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The Inheritance

Original title: The Reluctant Widow
  • 1950
  • 1h 26m
IMDb RATING
5.6/10
100
YOUR RATING
The Inheritance (1950)
Drama

An English governess marries a complete stranger while he is on his deathbed. After he dies, she inherits his estate but is soon involved with some French spies working for Napoleon. At the ... Read allAn English governess marries a complete stranger while he is on his deathbed. After he dies, she inherits his estate but is soon involved with some French spies working for Napoleon. At the same time, she finds herself attracted to her late husband's cousin.An English governess marries a complete stranger while he is on his deathbed. After he dies, she inherits his estate but is soon involved with some French spies working for Napoleon. At the same time, she finds herself attracted to her late husband's cousin.

  • Director
    • Bernard Knowles
  • Writers
    • Basil Boothroyd
    • Georgette Heyer
    • Gordon Wellesley
  • Stars
    • Jean Kent
    • Guy Rolfe
    • Paul Dupuis
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    5.6/10
    100
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Bernard Knowles
    • Writers
      • Basil Boothroyd
      • Georgette Heyer
      • Gordon Wellesley
    • Stars
      • Jean Kent
      • Guy Rolfe
      • Paul Dupuis
    • 9User reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Photos

    Jean Kent and Guy Rolfe in The Inheritance (1950)
    The Inheritance (1950)
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    Top cast

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    Jean Kent
    Jean Kent
    • Elinor Cheviot
    Guy Rolfe
    Guy Rolfe
    • Lord Carlyon
    Paul Dupuis
    Paul Dupuis
    • Lord Nivelle
    Lana Morris
    Lana Morris
    • Becky
    Kathleen Byron
    Kathleen Byron
    • Mme. Annette de Chevreaux
    Scott Forbes
    Scott Forbes
    • Francois Cheviot
    • (as Julian Dallas)
    Anthony Tancred
    • Nicky
    Peter Hammond
    Peter Hammond
    • Eustace Cheviot
    Jean Cadell
    Jean Cadell
    • Mrs. Barrows
    Andrew Cruickshank
    Andrew Cruickshank
    • Lord Bedlington
    George Thorpe
    • Col. Strong
    Ralph Truman
    Ralph Truman
    • Scowler
    James Carney
    • Maj. Forbes
    Allan Jeayes
    Allan Jeayes
    • Colonel
    Hector MacGregor
    Hector MacGregor
    • Sir Malcolm Torrens
    Noel Howlett
    Noel Howlett
    • Vicar
    Roddy Hughes
    Roddy Hughes
    • Dr. Greenlaw
    Cecil Bevan
    • Director
      • Bernard Knowles
    • Writers
      • Basil Boothroyd
      • Georgette Heyer
      • Gordon Wellesley
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

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    Did you know

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    • Quotes

      Lord Bedlington: Pretty and practical - very rare indeed!

    • Connections
      Featured in Reader, I Married Him: Heroines (2006)

    User reviews9

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    5/10
    Ridiculous Gainsborough Melodrama
    I know now why actors in "Eastenders" suddenly appear through kitchen doors in their silly "soaps"; they were doing it back in 1950 in silly melodramas such as this, when characters suddenly appear mysteriously in the room.This type of Gainsborough melodrama had run its course by 1950 as more sophisticated screenplays had begun to replace them at the cinema.Single and married women whose husbands & boyfriends were in the armed forces during the war were now expecting a higher class of film when they went to the cinema.

    Jean Kent plays the female lead in "The Reluctant Widow"/"The Inheritance" playing at first a governess who gets sidetracked into another house becoming the wife of a husband on his deathbed.If that was not far fetched, the plot becomes more farcical and melodramatic with every scene.The action takes place in the regency of George IV and the Duke of Wellington.It becomes very confusing and involves spying, selling government secrets to Napoleonic France.Guy Rolfe is formally defrocked on military parade but redeems himself in the end with the military hierarchy.Jean Kent is passed around snogging many of the male characters while Noel Howlett, (the headmaster in the t.v. production of "Please Sir"), has to perform the marriage service again to a bridegroom who is supposedly dieing in bed.Kathleen Byron makes a brief appearance as a French female accomplice.I gave it only 5/10.
    helpful•2
    1
    • howardmorley
    • Mar 16, 2017

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    Details

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    • Release date
      • May 1, 1950 (United Kingdom)
    • Country of origin
      • United Kingdom
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • The Reluctant Widow
    • Filming locations
      • Denham Studios, Denham, Buckinghamshire, England, UK
    • Production company
      • Two Cities Films
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • Runtime
      1 hour 26 minutes
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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