Martita Hunt Movies

Based on the mystery novel by Marryam Modell (using the pseudonym Evelyn Piper), Bunny Lake Is Missing is a bizarre study in motherhood, kindness, enigma, and insanity. Ann Lake (Carol Lynley), an American freshly relocated to England, wishes to drop off her daughter Bunny for the girl's first day at a new nursery school. Oddly, Ann cannot locate any teachers or administrators, only the school's disgruntled cook (Lucie Mannheim). She is forced to leave Bunny unsupervised in the building's "first day" room, under the reassurance that the cook will be responsible for the child. When Ann returns in the afternoon, the cook has quit and Bunny Lake is missing. The school's remaining employees vehemently deny ever seeing the child, and Ann desperately calls her older brother Stephen (Keir Dullea) for help. Ann was raised fatherless and never married; she and Bunny have lived under Stephen's care and protection for the majority of both their lives. Stephen is enraged by the irresponsibility of the staff, but as Scotland Yard begins its investigation, it comes to light that he had never officially enrolled a child at the school. When Police Superintendent Newhouse (Laurence Olivier) begins to unravel the Lakes' lives and search their belongings, he discovers that not only did Ann once have an imaginary childhood daughter named "Bunny," but that the young Bunny seemed to have no tangible possessions at the Lake apartment. Bunny Lake (whom we have yet to see onscreen) may not be missing: she may not even be real. Terrified that Newhouse will now abandon the search for the girl, the hysterical Ann sets out to prove her sanity and, in the process, surprisingly uncovers the true psychosis behind the disappearance of her little Bunny Lake. ~ Aubry Anne D'Arminio, Rovi

A high-class costume drama with a substantive historical basis, Becket is the true story of the friendship between King Henry II (Peter O'Toole) and Thomas à Becket (Richard Burton), a royal courtier and confidant whom Henry appoints as Archbishop of Canterbury. As Becket takes his duties with the Church seriously, he finds himself increasingly at odds with the King, who finally orders the death of his once-close companion when he continues to defy the throne. Burton is very good and O'Toole is even better: both men were nominated for the Best Actor Oscar, while Edward Anhalt's screenplay, based on the stageplay by Jean Anouilh, won for Best Adapted Screenplay. The basic theme of separation of church and state still reverberates today, while the top-notch production values ensure Becket's place as one of Britain's better historical epics. ~ Don Kaye, Rovi

Mr. Topaze was based on a play by Marcel Pagnol, previously filmed twice before with John Barrymore and Fernandel. Peter Sellers stars as a French college professor, known far and wide for his integrity. He refuses to improve a grade on the paper of one student, whose influential father sees to it that Sellers is fired. Cast adrift in the business world, Sellers is hired by a crooked liquor executive (Herbert Lom) to act as "front" for the benefit of the authorities. When Sellers catches on how much money there is in the business, his honesty evaporates and he becomes as underhanded as the next fellow. The love of Joan Sims enables Sellers to change his ways before his dishonesty can become disastrous. Mr. Topaze was rereleased in 1963 as I Like Money; once again, however, no one wanted to see a "straight" Peter Sellers in a role that called out for the broad comedy he did so well. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Hoping to recapture the success of its 1945 Frederic Chopin biopic A Song to Remember, Columbia Pictures concocted the 1960 Technicolor costume drama Song Without End. Dirk Bogarde is cast as musical genius Franz Liszt. Bogarde's piano scenes are dubbed with another's singing voice, but this hardly matters in that the film is preoccupied with Liszt's infamous romantic entanglements. The crux of the matter is Liszt's desire to wed the already married Russian princess Carolyne (Capucine), which will necessitate an unpleasant breakup with his current lover, Countess Marie (Genevieve Page). Director Charles Vidor died after only a few weeks on the picture; he was replaced by George Cukor, who graciously insisted that Vidor be billed in letters larger than his. The chief selling point of Song Without End is its wall-to-wall music; the film won an Oscar for "best musical arrangement." ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this drama, a Jewish refugee finds himself stranded in Paris just as the Nazi invaders arrive. Desperate to escape, he commanders the car of a Polish colonel who hates Jews. In order to save himself, the colonel helps the fellow escape. En route, they pick up the officer's girl friend. Trouble begins when the girl finds herself attracted to the Jewish fellow who is really quite witty and charming. The colonel is not amused, but eventually they three end up hiding in a castle. Unfortunately, they are captured anyway. To help them out, the Jewish fellow pretends the colonel is his cousin and they manage to escape. This causes the colonel to change his attitudes and the two become friends. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

Three Men in a Boat is the second film version of the comic novel by Jerome K. Jerome. The titular trio is played by popular British comedian Jimmy Edwards, up-and-coming leading man Laurence Harvey and stalwart character actor David Tomlinson. Escaping their dull weekday pursuit, the three pals take a pleasure excursion down the Thames in a small boat, encountering all sorts of comic and romantic complications. Jill Ireland makes an early screen appearance as a young lady who briefly bewitches the bookish Harvey. Though dated, Three Men in a Boat was just as capable of eliciting laughter as it had been in its first cinematic incarnation in 1933. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Filmed in 1955, Les Espions (The Spies) was based on Midnight Patient, a novel by Egon Hostowsky. The scene is a rundown sanitarium, which is subtly but thoroughly taken over by a ruthless gang of international spies. One of the new "patients" is purportedly the inventor of a new nuclear explosive device, which of course attracts the attention of Russian and American counterspies. When it turns out that the inventor is a phony, it throws the entires espionage community into a frenzy. Before long, it is impossible to tell the good guys from the bad. As confusing as it sounds, Les Espions has the advantage of a superb international cast, including Curt Jurgens, Sam Jaffe, and Peter Ustinov. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Set in Ireland, The March Hare stars Terence Morgan as Sir Charles Hare, a wastrelly aristocrat who gambles away his family fortune. About to be evicted from his ancestral racing stables, Hare decides to stay on when he's mistaken for a groom by the new American owner's pretty daughter Pat Maguire (Peggy Cummins). Continuing to conceal his true identity, Hare helps Pat to raise a colt for racing purposes, leading to a lengthy but exciting Derby Day finale. Though The March Hare has lapsed into public domain, most existing prints retain the vivid color cinematography of Patrick Hildyard. The film was based on Gamblers Sometimes Win, a novel by Captain Field. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

King's Rhapsody was the second screen teaming of beloved British star Anna Neagle and Hollywood's "bad boy" Errol Flynn. Based on a musical play by Ivor Novello, the film casts Flynn as a European prince who falls in love with commoner Neagle. The prince pulls an "Edward VIII" and goes into exile so he may set up house with the woman he loves. When the King dies, Flynn is obliged to return to his throne and marry a hand-picked princess (Patrice Wymore, who was Mrs. Flynn at the time). Years later, the prince, finally free to marry, seeks out Neagle. She still loves him, but sends him on his way, realizing that his true place is with his people. Although Anna Neagle's husband Herbert Wilcox was producer-director of King's Rhapsody, her songs were cut from the final release print, leaving her with literally nothing to do but stand around and look radiant. Perhaps as a result, King's Rhapsody was one of the few Neagle/Wilcox failures. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

American opera and musical-comedy soprano Patrice Munsel plays the title role in this filmed biography of famed Australian diva Nellie Melba. The story begins on Nellie's father's cattle farm, where she grew up under her given name of Nelly Mitchell. While studying in Paris with the great Madame Marchesi (Martita Hunt), Nelly is advised to change her name to something more exotic. After attaining international success, Nellie returns to Australia to marry her erstwhile sweetheart (John McCallum), who eventually realizes that he can never find happiness so long as he is forced to share Mme. Melba with the rest of the world. Melba was directed by Lewis Milestone, who'd originally come to Australia to lens 20th Century-Fox's Kangaroo. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

This comedy is set in an Irish mansion and centers on its enigmatic owner. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

...And it ended in London. This backstage yarn stars Jane Hylton as a talented dress designer who lets nothing get in the way of her success. As she rises in the fashion world, she loses contact with her own humanity. She also forgets that you meet the same people on the way up as on the way down. It Started in Paradise is a unusually plush, Lana Turner-esque production to come from a British studio in the early 1950s. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi