A lightweight made-for-TV romantic drama from Britain, The Student Prince (originally titled The Prince of Hearts) offers a moderately entertaining, if not particularly memorable, viewing experience. Robson Green plays Barry, a working-class police officer who's given the (to him) dubious promotion of becoming the new bodyguard to a son of the Royal Family (Rupert Penry-Jones) as he starts attending Cambridge University. An element of Cyrano de Bergerac enters the picture as the Prince falls for an American exchange student named Grace (Tara Fitzgerald) and enlists Barry to help him win her love... while Barry himself secretly falls in love with her.

It's not a bad little film, and the actors give earnest and reasonably successful performances, but it also always feels like something light and sugary. Some aspects of the film seem a little too hastily done, such as the fact that the plot resolutely rolls onward (determined to finish up in its allotted 92 minutes) even when the characters don't feel sufficiently developed for what the story has planned for them. There's also the fact that Fitzgerald's U.S. accent is unconvincing; if the role required it, why couldn't the filmmakers have gotten a genuine U.S. actress (or at least a British one who could fake the accent better)?

There's really not a lot to say about The Student Prince that doesn't involve reiterating its basic storyline. The romantic drama has a twist of "lovers kept apart by forces outside their control"; most of the time it's fairly easy to predict exactly how these sorts of stories will play out, but on the other hand, since British drama is often willing to do the unexpected, there's the potential for viewers to actually be a bit in suspense about how things will wrap up in the end.

Apart from the main story thread of the romance, there's also a consistent thread dealing with the Prince and his elite status, and more specifically the place of a monarchy in a democratic society. I suspect that this angle of The Student Prince most likely resonates more with British viewers; for me, it had a slight appeal insofar as it touched on issues of class and privilege, but I didn't feel that the film really explored the material all that much. The ending of the film felt a bit abrupt, as it wraps up with rather an odd twist, but it's one that may give it additional charm to British viewers.

The DVD

Video

The Student Prince appears in a watchable anamorphic widescreen transfer, at the film's original 1.85:1 aspect ratio. Colors are warm and natural, but the image is quite soft and grainy overall, with some print flaws as well.

Audio

The Dolby 2.0 soundtrack is reasonable. There are no real problems with the track, but the dialogue doesn't sound sufficiently separated from the rest of the track, and it's occasionally a bit muffled-sounding as a result.

Extras

A few minor features are included. There's a text biography of Robson Green, cast filmographies, and a photo gallery.

Final thoughts

As far as lightweight romantic dramas go, The Student Prince is a decent entry, with a mildly entertaining story and decent performances from its leads. It didn't really knock me out, but it's watchable, and it's a cut above the typical U.S. made-for-television film. Rent it.