Kind Hearts and Coronets (PG)

In the years after World War II, there emerged from the Ealing Studios a series of comedies so dry and droll, so literate and cheeky. Beautifully observed, they would often catch the flavour of a black, white and grey 1950s austerity Britain, that the phrase "Ealing comedy" described them and no others. Many starred Alec Guinness, then in his 30s and so anonymous in appearance that while dressed as Hitler for a costume fitting, he stepped outside and failed to raise the eyebrow of a passing policeman.

Little wonder his autobiography would be entitled Blessings in Disguise.

In Kind Hearts and Coronets he plays eight different members of the same family, of both genders and a six-decade age span, by doing relatively subtle things with makeup, posture and behaviour. Because he was ‘nobody’ he could be anybody.

In this, one of his most renowned performances, he comes up with lines like… “It is so difficult to make a neat job of killing people with whom one is not on friendly terms.” A masterpiece remastered for the big screen and fresh new eyes. Don’t miss.