I love how in a time when the content of Hollywood films was heavily controlled, Ealing Studios here in the UK decided to make a comedy about eight murders.
Louis D'Ascoyne Mazzini (David Price) is the son of an aristocratic woman who was disowned by her family for marrying out of her social class. After her death, he decides to murder the eight members of the family in the line of succession so he can claim the family's dukedom.
This is an extremely dark film but somehow never manages to feel too distasteful. The novel had the lead character as having a half-Jewish rather than Italian background and played into Jewish stereotypes but wisely Ealing decided this didn't feel right after the events of World War II. All eight members of the family are played by Alec Guinness and this reduces the darkness of it too- you know there is another Alec Guinness waiting around the corner and it reminds you that this is a work of fiction, making the plot more palatable.
Guinness is superb in his eight roles. He could easily have hammed it up for this film but he doesn't and instead, each family member feels like a distinct character. There's a a superb composite shot of most of the family members together which is really well achieved for the time. David Price meanwhile is great in the lead role, giving us a very Wildian murderer who has a dry wit which is a lot of fun.
There's some depth to the themes here, especially around the social classes. The film is gently critical at the upper class in an effective way. I had no idea the nobility could be tried for crimes in the House of Lords until 1935, an absurd idea that is well used here. Much of the conflict comes between the upper classes having relationships and marrying lower classes- the worst feature of the family is their superiority over people they consider beneath them.
A dark comedy in general let alone by 1949 standards with a great script and some brilliant performances.
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