Madeleine Details

wrong film

the 'madeleine' as advertised on this site is billed as starring trevor howard, celia johnson and alec guinness and directed by david lean. what you actually get, albeit still directed by lean, is a move starring ann todd. whether they are one and the same film, with a different cast, i really couldn't say - but in any event it's a good film, for those who like oldies, with a good plot and well acted. would probably have given it three and a half stars if that option was available, but with a choice of three or four, went for four. Just.

[Highly rated reviewer]

Lean in courtroom melodrama shock

The actors list probably refers to the whole collection rather than this film which stars his wife Ann Todd. It seems to be a vehicle to show her in a variety of lights and the film does seem to suffer because of this. She plays a free spirited type of girl who is seeing a french suitor behind her parents back with not just the fear of being caught and judged by society but being sent to a home. The implications are that the affair is quite sexual (done by cutaways of course) but when she tries to break off with him then he starts to blackmail her into sticking to their betrothal. This develops into a the courtroom scenes and an enigmatic ending. Not quite top notch Lean but worth watching.