To me, this movie is perfection.

Awesome Movie

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

There's no way I can possibly love it entirely but I just think its ridiculously bad, but enjoyable at the same time.

This is a dark comedy that is a bit slow paced but not slow enough to lose the audience. As remaking earlier films is so popular, this movie would be an ideal candidate, particularly for someone with a biting sense of humor who could give it some punch for the modern audience.

A simply wonderful black as midnight comedy! The wit and irony run strong in this, it's truly fantastic. It's near perfection, from the clever and sharp dialogue to the masterfully crafted chain of circumstances that drives the plot. Alec Guinness plays eight quite different roles, and deserves an extra mention, but really there is no weak link in the cast. If you are a fan of black comedies, then this is a mandatory viewing!

...from the studio who brought you THE LADYKILLERS. KIND HEARTS AND CORONETS is an even more inventive piece in which a man obsessed with his family history decides to kill off rival members of his extended family in order to claim the inheritance for himself. This is a crisply-shot period piece that benefits hugely from a blacker-than-black performance from Dennis Price as the ice cold murderer working his way through a large list.Despite the grim subject matter, KIND HEARTS AND CORONETS is never less than funny, and there's plenty of original material here too. It's best remembered today for featuring numerous performances from Alec Guinness playing no less than eight members of the same family (females too). Guinness is clearly having a ball and the resultant film is a lot of fun to watch, although tame by modern standards. Watch out for a few familiar faces lower in the cast list: a delightfully dry Miles Malleson, plus Hugh Griffiths; Valerie Hobson (BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN) is the love interest.

The movie starts with Louis Mazzini (Dennis Price) the Duke of D'Ascoyne in prison on the verge of execution. Then the movie flashes back as he narrates his life story. He has always resented his mother's family who shunned her for running away with an Italian commoner. Her family even refuses to allow her to be buried in the family vault. As a young man, Sibella refuses his proposal of marriage to such a poor man. Then he is fired from his lowly job as a draper's assistant after an altercation with Ascoyne D'Ascoyne. He decides to take the title of the Duke of D'Ascoyne by killing all other heirs in front of him.The movie is best known for Alec Guinness who plays all the D'Ascoyne heirs, 8 characters in total. One of my pet peeves has always been overly long unnecessary narration. The problem here is the long low energy narration that acts as Louis' inner voice. It takes away all the tension. It is fascinating to see Alec Guinness play each character with personality. This is a vicious skewering of the English class system. Dennis Price does a fair job but I can't take the almost constant narration.