action and depth of basic needs, in the midst of an infertile atmosphere.

Donald Seymour This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Philippa All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

kijii The House of Rothschild was nominated for Best Picture in 1934 and although I would love to see this movie completely restored. In this movie, George Arliss takes on the roles of both the elder Rothchild, Mayer Amschel Rothchild (in the 1780 Frankfort Prussian "Jew Street" ghetto) and his son, Nathan. Nathan succeeds him (in London) as the leader of the Rothchild family. The family would place themselves throughout the great European cities at that time and always act as a group whenever they made large financial decisions. In spite of widespread anti-Semitism and pograms throughout Europe, the Rothchilds became a powerful financial empire, able to overcome other larger banks and financial institutions. They did this through their cohesiveness and lines of communication during the Napoleonic Wars. Even when other banks were predicting Wellington's defeat and the collapse of England, the House of Rothchild remained true to England, the allies. and freedom. The story contains a subplot of Nathan Rothchild's daughter, Julie (Loretta Young), falling in love with one of Wellington's officers, Capt. Fitzroy (Robert Young). The problem with this film is that it contained some scenes that the Nazis could later take out of context, place a negative spin on, and use to make their case against the Jews. The opening scenes of Mayer Amschel Rothchild hiding his money from the tax collector and then pleading poverty probably just played right into Hitler's hands to show his audience the "tricky money-grabbing Jew bleeding the country dry." So, the Nazis DID use scenes from it to make such Nazi propaganda films as Der ewige Jude (1940) and Die Rothschilds (1940).

LeonLouisRicci There were Eleven Nominations for Best Picture of the Year in 1934. This was One of them. The Decade did Love the Costume Drama and here it is the Beginning of the Rothschild Family who Eventually Became Masters of the Universe Bankers. The Period is the Napoleonic Wars.The Theme is Also Anti-Semitism a Time when there were Jewish Ghettos and the Chosen People could not be Choosy in Professions. Money was Their Power, as We are Reminded throughout the Film, and Oy Vey did They use it and at the Same Time Trying to Remain "Dignified".After a Stereotypical Beginning when the Bankers were just Babes, Grandfather Rothchilde Scurries about the House and Hides the Ledgers, the Silver, and the Beef Roast to "Cheat" the Tax Collector (this is justified because they were being treated unfairly and discriminated against, so all's fair in Love and Money).Things Move Forward Decades and the Rothschild Children are Now Bankers to Nations and They can Make or Break Countries, Wars, and People. The Movie is a Glossy Production that Glosses Over Any and All Flaws the Family Might have had for the Sake of Early Thirties Messaging to what was Happening in Germany at the Time (Nazis).Overall, Worth a Watch for Pre-Code Inclusions of Religion and Prejudice that would soon be Banned in Hollywood by Hays/Breen and for the Fine Acting of Richard Arliss and Boris Karloff.Note...Beware inferior murky prints floating about and be on the lookout for the original Three-Strip-Technicolor ending.

calvinnme ... which is appropriate since he had the talent of at least two actors of any era. In this case Arliss plays both Mayer Rothschild and son Nathan after the house of Rothschild has begun to flourish into a huge banking enterprise. What makes these precode biopics of Arliss fun to watch is his mischief, the precocious energy of a five year old and the wisdom of a sage observer of human nature all packed into one lean unimposing frame. The precode era also allowed Arliss to make a comment here and there that likely would be censored in the production code era.The time is that of the Napoleanic Wars and the Rothschilds, after funding the British in the first defeat of Napolean, find the British aristocracy develops a not so startling case of amnesia and begins treating Nathan Rothschild as an outsider - a Jew - and excludes him from their most lucrative deals. When Nathan Rothschild initially outsmarts them in business, the vindictive Count Ledrantz (Boris Karloff) incites riots against the Jews throughout Europe, even putting Nathan's own mother at risk back at the ancestral home in Germany. However, what nobody knows at the time is that Napolean will escape and a second campaign against him will be necessary. Will the Rothschilds go after their own best interests and back Napolean or will they again side with those that have discarded them - the British. Watch and find out.Also watch George Arliss' other biopics of the early sound era - Disraeli, Voltaire, and Alexander Hamilton are the ones I've actually been able to see so far. All of these are very much worth your time.

blanche-2 Darryl F. Zanuck covered Napoleon's sweep across Europe in two early films: "Lloyds of London," in which Tyrone Power plays a fictional character who continues insuring the British fleet so that his childhood friend, Horatio Nelson, can win the war; and "The House of Rothschild" in which Nathan Rothschild and his banker brothers provide the financing to beat Napoleon. Both are excellent films.There are a few historical liberties in "The House of Rothschild," but the film is based on fact. George Arliss has a dual role as Mayer Rothschild and his son, Nathan. When the film begins, the family is living in a Prussian Jewish ghetto where Mayer is doing well but doesn't want the tax collectors to know. On his deathbed, he instructs his sons to establish banking houses throughout Europe as so much money is stolen when it is being carried by messengers. The plot then focuses on Nathan and goes into the rampant anti-Semitism which forces Nathan out of an important loan. It also shows his brilliance for business as he fights Count Ledrantz (Boris Karloff) who spreads propaganda and incites pogroms. The climax of the film takes place when it appears Napoleon is winning and Nathan starts buying up everything on the stock market, which is bottoming out, in order to keep the deal he made for the war effort. Though not much is made of it, the Rothschilds had informants everywhere, which enabled them to get information before anyone else. He is able to announce before it is made public that Napoleon has been defeated at Waterloo."House of Rothschild" stars one of the great actors, George Arliss. Other actors from the stage entering films often used tremulous voices and melodramatic gestures but Arliss had a tremendous speaking voice and a grand acting style that made a powerful impression on the screen and infused the characters he played with a believability as well. A blond, beautiful Loretta Young is on hand as his daughter, who is in love with a Gentile named Fitzroy (Robert Young) - and though one would expect the love story to be fiction, it isn't.This film has an interesting history of its own: Excerpts from it, taken out of context, were used in the anti-semitic Nazi films Der ewige Jude and Die Rothschilds. Despite persecution, the Rothschilds remain an extremely powerful family in the present - the original name of the family was Bauer; Rothschild is actually German for "red shield," which is in the center of the family coat of arms. Today, they're in a variety of occupations besides banking - actress Helena Bonham Carter is a Rothschild due to a marriage on her mother's side.