Alec Guinness – The Screen Icons Collection DVD – Lionel Jeffries , Maurice Denham

Classic collection of the early films of Alec Guinness. In the classic Ealing comedy, ‘Kind Hearts and Coronets’ (1949), young Louis Mazzini (Dennis Price) vows to take revenge on his family, the D’Ascoynes, when he learns how they disinherited his mother. Working his way into their trust, Louis begins to bump off his distant relatives (all played by Alec Guinness) one by one, but complications set in when Edith D’Ascoyne (Valerie Hobson), the widow of his first victim, falls in love with him. In ‘Last Holiday’ (1950), Guiness plays an agricultural salesman who finds out he has a short time to live. Taking a final holiday, he realises that he was actually a more interesting person than he allowed himself to be. In ‘The Man In The White Suit’ (1951), eccentric Sidney Stratton (Alec Guiness) is a laboratory cleaner in a textile factory, who invents a material that will neither wear out nor become dirty. Initially hailed as a great discovery, Sidney’s astonishing invention is suffocated by the management when they realise that if it never wears out, people will only ever have to purchase one suit of clothing. In ‘The Captain’s Paradise’ (1953), Guinness stars as Mediterranean ferryboat Captain Henry St. James, who believes in the notion of ‘a girl in every port’. For Henry has a wife on both sides of the water. There is Maude (Celia Johnson) in Gibraltar and Nita (Yvonne DeCarlo) in Tangiers. Everything is perfect as long as neither woman decides to visit the other port. In ‘Barnacle Bill’ (1957), Guiness plays retired Navy Captain Ambrose, who buys a decrepit amusement pier in ‘Sandcastle-On-Sea’ planning to turn it into a going concern. But when the local council object to the idea, planning to close the pier down, Ambrose has to use some lateral thinking to save the day.

Collection of four films starring the iconic British actor. Includes LAST HOLIDAY, KIND HEARTS AND CORONETS, THE MAN IN THE WHITE SUIT, CAPTAIN’S PARADISE and BARNACLE BILL.

This box set contains the following films: The Last Holiday (Dir: Henry Cass) (1950): Alec Guinness plays a salesman of agricultural machinery who finds out that he hasn’t long to live. He decides to enjoy his last months to the fullest. Kind Hearts And Coronets (Dir: Robert Hamer) (1949): Dennis Price plays Louis D’Ascoyne the would-be Duke of Chalfont whose mother was spurned by her noble family for marrying an Italian singer for love. Louis resolves to avenge his mother by murdering the relatives ahead of him in line for the dukedom all of whom are played by Alec Guinness! The Man In The White Suite (Dir: Alexander Mackendrick) (1951): Sidney Stratton (Alec Guinness) invents a new strong fibre which repels dirt and never wears out! He uses this material to make a brilliant white suit and attempts to sell his product to the textile industry. However all is not as it seems when those in the industry realise that Stratton’s new fibre could mean the end of their livelihood – the race is on to catch Stratton! Captain’s Paradise (Dir: Anthony Kimmins) (1953): Henry St. James is the Captain of an international ferry. He enjoys his life at Sea especially as he has a loving English wife waiting for him in Gibraltar and another in Tangiers! A perfect life – so long as neither woman decide to travel with him! Barnacle Bill (1957) A British Naval Captain who is plagued by incurable seasickness retires from service and buys a decrepit amusement pier in a small coastal town. After discovering the local commissioners seek to condemn and seize his pier Captain Ambrose must do all in his power to save his pier.