Nathan Rothschild and his banker brothers provide the financing to beat Napoleon. On March 14, 1934, 20th Century Pictures held the premiere of Alfred Werker’s The House of Rothschild at the Astor Theater in New York. The film, which centered on the European banking family circa 1780 and starred George Arliss, was released as Adolf Hitler’s Nazi regime was rising to power in Germany.
There are a few historical liberties in "The House of Rothschild," but the film is based on fact. George Arliss has a dual role as Mayer Rothschild and his son, Nathan. When the film begins, the family is living in a Prussian Jewish ghetto where Mayer is doing well but doesn't want the tax collectors to know. On his deathbed, he instructs his sons to establish banking houses throughout Europe as so much money is stolen when it is being carried by messengers.
The plot then focuses on Nathan and goes into the rampant anti-Semitism which forces Nathan out of an important loan. It also shows his brilliance for business as he fights Count Ledrantz (Boris Karloff) who spreads propaganda and incites pogroms. The climax of the film takes place when it appears Napoleon is winning and Nathan starts buying up everything on the stock market, which is bottoming out, in order to keep the deal he made for the war effort. Though not much is made of it, the Rothschilds had informants everywhere, which enabled them to get information before anyone else. He is able to announce before it is made public that Napoleon has been defeated at Waterloo.
Loretta Young, looking very beautiful in costume, and Robert Young handle the roles of the young lovers capably and there are standout performances by C. Aubrey Smith as the Duke of Wellington, Boris Karloff as Ledrantz of Prussia and Reginald Owen as Herries. And Helen Westley is magnificent as the dowager Mrs. Rothschild.