Kind Lady (1935)

Don't listen to the negative reviews

Great movie! If you want to be entertained and have a few good laughs, see this movie. The music is also very good,

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

1935's "Kind Lady" may be held in less regard than its 1951 remake, but comes off better by casting Aline MacMahon and Basil Rathbone in the leads, both younger and more effective than Ethel Barrymore and Maurice Evans. The widowed Mary Herries still pines for the husband she lost during the Great War, and meets impoverished artist Henry Abbott in front of her door on Christmas Eve, inviting him in for a short visit. She banishes any thoughts of romance with the suave handsome stranger upon learning he has a wife and child, and resolves never to see him again. She sadly fails to reckon with his persistence however, enabling him to move in his family and 'friends,' driving all but the maid (Nola Luxford) out of the house, filled with valuable paintings and artifacts, now targeted by Abbott and his despicable entourage. Dependable players such as Murray Kinnell (as the murderous doctor), Dudley Digges, Frank Reicher, E. E. Clive, and Donald Meek make a terrific ensemble, as Mary feigns illness in seeking to regain the upper hand, an uphill struggle without outside help. Having debuted opposite Edward G. Robinson and Boris Karloff in 1931's "Five Star Final," Aline MacMahon enjoys one of her few starring roles, while Rathbone was only solidifying the villainous reputation he so richly deserved, until Sherlock Holmes succeeded in making audiences forget how deliciously wicked he could be (he'd already played Philo Vance in 1930's "The Bishop Murder Case").

Kind Lady (1935) ** 1/2 (out of 4) Decent drama has a kind, rich recluse (Aline MacMahon) inviting a stranger (Basil Rathbone) into her home. Everything starts off fine but soon the stranger takes the woman hostage and invites his strange "friends" into the house. This is an extremely bizarre little film that has been outlived by the 1951 remake but this film here manages to be quite effective even though the directing is highly lacking. The biggest problem with the film is its rather timid direction, which really doesn't deliver a very good pace or enough tension. The tension is one thing that's really lacking and it's a shame because the story itself is so good as are the performances. Rathbone clearly steals the film as the maniac who has to come off so charming to get into the house and then slowly lose it as the more psychotic side comes out. Rathbone never gets enough credit for being such a good character actor, which is a real shame because most people just remember him as Sherlock Holmes. While he was masterful in that role, he did just as impressive work outside of it. The snake like charm makes this a must see for fans of his. MacMahan also delivers a great performance as she perfectly fits the role and the kindness she does display is quite touching yet she also brings a naive touch that makes it easy to understand why someone could take advantage of her. Mary Carlisle, Frank Albertson and Nola Luxford add nice support. Donald Meeks has a brief role as well. In the end, due to the great performances, you can't help but feel a bit letdown that the final film isn't as great as the cast but there's still enough here to make this one worth seeing at least once.

I woke up one morning about 3:00 with the TV was still on, I go to sleep watching TCM, I love the old black and whites. A movie called Kind Lady was playing, and although I was still sleepy, I couldn't stop watching this incredibly disturbing movie about a lovely kind woman played beautifully by Aline MacMahon and the most unlikable despicable character, played to the hilt by Basil Rathbone! I missed the very beginning so don't know why or how he got invited in the first place but the premise is that she's wealthy and generous and invites him, a starving artist, for some reason into her home. She's a collector and has some very famous and expensive paintings hanging in her living room, and after a few visits and a scam involving a pretend wife and starving baby, this horrid man manages to take over her entire life.. I just hated him, he played this character so well that the only thing I can say is that I found it disturbing! Of course it was made in the 30's so it's reasonably naive by today's standard, but a great movie nevertheless!

Before watching this movie I had never seen Aline MacMahon in such an important role, 'cos here she's the star of the picture and she really is great...she was such an actress!!! Her acting technique is so contemporary, her playing so sincere....she's lovely.I must admit that I expected more of the film as whole, from its first half hour, but anyway it's a very good movie, it has an entertaining storyline and excellent performances all around, especially by miss MacMahon and Basil Rathbone, and such a talented large supporting cast! (Dudley Digges, Eily Malyon, Frank Albertson, etc.)MacMahon plays the endearing Miss Herries, the extremely `kind' and single society lady of the title, who lives alone in her big house in London, surrounded by beautiful objects, who learns the hard way, that one has to be careful of being so kind and generous, in a world like ours..Basil Rathbone's character really deceived me at first, because I had no knowledge of the film's plot whatsoever, so I won't tell you more.This is a `B' picture, but for sure much more entertaining and fulfilling than many other A pictures of the period..and it has a surprisingly short running time: 76 minutes...but many things happen in such a short period of time!