Fürst Woronzeff (1934)

At the Monte Carlo casino, the beautiful Diane Morell meets Baron von Naydek, whom she mistakes for her former lover, the Russian Prince Woronzeff. The misunderstanding is quickly cleared up. Naydek and Woronzeff look so much alike that they could be mistaken for each other, and they are friends. However, they have not seen one another for 15 years. By now seriously ill with heart disease, Woronzeff has withdrawn to his palace in Cannes. His 18-year-old daughter Nadja, who disappeared amid the turmoil of the Russian Revolution 14 years ago, now faces the prospect of being cheated out of her inheritance by the Prince’s money-hungry relatives. Woronzeff feels too weak to fight the scheming fortune hunters, so he asks his old friend Naydek to impersonate the Prince for a while and defend Nadja’s rights. Meanwhile, Diane, the Prince’s former girlfriend, sees through the switch but keeps the secret to herself. She has long since fallen in love with the daring gambler Naydek. Naydek, for his part, finds it increasingly difficult to play the role of a father, because he has now fallen in love with young Nadja. In the meantime, Woronzeff has died, and Naydek is forced to continue playing his role indefinitely. The now-orphaned Nadja idolizes her “father,” who is only waiting for the chance to confess his true feelings to his “daughter.” When Naydek realizes that Nadja is in love not with him but with his younger brother Otto, he steps aside. He realizes that he has found a kindred spirit in Diane. For the outside world, the false Prince stages a boating accident so he can start a new life with Diane. Adventurous, beautiful, and passionate, the two sail toward a future together.