Anthony Hope’s 1894 novel The Prisoner of Zenda first received a film adaptation in 1913. For the fifth version of the tale – and second “talkie” edition – we go to a 1952 production.

Set in the late 19th century, the Balkan nation of Ruritania becomes abuzz at the upcoming coronation of rising king Rudolf V (Stewart Granger). One exception: vacationing Brit Rudolf Rassendyll (Granger again), as he just comes to fish.

It turns out the UK Rudolf is a distant cousin of Rudolf V, and this comes in handy when the almost-monarch disappears due to his half-brother Michael’s (Robert Douglas) scheme to take the throne for himself. Royal aide Colonel Zapt (Louis Cahern) recruits UK Rudolf to substitute for the absent Rudolf V and prevent this coup.

Prior to my screening of this 1952 film, my only exposure to the existence of Zenda came from a comedic 1979 take with Peter Sellers. Not that I actually saw that edition, as like most people, I skipped the box office bomb.

Nonetheless, at least the Sellers flick gave me awareness of the property. The 1979 movie became the first big-screen adaptation since 1952 so it turned into my generation’s only reason to know of the tale.

Given how many versions of Zenda appeared from 1913 to 1952, it surprises me that the novel has gone the way of the dodo in terms of cinema. This prompted me to wonder if perhaps the story came with some “non-PC” elements that would render it less than palatable for modern audiences.

Unless I missed something, this doesn’t seem to be the case. I found nothing that would make Zenda objectionable by 21st century standards.

Perhaps Hollywood just decided Zenda delivers a tale that seems too old-fashioned for modern audiences. While I think it could easily get updated, maybe the tale simply seems “outdated” to some.

At least as depicted in this 1952 Zenda, I don’t really see the story that way. While the movie certainly represents its era, it nonetheless musters a largely entertaining mix of romance and intrigue.

Though the former circumstance dominates more than I might’ve expected, as we see UK Rudolf’s involvement with Rudolf V’s betrothed, Princess Flavia (Deborah Kerr). A marriage of royal convenience, she doesn’t like Rudolf V, but the much less boorish UK Rudolf charms her.

Not that she realizes the charade for much of the story, of course. We know eventually we’ll see what happens when she finds out the ruse, but for most of the tale, she believes the substitute king to be the real deal.

While not the most scintillating romance, Granger and Kerr interact well enough to bring chemistry to their scenes. I do tend to think the Flavia subplot feels a little extraneous and the movie would work fine without it, but at least the romantic moments come with some charm.

The supporting cast adds to the experience as well, especially via James Mason as Michael’s aide Rupert of Hentzau. Portrayed in a vein that gives him more than a slight Nazi vibe, Mason makes Rupert eminently hissable.

Granger does well in his dual role and almost makes us forget the idiocy of the notion the two Rudolfs look exactly alike. People mock The Patty Duke Show but Zenda pioneered identical cousins decades earlier, and the concept doesn’t seem any less silly here.

I will say that for an ostensible adventure film, Zenda lacks a lot of action. Occasional scenes in that vein arise – and they become more prominent toward the end – but the narrative relies more on literal palace intrigue than fights and theatrics.

This works fine. Zenda doesn’t need lots those sorts of moments to maintain our attention, and the climax helps to compensate, as it kicks some fights into higher gear.

All of this leads to a pretty engaging little mix of romance and political suspense. Perhaps Hollywood should give this story another look after all these years.

The Prisoner of Zenda appears in an aspect ratio of 1.37:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. This became a strong presentation, especially given the film’s age.

In terms of sharpness, the movie usually demonstrated nice delineation. A few shots seemed a smidgen soft – primarily via effects required to allow Granger to act against himself - but those issues occurred infrequently, so the majority of the flick looked concise and accurate.

No issues with jagged edges or shimmering materialized, and no edge enhancement became apparent. Grain remained appropriate, and no specks, marks or other defects showed up at any time in this fresh presentation.

Colors were strong. Across the board, the hues tended to be vivid and full.

Blacks seemed deep and dense without too much heaviness. Shadow detail worked similarly well, as dimly-lit shots were appropriately clear and thick. I found little about which to complain here and thought the Blu-ray brought the movie to life in a positive manner.

The DTS-HD MA monaural audio of Zenda appeared fine for its era. Speech was perfectly acceptable, as the lines showed age-related thinness but they were always intelligible and without edginess.

Effects resembled the dialogue. Those elements lacked much depth but they were without notable problems.

Music was acceptable for its age, as the songs and score tended to be a bit tinny. There wasn’t much range to the music, but again, that stemmed from the limitations of the very old source. This became a more than adequate mix for its vintage.

As we shift to extras, a major attraction comes from the presence of a 1922 silent version of Zenda. It stars Ramon Navarro and runs one hour, 53 minutes, 10 seconds.

Expect some elements not found in the 1952 Zenda here, especially early in the tale. These make the 1992 edition an interesting curiosity and a good addition to this set.

Along with the movie’s trailer, we also get two radio adaptations of Zenda. The set includes a June 5, 1939 Lux Radio Theater (59:01) production as well as a February 20, 1949 Screen Director’s Playhouse (29:58) edition.

Both use the 1937 Zenda as their template, and both bring back Ronald Colman from that film to play the lead(s). Benita Hume replaces Madeleine Carroll as Princess Flavia in both, and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. returns from the movie as Rupert.

Though based on the 1937 film, the radio adaptations don’t differ much from the 1952 flick’s story – well, at least in the case of the longer Lux broadcast. It omits some elements of the overall narrative but largely replicates the movie’s tale.

Given the brevity of the Playhouse version, it drops tons of plot beats. Indeed, it doesn’t even feature Rudolf V as an “on the air” character, so Colman only portrays one character in it.

Perversely, that makes Playhouse the more interesting of the two, as its “pared to the bone” nature means the writers needed to get more creative. In any case, both add value to this set.

As a mix of romance and intrigue, The Prisoner of Zenda holds up pretty well after 73 years. A good cast and a solid sense of narrative development help make it an entertaining tale. The Blu-ray comes with strong visuals, appropriate audio and some useful bonus features. I find a lot to like about this compelling little adventure flick.