One of the strangest romantic movies ever made, Mitchell Leisen's "Death Takes A Holiday" is virtually unknown today and yet it's a classic of its kind. It's yet another film in which 'Death' takes on human form, (in this case becoming Prince Sirki, excellently played by Fredric March), basically I guess to see what it is that makes people tick and, of course, fear him so much and naturally, he finds himself falling in love.
Based on an Italian play it's a magnificently designed, somewhat creaky, fantasy; part ghost story and part romantic melodrama but it displays a rare intelligence with some surprisingly good supporting performances, (as well as a few typically wooden ones), and perhaps because of its absence from our screens over the years has attained something of a cult reputation. It's certainly strange enough and worth going out of your way to find.
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