Stella Bonheur Movies

Vivien Leigh plays Karen Stone, a middle-aged actress whose career is in a tailspin. To assuage her hurt feelings, Karen goes on a vacation to Rome with her husband, who dies en route. Her best friend (Coral Browne) compassionately arranges for a young Italian escort (read: gigolo) to keep Karen from wallowing in her grief in Rome. The man hired for the task is sneering, contemptuous Pablo di Leo, played by Warren Beatty. Despite Pablo's rude behavior, the lonely Karen throws herself at him, showering him with expensive gifts and demanding his undivided attention. This being an adaptation of a Tennessee Williams novel, Blanche Dubois --er, Karen Stone must pay the piper for her eleventh-hour surfeit of passion; she is dispensed with by an "Angel of Death" in the form of psycho Jeremy Spencer. More operatic than dramatic, The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone represents the only feature-film directorial effort of experimental-theatre maven Jose Quintero; his assistant was future Bullitt helmer Peter Yates. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

In this crime drama, an American author living in London gets involved with the wicked wife of a well-known jewel fence. The trouble begins when she coerces the writer to rob her own husband. He pulls the job off admirably, but soon afterward, the fence is found dead. To make it worse, a blackmailer begins threatening to tell the authorities that the writer killed the victim. Not willing to take the extortion lying down, the brave author heads for the police to turn himself in. It is then that he learns the true identity of the killer. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

A rugged, isolated island off the coast of Nova Scotia provides the setting for this drama. Much of the island is owned by one person, the other inhabitants, primarily lobster fishermen, rent from him. One of the lobster men begins romancing the wealthy owner's daughter and marries her. After the wedding, the bride is disturbed to learn that her hubby is a compulsive gambler who quickly squanders their small savings. The impoverished couple has no choice but to leave the island and live on the mainland. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

In this comedy, a mild-mannered shipping clerk and his wife get into deep trouble after they are mistaken for jewel thieves by gangsters who want them to steal some valuable jewels. Despite the couple's protest, the crooks force them into pulling off the job during a ritzy party. While there, they realize that the real jewel thieves are also in attendance. The two ingeniously engineer the capture of the crooks and bring them to justice. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi

British writer/director Donovan Pedelty, a past master at efficiently adapting stage plays for the screen, does a neat job with Charles Landstone's Behind Your Back. Stella Bonheur plays Lady Millicent Coombe, an eminent playwright about to launch her latest production. Lady Millicent is saddled with a company of trouble-prone actors, each with his or her insurmountable problems. Fortunately, all problems are surmounted, just seconds before the curtain goes up. Topping the cast is personable Jack Livesey; at the bottom of the list is Jimmy Mangeean, as a disgruntled "man from the stalls [the worst theatre seats, that is]." ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Hollywood's Charles Bickford and Mexican leading lady Raquel Torres top the cast of the British circus melodrama Red Wagon. Bickford plays Joe, an expert trick rider, while Torres is his fiery gypsy dancer Sheba. Though in love with tiger trainer Zara (Greta Nissen), Joe breaks up with her over a foolish misunderstanding and marries Sheba as consolation. A climactic confrontation with a rival circus man forces Joe to confront the mistakes he's made in his life. Red Wagon was adapted from a novel by Edward Knoblock, of Kismet fame. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi