This dramatic account of the Austrian royal family at the turn of the 20th century focuses on Crown Prince Rudolf (Alfons Fryland) and his cousin Franz Ferdinand (Willi Hubert), the heirs to the emperor, Francis Joseph I (Fritz Spira), and his wife Sissi (Erna Morena). Rudolf acquiesces to an arranged marriage with Belgium's Princess Stefanie (Maly Delschaft), but they separate after she gives birth to a daughter instead of a male heir. Rudolf begins an affair with Baroness Mary Vetsera (Leni Riefenstahl), but their relationship is attacked by both his wife and the emperor. When the baroness becomes pregnant with Rudolf's child, the two lovers choose to commit suicide together. Not long after, Empress Sissi is murdered in Switzerland, and Franz Ferdinand weds his lover Countess Chotek (Minje van Gooten), marrying beneath his rank. The couple is assassinated in Sarajevo in 1914 and their deaths lead to the onset of World War One. 28/100
by Nicole Gagne
synopsis
