The Baroness and the Butler

The Baroness and the Butler with William Powell, directed by Walter Lang.  William Powell plays the butler of the Hungarian prime minister, accommodating his preferences to perfection.  The household is put in an uproar when the radio announces that Powell has been elected to parliament representing the opposing party. Powell does not intend, however, for his political career to prevent him from dressing the prime minister in the morning and making sure his breakfast is made just so.


I have a couple of complaints about this one.  The audio quality of the broadcast was poor, and the female lead was played by "Popular French actress Annabella, in her US film debut".  Her accent in poor audio was hard to follow.  Also, this film was set in Budapest, like The Shop Around the Corner.  I don't get that this location added anything to the movie, so either Hungary was popular at the time or they felt like they had to be faithful to the source material.  William Powell was great, and is always best in formal wear.  I guess Walter Lang didn't hit his stride until later.