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Kind Hearts and Coronets

Play trailer Poster for Kind Hearts and Coronets 1950 1h 44m Comedy Crime Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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100% Tomatometer 51 Reviews 93% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
When his mother eloped with an Italian opera singer, Louis Mazzini (Dennis Price) was cut off from her aristocratic family. After the family refuses to let her be buried in the family mausoleum, Louis avenges his mother's death by attempting to murder every family member (all played by Alec Guinness) who stands between himself and the family fortune. But when he finds himself torn between his longtime love (Joan Greenwood) and the widow of one of his victims (Valerie Hobson), his plans go awry.
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Kind Hearts and Coronets

Kind Hearts and Coronets

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Critics Consensus

Performed with chameleonic brio by Alec Guinness, Kind Hearts and Coronets is a triumphant farce.

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Critics Reviews

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Kevin Maher The Times (UK) Mar 30, 2023
A black comedy, with beautiful writing — the screenplay, co-written by Robert Hamer, its director, is a joy— and flawlessly silly film-making. Go to Full Review
Anthony Lane The New Yorker Nov 22, 2019
Drownings, explosions, and poisonings, their ethical status barely mentioned, let alone chastised, roll by like carriages in the park. The comedy is as black as widow's weeds. Artfulness is all. Go to Full Review
Patrick Gibbs Daily Telegraph (UK) Dec 20, 2014
A high comedy that is enlivened with cynicism, loaded with dramatic irony and shot through with a suspicion of social satire. Go to Full Review
Julian Singleton Cinapse Jul 12, 2025
Kind Hearts and Coronets is a delightfully dark comedy featuring a king’s ransom of fantastic performances by Guinness as well as leads Dennis Price, Joan Greenwood, and Valerie Hobson. Go to Full Review
Bernard Chardère Positif Apr 4, 2022
No detail has been left to chance. Each word is carefully weighed, there is not one word too many, each scene is meticulously prepared, and none could possibly have been structured or executed better. Go to Full Review
Harold Whitehead Montreal Gazette Mar 30, 2022
The ideal film would, of course, have... the most talented director in the canvas chair a superbly-written screen-play and the best possible cast. This British comedy has come so close to this mark that it is difficult to see how it could be improved. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Huntin P @PaxVobiscum80 1 day ago From the days when Britain had a film industry of its own. Latterly, many a famous movie has been made in the UK, with British technicians, but the stars, the glamour, and the profits, all sail home to the USA. I wonder if Americans are really alert to just how many of their favourite films were shot in the UK, and/or featured British production expertise? Did you know, for instance, that Full Metal Jacket was made on location in England, certainly not the USA or Vietnam? Anyways, Kind Hearts and Coronets is a brilliant black comedy, with an excellent performance by Dennis Price (as the malevolent schemer) and a succession of brilliant performances by Alec Guinness (playing all his victims). Will he achieve his diabolical ends? Check it out. A masterclass in acting and the macabre. See more Rafi M @RT61647557 5 days ago Alec Guinness [Obi Wan Kenobi!] playing eight different people in a movie he narrates? And he kills them off one by one?!? For this ingenious trope alone, this is a must-see film. The wicked, dark humor, elegant, sophisticated, wry English, the side-glances and subterfuge, lush outfits and scenery, and deft ending are side dishes that distinguish this masterpiece of classic film-making. [See the English, un-sanitized version] See more Kyle M @RT77296778 Jul 10, 2026 Best be taken as a darkly humorous socialite satire that effectively elicited few laughs thanks to Price’s elegant performance whilst Guiness’ roles validate this more as a talented showcase over a thinly disconnected plot that disengages in a form of lengthy, worthwhile joke. (B) See more Kim P @RT98672688 Mar 23, 2026 Narrated by Guinness' character throughout, the story and motivations are easy to follow. But for those easily offended, two characters throw around the N word pretty carelessly, 3 or 4 times. If it's any consolation, it's used in the more vulgar version of the Eenie, meenie, miney, moe rhyme and isn't directed with malice towards an actual character. Just a warning about an uncomfortable few moments near the conclusion of an otherwise very well done film. See more Matthew D @OceanSage Mar 3, 2026 Dennis Price’s devious serial killer is so clever and entertaining, while Alec Guinness portraying all eight of the rich family members is hilarious. Joan Greenwood’s seductive femme fatale is a sultry scream! Director Robert Hamer’s British crime-comedy Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949) is an excellent English classic of cinema. Hamer’s playful proper direction is very amusing. Writers John Dighton and Robert Hamer’s adaptation of Roy Horniman’s use of refined English manners that mines so much humor here. Dennis Price is delightful as the suave and clever British serial killer Louis Mazzini. Alec Guinness is hysterical as all eight rich members of the D'Ascoyne family. Valerie Hobson is lovely as the nice aristocrat lady Edith D'Ascoyne. Joan Greenwood steals the film as the gorgeous, hilarious, and conniving Sibella Hallward. She really feels brilliant and always has the upper hand on Louis. In all, Kind Hearts and Coronets is an easy watch for a surprisingly upbeat black comedy. See more Navid S. @navidshah94 Nov 7, 2025 Brilliantly written and wonderfully acted, but not really the comedy I expected. It felt more like a dark and tragic satire than something meant to be funny. The story of Louis calmly murdering his way up the family tree is fascinating, and the ending was perfect in its irony. A sharp, elegant film about ambition, hypocrisy, and the cruelty behind manners. See more Read all reviews
Kind Hearts and Coronets

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Movie Info

Synopsis When his mother eloped with an Italian opera singer, Louis Mazzini (Dennis Price) was cut off from her aristocratic family. After the family refuses to let her be buried in the family mausoleum, Louis avenges his mother's death by attempting to murder every family member (all played by Alec Guinness) who stands between himself and the family fortune. But when he finds himself torn between his longtime love (Joan Greenwood) and the widow of one of his victims (Valerie Hobson), his plans go awry.
Director
Robert Hamer
Producer
John Dighton
Screenwriter
Roy Horniman, Robert Hamer, John Dighton
Distributor
Anchor Bay Entertainment, General Film Distributors, Eagle-Lion Films Inc. [us]
Production Co
Ealing Studios
Genre
Comedy, Crime, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jun 14, 1950, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Feb 14, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$35.9K
Runtime
1h 44m
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