Nadia Gray Movies
Of Russian-Rumanian descent, Nadia Gray left Bucharest in the late '40s when the Communists took over. Arriving in Paris with her aviator husband, who claimed to be (and probably was) a European prince, she made her first screen appearance in L'Inconnue D'un Soir (1948). Specializing in aristocratic, jet-set roles, she was memorable as a decadent partygoer named Nadia in Fellini's La Dolce Vita (1960) and as Francoise in Stanley Donen's Two For the Road (1967). Fans of TV's The Prisoner will remember her guest star turn in the episode "The Chimes of Big Ben." Marrying a second time to a Manhattan attorney, Nadia Gray left films behind in 1976 to settle in New York, where she began a second career as a night club entertainer. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1949
The Spider and the Fly is set in Paris during the cloud-cuckoo days before WW I. The storyline intertwines the destinies of three people. Guy Rolfe plays Phillipe de Ledocq, a resourceful safecracker who always manages to elude arrest. Eric Portman is cast as police-chief Maubert, who will not rest until Ledocq is behind bars. And Nadia Gray is Madeleine, the woman beloved by both Ledocq and Maubert. Just as Maubert has managed to capture his man, Ledocq is released at the behest of the government, who wants him to steal secrets from the German embassy revealing the whereabouts of the Kaiser's secret agents. And just how does Madeleine figure into all of this? Spider and the Fly is a diverting precursor to the 1960s TV series It Takes a Thief. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Guy Rolfe, Nadia Gray, (more)
- 1950
Monseigneur offers a few intriguing speculations as to what really happened to the little Dauphin, aka King Louis XVII, after the French revolution. Fernand Ledoux stars as an absentminded Parisian professor who befriends Louis, a mild-mannered locksmith (Bernard Blier). Engaging Louis in conversation, the professor becomes convinced that the locksmith is in fact the long-lost Dauphin. The excited professor manages to get several aristocrats interested in Louis' story, and soon the meek artisan finds himself mingling with the upper levels of French society. Monseigneur does what it does so well that the audience truly wants to believe that Bernard Blier is, indeed, the rightful heir to the throne of France. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nadia Gray, Marion Toures, (more)
- 1951
In this action-adventure film, a Swedish professor searches for his treacherous wife and his assistant after they steal his research and head for the frozen wastes of Lapland. The scientist is accompanied by a police inspector. During their journey, they are attacked by wolves. Fortunately native Laplanders use their trained eagles to help rescue the two. Later the wicked lovers end up killed in an avalanche. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jack Warner, Nadia Gray, (more)
- 1951
Night Without Stars was adapted by Winston Graham from his own novel. David Farrar stars as Giles Gordon, a blind, disillusioned Briton who whiles away his time on the French Riviera. Gordon falls in love with Alix Delaisse (Nadia Gray), the widow of a legendary French resistance leader. The romance encounters turbulence when it appears that Alix is involved with criminal activities. Regaining his sight in an operation, Gordon pretends that he's still blind, the better to find out whether or not Alix has been lying to him. When he's satisfied that she's been truthful all along, he begins gathering evidence to entrap the genuine culprits. American musical comedy star June Clyde makes an amusing appearance as a pixillated party girl. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- David Farrar, Nadia Gray, (more)
- 1952
Top Secret gets under way when George (George Cole), a janitor in a research plant, accidentally comes into possession of the plans for a revolutionary atomic weapon. As George embarks on his annual vacation, the research security team embarks on a nationwide search for the hapless broom-pusher. Meanwhile, the Russians get wind of the incident and intercept George, plying him with liquor and empty promises so that he'll hand over the plans to them. All the while, George never knows what the fuss is about: he thinks that the British and Soviet authorities are interested in his new plans for a modern sanitary system! No one takes Top Secret seriously--certainly not Oscar Homolka, who delivers a bravura performance as a Russian secret agent who wistfully yearns for the glories of the Czarist days. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- George Cole, Oscar Homolka, (more)
The title of this Italian period comedy translates to Bride for a Night. Armando Francioli plays an impoverished 18th-century musician who seeks the patronage of a wealthy, libertine count (Gino Cervi). When the count comes to town on a visit, the musician hits upon a scheme: he will bundle his real wife (Gina Lollobrigida) out of the house, hire a local courtesan (Nadia Gray) to pose as his wife, then allow the count to sleep with his "bride" in exchange for financial support. Inevitably, the plan falls through, with the count ending up in bed with the real wife while the husband stews in his own juices. If this plot sounds familiar, it is because Mogile per Una Notte was remade by Billy Wilder in 1964 as Kiss Me, Stupid. The most entertaining aspect of the original film is the presence of Gina Lollobrigida as a frowzy housewife who blossoms into a ravishing beauty after spending the night with the count. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gino Cervi, Armando Francioli, (more)
- 1952
Valley of Eagles is set in northern Scandinavia, on the border between Sweden and Lapland. John McCallum stars as Swedish scientist Nils Ahlen, whose research data has been swiped by his assistant Nystrom (Anthony Dawson). Making things worse is the fact that Nystrom was aided in his perfidy by Ahlen's treacherous wife Helga (Mary Laura Wood). As he murderously pursues the thieves into the snowy wastes, Ahlen's trail is dogged by a police inspector (Jack Warner), who is sympathetic with the scientist but believes that the fugitives should be brought back alive. Nadia Gray co-stars as a pretty Laplander who offers aid and comfort to the embittered scientist. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1953
La Vierge du Rhin translates to Rhine Virgin, a title that would have had trouble getting by the hidebound American censors of 1953. The title refers not to a woman, but to a river barge, which tools up and down the Rhone throughout the film. Ex-POW Jacques (Jean Gabin), bitter and disillusioned, hopes to wreak vengeance on a former friend who'd betrayed him to the Nazis. He is given a new lease on life through his romance with Marie (Nadia Gray), a girl who spends her life on the barge. Meanwhile, Jacques' ex-wife (Elina Labourdette) and his betrayer (Olivier Hussenot) plot the hero's demise. A phony murder charge and a climactic river chase caps this standard Jean Gabin vehicle. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Jean Gabin, Nadia Gray, (more)
The life of composer Giacomo Puccini is dramatized in this attractively produced biopic. Gabriele Ferzetti plays the title character, from his student days to his still-active 80s. The script is structured in classic "persevering over the odds" fashion, with Puccini recovering from the poor reception afforded his Madame Butterfly and going on to the loftiest of professional heights. Along the way, the protagonist's life is profoundly affected by three very different women: Small-town girl Elvira (Marta Toren), opera-diva Cesira Ferrari (Nadia Gray) and a tragic servant girl (Miriam Bru). Ample screen time is given over to full-blooded performances of Puccini's best works. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gabriele Ferzetti, Märta Torén, (more)
- 1954
Eddie Constantine makes his third appearance as Peter Cheney's two-fisted FBI agent Lemmy Caution in Les Femmes S'en Balancent (aka Dames Get Along). In this outing, Lemmy is on the trail of a counterfeiting gang. Somehow or other, the mission requires him to dally with a bevy of international beauties, including Nadia Gray and Dominique Willms. Eventually, Lemmy puts the clues together and locates his quarry, leading to a climactic orgy of violence. Among the villains, the dependable Robert Berri stands out as a menacing hood in the Mike Mazurki tradition. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Constantine, Nadia Gray, (more)
- 1954
This romantic Italian anthology film is comprised of six episodes that deal with a century of love. The first vignette, "Garibaldin," set in 1854, follows a rebellious priest who attempts to sway others to his beliefs. "Pendolin" examines a philandering wife's affair with a hotel porter who really only wanted to give her her lost earrings. "Purification" follows an honorable soldier who refuses to convey his commanding officer's last words to his unworthy girlfriend. In the fourth episode, "Golden Wedding," an elderly couple celebrate their wedding anniversary and discover mutual disillusionment. "The Last Ten Minutes" examines the efforts of a priest and a condemned man to conceal the truth about the man's crime from his wife. Finally, in "Amore," which is set in 1954, a father tries to persuade his daughter's husband to stay married to her. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- 1954
Errol Flynn's immediate followup to his 1953 swashbuckler Master of Ballantrae was Il Maestro di Don Giovanni--or, as it was known in America, Crossed Swords. Flynn plays a Don Juan-like adventurer named Renzo, who fights and romances his way through all sorts of Italian court intrigue. His principal foe is the wicked coucillor (Roldano Lupi) of the Duke of Sivona (Piero Tordi), who intends to oust the Duke and claim Sivona for himself. In between the usual sword duels, Renzo dallies with the Duke's buxom daughter (Gina Lollobrigida). Crossed Swords failed to make a dent in the US, a fact that Errol Flynn would attribute to United Artists' lack of interest in promoting the property. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Errol Flynn, Gina Lollobrigida, (more)
- 1954
Carosello Napoletano was the first major Italian musical of the postwar era. The title, which translates to Neopolitan Carousel, refers to a family of street singers. The story covers a century or so in the lives of this family, with ample screen time given over to romance and heartbreak. Basically an "inventory musical", the film spotlights several well-known Neopolitan tunes, given sprightly performances by the cast. The uncredited voice of famed tenor Beniamino Gigli is heard from time to time for the benefit of his legions of fans. At 125 minutes, Carosello Napoletano tends to wear on the viewer at times, though lovers of popular Neopolitan music and dance will get their fill. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Paolo Stoppa, Clelia Matania, (more)
- 1954
Melody of Love was designed as a showcase for the splendid singing of Roman radio star Giacomo Rondinella. The star plays an impecunious young man whose romance with Maria Fiore is jeopardized by Maria's wealthy father Giovanni Grasso. Papa has selected handsome, apparently respectable Mirko Ellis as a potential son-in-law, but Maria is steadfast in her love for Rondinella. When it turns out that Ellis is actually a notorious drug smuggler, Grasso has an instantaneous change of heart. There's also a "funny" subplot involving an obscure Italian comedy team, of which the less said the better. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Maria Fiore, Giovanni Grasso, Jr., (more)
- 1955
Told in pageantlike fashion, Casa Ricordi is the story of the Ricordi family, the most prestigious music publishers in all Italy. It was the Ricordis who, for better or worse, came up with the "royalty" concept, paying artists (and their families) for their work in perpetuity. As the family's fortune grows, the Ricordis rub shoulders with the musical glitterati of the 19th and 20th centuries, including Verdi, Donizetti, Puccini, Bellini and Rossini. Naturally, this allows the film to showcase some of these composers' most famous works--and in true Hollywood-by-the-Mediterranean fashion, the principal influence for these compositions are the various members of the Ricordi family. The soundtrack of Casa Ricordi reverberates with the voices of such musical immortals as Tito Gobbi, Renata Tibaldi, Mario Del Monaco and Gianni Poggi, among many others. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Miriam Bru, Elisa Cegani, (more)
- 1955
After a woman is dumped, she schemes to ruin her ex-lover's imminent marriage. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1957
Eddie Constantine stars as Bob, an American GI at large in Paris. After attending a performance of the fabled Folies-Bergere, Bob becomes convinced that one of the dancers, a feisty little number named Claudia (Zizi Jeanmaire), has stolen his wallet. When he confronts her with this accusation, she reacts in predictably volatile fashion--and before either one of them quite knows what has happened, Bob and Claudia are married! The remaining reels of Folies-Bergere chart the turbulent course of the marriage, as Bob becomes jealous that so many males get to see so much of Claudia on a nightly basis. Despite its come-hither title, Folies-Bergere is about as racy as a seed catalogue. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eddie Constantine, Zizi Jeanmaire, (more)
- 1957
In any language, the title of this Italian melodrama (English translation: Honor Among Thieves) is amusingly ironic. Gabrielle Ferzetti stars as a master crook with a sentimental streak. Because he's basically a good guy, Ferzetti decides to use his ill-gotten gains for the benefit of others. Unfortunately, his partners in crime are not so charitably inclined towards their fellow man. Enhancing the American box-office take of this Rome-lensed escapade is the presence of songstress Abbe Lane, who is a textbook example of the word "knockout." ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gabriele Ferzetti, Abbe Lane, (more)
