The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone (1961)

Nominated for 1 Academy Award:

Best Supporting Actress: Lotte Lenya

Having seen the TV movie from 2003, starring Helen Mirren, I kind of knew the story and remembered some parts, especially the ending. Not sure how come I never got to see this, the original adaptation, considering I have a special place in my heart for Vivien Leigh and it’s also Tennessee Williams, which usually means a more playful story for that era.

Viv is good and she looks great. Warren Beatty is just ok in his feature film debut, he plays the boy-toy with an Italian accent. The best performance from the movie comes from the theatre actress Lotte Lenya, which I’d never seen before, playing a countess pimping male prostitutes. For some reason I thought her nomination would be more of a filler, but I was surprised to see it’s very much deserved, as she dominates every moment on screen with a peculiar shrewdness.

The story is just ok, this is no big romance. The ending is very much set up for interpretation, and I kind of like that.

I give it: 6.5/10

IMDB LINK