GenreComedy CinematographyC. M. Pennington-Richards LanguageEnglish
WriterNoel Streatfeild, Kenneth Horne Release date22 November 1954 CastMargaret Rutherford, Ronald Shiner, Fay Compton, Nigel Stock, Sid James, A. E. Matthews Similar moviesMississippi Grind, California Split, Wild Card, Casino Royale, Heist, Dr. No
The opening scenes to aunt clara
Aunt Clara is a 1954 British comedy film starring Margaret Rutherford as a woman who inherits a number of shady businesses from a relative. Ronald Shiner, A. E. Matthews, and Fay Compton are also featured. The film was based on the novel of the same name by author Noel Streatfeild, and directed by Anthony Kimmins for London Films.
Clara Hilton (Margaret Rutherford), is a puritanical old lady whose eccentric uncle dies and leaves her five racing greyhounds, a broken-down pub, and a successful brothel. When confronted with her property, Clara is outraged, but shrewdly finds a way to convert the tainted money to good use for a children’s holiday fund. Clara also keeps Simon’s outspoken valet Henry Martin (Ronald Shiner) on to assist her.
Cast
Ronald Shiner as Henry Martin
Margaret Rutherford as Clara Hilton
A. E. Matthews as Simon Hilton
Fay Compton as Gladys Smith
Nigel Stock as Charles Willis
Jill Bennett as Julie
Reginald Beckwith as Alfie Pearce
Raymond Huntley as Maurice Hilton
Eddie Byrne as Fosdick
Sid James as Honest Sid
Diana Beaumont as Dorrie
Garry Marsh as Arthur Cole
Gillian Lind as Doris Hilton
Ronald Ward as Cyril Mason
Jessie Evans as Lily Pearce
Critical reception
'Britmovie' wrote the film "fails to catch fire despite its undoubted charm. Margaret Rutherford plays the eponymous lead but for once her dotty spinster persona is understated and the film contains a suffocating melancholic tone that only resolves itself at the films moving closure"; while TV Guide observed "a charming film dotted with cameos by noted British comics."