OriginallytitledLesPerlesdeCouronne,thisSachaGuitryhistoricalextravaganzastarsbothGuitryandhiswifeJacquelineDelubacTheplotlinehingesonfourvaluablepearls,whichpassfromhandtohandoveraperiodofseveralcenturies,fromthetimeofBritain'sHenryVIIItothepresentAllofthisisofferedinflashbackform,asagroupofmoderndaytreasurehunterstrytolocatethreeofthemissingpearlsbytracingthembacktotheirpreviousownersGuitryshowsupasKingFrancisI,BarrasandNapoleonIII,inadditiontohiscontemporarypersonaofJeanMartin;DebulacisseenasMaryQueenofScotsandEmpressJosephineThereisn'tascintillaofhistoricalaccuracyinthefilm,nordidGuitryhavetheslightestintentionofincludingany;hissolepurposewastoentertaintheaudienceandserveupasuperblyironicdenoumentThesupportingcastisapolyglotofFrench,EnglishandItalianactors,eachspeakinginhisorherownlanguageThescreenplayforPearlsoftheCrownwascowrittenbyGuitryandanotherimmenselytalentedfilmmaker,ChristianJaqueHalErickson,Rov