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'.
Picnic (1955)
7.4/10
Director: Joshua Logan
Starring: William Holden, Rosalind Russell, Kim Novak
One of the biggest box-office attractions of the 1950s, "Picnic" was adapted by Daniel Taradash from the Pulitzer Prize-winning William Inge play abou... Read more
The Daughter (Blu-ray) (2015)
6.6/10
Director: Simon Stone
Starring: Geoffrey Rush, Miranda Otto, Sam Neill, Paul Schneider, Ewen Leslie, Anna Torv,...
"The Daughter" comes bearing literary cred as a loose adaptation of Ibsens 1884 play The Wild Duck. It trades in a Norwegian backdrop for an econom... Read more
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (1967)
7.3/10
Director: David Swift
Starring: Michele Lee, Rudy Vallee, Robert Morse
Robert Morse recreated his Tony-winning stage role in this filming of the Pulitzer Prize-winning musical. Window washer J. Pierpont Finch applies the... Read more
The Teahouse of the August Moon (1956)
6.9/10
Director: Daniel Mann
Starring: Marlon Brando, Glenn Ford, Machiko Kyo, Eddie Albert, Paul Ford
A whimsical, poignant adaptation of the hit Broadway play about an American G.I.'s experiences in Okinawa in 1944. Glenn Ford is given the task of 'de... Read more
Mame (1974)
6/10
Director: Gene Saks
Starring: Lucille Ball, Bea Arthur, Robert Preston
Lucille Ball coaxes the blues right out of the horn in this brassy, big-screen musical extravaganza. She stars as an eccentric woman who becomes guard... Read more
NOW: In the Wings on a World Stage (2014)
7.1/10
Director: Jeremy Whelehan
Starring: Kevin Spacey, Sam Mendes
It's that rare film that captures and conveys the romance of the theatrical experience. Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times. Join the excitement of live... Read more
Sarafina! (1992)
6.4/10
Director: Darrell Roodt
Starring: Whoopi Goldberg, Leleti Khumalo, Miriam Makeba
Based on the hit play, this musical-drama is set against the backdrop of racial strife in Soweto, South Africa, in 1979, where rebellious schoolteache... Read more
Witness for the Prosecution ( Blu-ray ) (1957)
8.4/10
Director: Billy Wilder
Starring: Charles Laughton, Elsa Lanchester, Marlene Dietrich, Tyrone Power
Agatha Christie's play about a sensational London murder trial features great performances from Charles Laughton as the ageing lawyer, and from Tyrone... Read more
Loot (1970)
5.7/10
Director: Silvio Narizzano
Starring: Richard Attenborough, Lee Remick, Hywel Bennett, Milo O'Shea
An adaptation of Joe Orton's hilarious stage play, in which a young hood robs a bank and hides the money in his mother's coffin, but isn't able to ret... Read more
The Hollow Crown: Series 2 - The Wars of the Roses (2016)
8.4/10
Starring: Hugh Bonneville, Judi Dench, Michael Gambon, Sophie Okonedo, Benedict Cumberbatc...
These three screen adaptations, Henry VI in two parts and Richard III, tell the story of 'The Wars of the Roses', an exceptionally turbulent period in... Read more