“They don't come any wilder than Oscar Wilde's classic comedy of manners, morals and morality!”
Two young gentlemen living in 1890s England use the same pseudonym ('Ernest') on the sly, which is fine until they both fall in love with women using that name, which leads to a comedy of mistaken identities.
Anthony Asquith
Teddy Baird
Anthony Asquith
Desmond Dickinson
Benjamin Frankel
Michael Redgrave
Ernest Worthing
Michael Denison
Algernon Moncrieff
Edith Evans
Lady Bracknell
Joan Greenwood
Gwendolen Fairfax
Dorothy Tutin
Cecily Cardew
Margaret Rutherford
Miss Prism
Miles Malleson
Canon Chasuble
Richard Wattis
Seton
Walter Hudd
Lane
Aubrey Mather
Merriman
Ivor Barnard
Conductor (Uncredited)
CinemaSerf
There's little point in outlining the plot here - it's not what the film is about. It is the combination of characterisations and the wonderfully witty writing of Oscar Wilde that make this a thoroughly enjoyable film to watch. It makes no bones about it's theatrical origins - even featuring a curta...
The Importance of Being Earnest (1952) trailer
Trailer • YouTube
Javelin Films
British Film-Makers
J. Arthur Rank Organisation