Alice's Playhouse
In Alice's Playhouse you will discover an exceptional collection of feature films adapted from some of the most celebrated plays ever written. Often featuring towering performances, outstanding direction and exceptional writing, this collection is a superb archive of contemporary drama masterfully transferred to the silver screen.
Filmizations of The Bard's work may be scrolled via the 'Shakespeare' sub-feature in green on the left, along with other notable playwrights who have been adapted for celluloid.
For adaptations of novels and short stories, check the 'Special Interest' link and click on 'Based on...'
Right: Marlon Brando and Vivien Leigh relax during the filming of Tennessee Williams' masterpiece, 'A Streetcar Named Desire'.
Steaming (1985)
6.5/10
Director: Joseph Losey
Starring: Diana Dors, Sarah Miles, Vanessa Redgrave
The last film by the great filmmaker Joseph Losey features a stellar female cast of Vanessa Redgrave, Sarah Miles, Diana Dors and Patti Love in an ada... Read more
Summertime (1955)
7.4/10
Director: David Lean
Starring: Katharine Hepburn, Rossano Brazzi, Darren McGavin
An American spinster's dream of romance finally becomes a bittersweet reality when she meets a handsome - but married - Italian man while vacationing... Read more
Sunday in the Park with George (1986)
9.2/10
Director: James Lapine
Starring: Mandy Patinkin, Bernadette Peters, Frank Kopyc, William Parry
Based on Seurat's painting "A Sunday Afternoon On The Island Of La Grande Jatte", which depicts people gathering on an island in the Seine. This music... Read more
Switching Channels (1988)
5.9/10
Director: Ted Kotcheff
Starring: Kathleen Turner, Christopher Reeve, Burt Reynolds, Ned Beatty, Henry Gibson
A modern take on 'His Girl Friday' which in turn was an adaptation of '20s play 'The Front Page'. Kathleen Turner takes the lead as a fiesty cable ne... Read more
Talk Radio (1988)
7.3/10
Director: Oliver Stone
Starring: Alec Baldwin, Ellen Greene, Eric Bogosian
Oliver Stone directed this adaptation of Eric Bogosian's hit stage play, which is loosely based on the murder of Denver Talk show host Alan Berg by a... Read more
Tape (2001)
7.3/10
Director: Richard Linklater
Starring: Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman, Robert Sean Leonard
Director Richard Linklater ("Slacker") delivers a dark and edgy comedy about friendship, resentment and retribution. A reunion of three former high sc... Read more
Tartuffe (1926)
7.3/10
Director: F W Murnau
Starring: Hermann Picha, Rosa Valetti, Lil Dagover, Werner Krauss, Emil Jannings
Famous German filmmaker FW Murnau's interpretation of Moliere's satirical play about a devious housekeeper who convinces her master to cut his son out... Read more
That Good Night (2017)
7.5/10
Director: Eric Styles
Starring: Charles Dance, John Hurt, Sofia Helin, Max Brown, Erin Richards
Ralph, a once-famous screenwriter, is in his seventies and terminally ill. He has two final missions: to be reconciled to his son, Michael, and, secre... Read more
The 47 Ronin ( aka Chushingura ) (1962)
7.6/10
Director: Hiroshi Inagaki
Starring: Yuzo Kayama, Koshiro Matsumoto, Toshiro Mifune, Tatsuya Mihashi, Yosuke Natsuki,...
One of the most retold stories in Japanese cinema is this historical samurai saga set at the turn of the 18th century, in which 47 loyal ronin seek ve... Read more
The Admirable Crichton (1957)
8.2/10
Director: Lewis Gilbert
Starring: Cecil Parker, Diane Cilento, Kenneth More
Comedy based on James Barrie's classic play in which Kenneth More's English butler, shipwrecked with his employers, resourcefully leads them in their... Read more