Mary of Scotland

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Movie Info

Maxwell Anderson's blank-verse play Mary of Scotland was adapted for the screen by Dudley Nichols and directed with a surprising paucity of verve by John Ford. Katharine Hepburn, in one of the "icy" roles that would later earn her the onus of "box office poison", stars as Mary Stuart, who serves as the Queen of Scotland until she is jealously put out of the way by her British cousin, Queen Elizabeth I (Florence Eldredge). Sold out by the Scots nobles, Mary is sentenced to the chopping block for treason. Elizabeth is willing to pardon Mary if only the latter will renounce all claims to the British throne, but Mary refuses, marching to her death with head held high (the Mary/Elizabeth confrontation scene was purely the product of Maxwell Anderson's imagination; in real life, the two women never met). RKO contractee Ginger Rogers dearly coveted the role of Queen Elizabeth, but the studio refused to allow her to play so secondary a role. To prove to the RKO executives that she would be ideal for the part, Ginger secretly arranged for a screen test, in which she was convincingly made up as Elizabeth (even to the point of cutting her hair into a high-foreheaded widow's peak). Contemporary reports indicate that Ginger's audition was brilliant; still, RKO would not consider casting her in the part, so the role of Elizabeth went to Florence Eldridge, the wife of Fredric March, who was cast in Mary of Scotland as Mary's fearless protector the Earl of Bothwell. On the whole, Mary of Scotland is a snoozefest, save for the scenes featuring Douglas Walton as Mary's cowardly husband Darnley.
  • Rating:
    NR
  • Genre:
    Classics, Drama
  • Directed By:
    John Ford
  • Written By:
    Dudley Nichols
  • In Theaters:
     limited
  • On Disc/Streaming:
  • Runtime:
  • Studio:
    RKO Radio Pictures

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Cast

Katharine Hepburn
as Mary Stuart
Fredric March
as Earl of Bothwell
Florence Eldridge
as Elizabeth Tudor
Douglas Walton
as Darnley
John Carradine
as David Rizzio
Robert H. Barrat
as Morton
Gavin Muir
as Earl of Leicester
Ian Keith
as James Stuart Moray
Moroni Olsen
as John Knox
William Stack
as Lord Ruthven
Ralph Forbes
as Lord Randolph
Alan Mowbray
as Lord Throckmorton
Frieda Inescort
as Mary Beaton
Donald Crisp
as Huntley
David Torrence
as Lindsay
Molly Lamont
as Mary Livingston
Anita Colby
as Mary Fleming
Jean Fenwick
as Mary Seton
Lionel Pape
as Burghley
Alec Craig
as Donal
Mary Gordon
as Nurse
Monte Blue
as Messenger
Leonard Mudie
as Maitland
Brandon Hurst
as Arian
Wilfred Lucas
as Lexington
D'Arcy Corrigan
as Kirkcaldy
Frank Baker
as Douglas
Cyril McLaglen
as Faudoncide
Lionel Belmore
as English Fisherman
Doris Lloyd
as Fisherman's wife
Bobby Watson
as His Son
Robert Warwick
as Sir Francis Knollys
Ivan Simpson
as Judge
Murray Kinnell
as Judge
Lawrence Grant
as Judge
Nigel De Brulier
as Judge
Barlowe Borland
as Judge
Earl Foxe
as Earl of Kent
Walter Byron
as Sir Francis Walsingham
Wyndham Standing
as Sergeant-at-Arms
Earle Foxe
as Earl of Kent
Paul McAllister
as Du Croche
Gaston Glass
as Chatelard
Neil Fitzgerald
as Nobleman
Jean Kirchner
as Prince Jame
Judith Kirchner
as Prince Jame
Robert E. Homans
as Jailer
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Critic Reviews for Mary of Scotland

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Audience Reviews for Mary of Scotland

  • Sep 20, 2010
    This movie is very long, boring, and jumps around in time. It does have some humorous scenes, but the movie is mostly boring. The only thing I liked about the movie was Hepburn's performance, she's great as always, but the rest of the cast kind of glides through.
    Aj V Super Reviewer
  • Apr 04, 2007
    A stately bore that is full of historical inaccuracies. Kate Hepburn puts on a good show but her Mary bears no resemblance to the actual shallow and conniving Mary.
    jay n Super Reviewer
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