Sources
Help build the largest human-edited directory on the web.
Submit a site - Become an editor
Wikipedia. Licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Are you an expert in this subject? Join the discussion and share your knowledge at Wikipedia.org.
The Importance of Being Earnest (1952 film)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| The Importance of Being Earnest | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Directed by | Anthony Asquith |
| Produced by | Teddy Baird Earl St. John |
| Written by | Oscar Wilde Anthony Asquith |
| Starring | Michael Redgrave Michael Denison Edith Evans Joan Greenwood Dorothy Tutin Margaret Rutherford Miles Malleson |
| Music by | Benjamin Frankel |
| Release date(s) |  2 June 1952 22 December 1952 (NYC) |
| Running time | 95 min. |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
The Importance of Being Earnest is a 1952 British film adaptation of the play by Oscar Wilde. It was directed by Anthony Asquith, who also adapted the screenplay, and was produced by Teddy Baird.
Contents |
The film is largely faithful to Wilde's text, although it divides some of the acts into shorter scenes in different locations.
Edith Evans's outraged delivery of the line "A handbag?" has become legendary. As actor Ian McKellen has written, it is a performance "so acclaimed and strongly remembered that it inhibits audiences and actors years later" providing a challenge for any actress taking on the role of Lady Bracknell.[1]
The film is noted for its acting, yet the parts played by Redgrave and Denison call for actors ten years younger.
The film stands as the most famous adaptation of an Oscar Wilde play.
The film received a BAFTA nomination for Dorothy Tutin as Most Promising Newcomer and a Golden Lion nomination for Anthony Asquith at the Venice Film Festival.
- Michael Redgrave as John Worthing
- Michael Denison as Algernon
- Edith Evans as Lady Bracknell
- Joan Greenwood as Gwendolen
- Margaret Rutherford as Miss Prism
- Miles Malleson as Canon Chasuble
- Dorothy Tutin as Cecily
- ^ Ian McKellen, "Ian McKellen on The Test of Time", The Observer, 13 April 1975.
- The Importance of Being Earnest at the Internet Movie Database
- Criterion Collection essay by Charles Dennis
 |
This 1950s comedy film-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |