Sir Percy has the best expressions "Sink meh!" "Odd's fish" and my favorite "What is it you frenchies say? Touche?" lol he's so smooth and fun to watch!
Oh, gosh.... I came here all "Oh, Leslie Howard, Leslie Howard! No one can replicate the perfection of your performance!" and truthfully, his Scarlet Pimpernel is still absolutely amazing; but... I think I'm falling head over heels for this Mr. Andrews... :)
Percy "Hm....giant basket, check. Date with the beautiful Marguerite, check. Rescue another from Madame guillotine, check...Sink me! What a marvelous day!"
+Motoruven Every time I watch this movie (It's my favorite- I read most of the books) I think the same thing. Well, not exactly the same thing, but I have taken note of his acting style and really like it.
@EatPlums You try some of this nowadays, you will get a slap in the face or worse. T_T That delivery to "you know nothing about me" though...might have to save that for future use. ^^
I have loved this movie for years, and though I 'replaced' my VHS copy with a DVD years ago, I still own both. I came here just to be able to quote a part correctly, but am overjoyed to see so many other people loving this movie.
The what he adds at the end of his I'm a poet and you didn't even know it is brilliant because it's so modern and out of place which makes it seem so funny.
I find it interesting how they made Marguerite and Armond more well off in this version. They may not be aristocrats but she's the toast of Paris and he's a rising political star!
I'm currently looking through classic literature to become a better writer. I found this movie to be much easier to understand. I love how Percy is pretending to be such a fop.
Some how I can see, where characters like Bruce Wayne, and Don Diego Viego, Also known as Zorro, are similar to the Scarlet Pimpernel. It's awesome. :D
Well, if you think about it later in the movie Marguerite says that "Now he acts the fool in private as well as in public." So, obviously he acts different when they're alone.
at first I was wondering how the actress lady couldn't notice the aristocrat that was smuggled in the carriage... then I thought who wouldn't when you are on a date with Anthony Andrews!
What does he say at 6:15? It sounds like "sink me". Whatever it is it's awesome; I think I am going to start saying it. Just like he does too, with the long gutteral noise at the end of every sentence.
Luckily, he keeps courting her in a more passionate way, afterwards. I doubt at that point he has fully won Marguerite’s heart. Yes, Percy is funny and even witty, in that scene… but chivalrous ? And yes, Chauvelin is a treator and doesn’t stick to his word, but at that stage, Marguerite isn’t aware of it, yet.
one thing i don't get isn't marguerite supposed to meet percy "as percy" and not as the fop first? here, she sees him flip flopping back and forth. doesn't that ruin the whole point of her finding out that he's acting at the finale of the story?
It's him sarcastically saying "Oh come on!" or "Oh please" -- 'sink me' is literally referring to the likelihood of him physically sinking to his death before he would accept Chauvelin's preposterous suggestions -- especially regarding men's fashion. It's a British eccentricity - which, taken from my experience with British upper class, has been that the wealthier a person is in high society, the more eccentric and idiosyncratic they tend to behave...that's what makes Percy's disarming use of these eccentricities so brilliant... it's the perfect disguise for his heroism. In fact, I once met a business man who was instrumental in negotiating the release of Nelson Mandela. He was part of a covert operation to see Mandela go free, and relied on similar tactics to remain clandestine in South Africa during this major political unrest.
Oh, my. My introduction to Sir Percy was Richard E. Grant. I fell in love with him immediately. This is truly nauseating. I'm sorry I found it. Even Ian Mckellen couldn't make it watchable.
Dude. He's British. And the foppish over the top accent is meant to be idiotic...notice the way he immediately changes his voice when he's speaking to Marguerite in private; he becomes sincere and straightforward. THIS is what makes his vocal choices as an actor so compelling! It's all a grand charade, which plays directly into the drama of Marguerite's deliberation as to who the real Sir Percy is; the idiot or the heroic, sincere statesman.
