Why so much hype?

Pretty Good

everything you have heard about this movie is true.

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

In an earlier review of the first Sissi film, I pointed out that the historical significance of this trilogy lies not so much in its account of the Austrian Empire before the First World War (this is totally fairy-tale history) but in its relevance to the post-war German world.Germans (particularly young Germans) were in a constant state of denial in the fifties and sixties. As late as the seventies I taught groups of West German students who would were not even willing to express an opinion about the possible future reunification of a still divided Germany and of course steered well away from any discussion of the unfortunate events of 1933-1945 - the "you know what" of the German world.Austria, spared by a sort of political conjuring trick from all implication in German nastiness, served as a wonderful alibi for the pan-German world and was the natural setting for a sumptuous epic (a film of the kind that Germany itself now avoided making).Romy Schneider and Karlheinz Böhm were the ideal representatives of the new generation, expressive at once of continuity and reborn innocence. Both had parents who were in fact closely implicated in the period no one talked about. Magda Schneider, who appears of course as her daughter's mother in the films, had been a neighbour and close friend of Hitler (she still lived in Bechtesgarten) and had also been, according to herself at any rate, his favourite actress. The conductor Karl Böhm had belonged to a quasi-Nazi cultural organisation (formed by the very racist Alfred Rosenberg)and had publicly and ostentatiously welcomed the annexation of his native Austria in 1938. Romy and Karlheinz of course had both been at boarding-school and were innocent of any such associations.The average German did not so much want a break with the past but to establish a line of continuity that made the past somehow OK (even the "you know what"). It might be mildly critical of those nasty Nazis (as in the highly popular film Die Trapp-Familie, which came out in the same year as this second Sissi film, but were not prepared, understandably enough, to accept the burden of collective guilt for the past. Even The Sound of Music, the gooey Hollywood musical based on the German 1956 film, was felt by German audiences (despite the edelweiss) to be too strongly critical of the unmentionable past.In the second Sissi film, there is the same pan-Germanic context as in the first (Bavarian beer and Bavaraian pigs' trottters, the Tyrol and edelweiss are not forgotten) but the historical events (the Hungarian unrest and Sissi's fondness for Hungary are accurate) allow an expansion of the pan-Germanic space, balm to the soul of a divided Germany, beyond the German-Austrian world portrayed in the first film to include Hungary, traditionally very strongly linked, culturally and politically, with the German world but in 1956 a Communist state under Russian tutelage. It is not too difficult to appreciate the importance of this in 1956, the year of the Hungarian rising against the Communist government and its suppression by Soviet troops. The link was widely commented upon in the contemporary press and 350 Hungarian refusgees weer invited to the film's première at the Mozart-Kino.In 1954 Leni Riefenstahl's Tiefland was released in Germany, controversial because it had been made during the war and had made use of concentration-camp inmates as gypsy extras. Faced by a hostile press campaign, Riefenstahl ttok refuge in Austria. Her tour there was, in her own words, "a roaring success". In this film Mariscka hired gypsy extras for the crowd-scenes in Hungary, a fact frequently emphasised in the publicity for the film. Today a reunited Germany sees itself once again as the centre of the culture of Mitteleuropa but, even in the days when such things weer not spoken of, that cultural imperium remained close to the heart of most Germans. As Germany increasingly flexes its muscles and begins to talk incessantly once again of rearmament, let us hope that the future of that Central European imperium proves closer to the fairy-tale world of this trilogy, where even the reactionary autocrat Franz Josef is displayed as a benevolent liberal, than to the darker reality of the "you know what".

"Sissi - Die junge Kaiserin" or "Sissi: The Young Empress" is the second of 3 Sissi films starring Romy Schneider, her mother Magda and Karlheinz Böhm. Director and writer is Oscar nominee Ernst Marischka again and it runs for 105 minutes just like the first. Many of the topics in this film are exactly like they were in the first. The love between the 2 main characters is still strong, but so is Sissi's connection to back to her rural roots. She loves her parents, especially her father. She is the ultimate do-good character and protects animals this time and the Hungarians as well. The main antagonist is once again Franz Josef's mother and there are occasionally successful attempts at humor, even if this is probably even more a drama than the original movie, mostly with the motherhood plot. And of course the mountain climbing scenes, which for the first time bring the danger of death to the movies, even if it was fairly cringeworthy.I personally did not like the original too much and same applies to this one here. It suffers from one-dimensional writing, especially in terms of the character developments which are almost non-existent. The actors are mediocre for the most part and not good enough to elevate the weak script for the most part. I would not have needed this sequel and I also do not need a third film. I have almost no hope this one is better than these first two. Do not be fooled by the awards recognition this film got. Schneider lost the Bambi for the second year in a row to Maria Schell. The best thing about this film is, just like with the first the visual side. Schneider looks absolute stunning and the costumes cinematography and set decorations are all fairly good. But these pros cannot make up for the lack of great story or acting. Admittedly, it is not worse than the first in my opinion, so if you enjoyed that one, you will probably like this one as well. I just wouldn't know why. Not recommended.

A few years ago, my wife and I toured Austria. Up until then, I'd never heard of Empress Elisabeth ('Sissi'). However, as we toured a couple of the royal palaces in Vienna, we heard an interesting version of the life of Sissi. Tour guides said that the popular image of the empress was far from the real lady. On more than one occasion, she was described as vain as well as 'not quite right' (a nice way of saying crazy or at least emotionally unstable). And, tour guides enjoyed regaling us with stories about her eccentricities. Some of these I know to be true (such as her obsession with her weight) and others I still haven't been able to prove or disprove (they claimed she had teeth pulled in order to make her face look thinner). Regardless, this new assessment of the woman flies in the face of the fanciful and highly fictionalized Sissi trilogy made back in the 1950s. Whether or not you'll like these films has a lot to do with whether you are looking for the real Elisabeth or the nearly Cinderella-like fictionalized Sissi. Since I am a retired history teacher, you can probably guess which version I prefer.From what I have been able to learn, "Sissi: The Young Princess" is closer to the truth than the first film, "Sissi". That's because the first film is all happiness and joy--and is hard to believe. But here in the second of three films, you see the beginnings of a schism in the marriage between her and Emperor Franz Joseph. The film seems to blame all this on Franz's overbearing mother, Archduchess Sophie. While she was clearly a dominant figure in her son's life, blaming all the couple's problems on her is overstating things a bit. Much of the problem between the pair related more to very, very different temperaments--Franz Joseph was a rather dull and hard-working man whereas Sissi was almost manic and never liked to sit still. And, from what I have recently read, Sissi seemed to have little interest in her husband.So apart from overstating the awfulness of Archduchess Sophie, what's the rest of this film like? Well, like the first one, it's filmed in magnificent color--and sure looks great with its location shoots in the mountains as well as throughout Vienna (such as in Schönbrunn Palace). And for the romantics out there who love everything royal, there is a lot to like. Romy Schneider plays Sissi with an almost cloying niceness and you can't help but like her--even though she isn't too much like the real Sissi. She is who people WISH Sissi to have been--much like the world's fascination with Princess Diana. Not, like the real Sissi--complete with coughing fits and depression! All in all, an enjoyable film that's best taken for what it is instead of what it isn't. To me, it's like a steady diet of meringue--tasty but not especially filling.

Loved it as a romantic teenager in Holland in 1956 - now I'm a senior in Australia and still love it. It brings back wonderful memories of my youth. Sure it is sweet and most probably not a completely true story, but who cares ? I'll see it anytime, it's a shame they don't make movies like this anymore.