a master chef and lavish preparation and fine ingredient in the choice of actor and great set and costume but no imagination in the story . it still enjoyable because upper middle class london in the 1950s and the relationship among the people and their entertainment and the beauty of the home and the clothes and the accent and be a pretty enjoyable place to be for this movie duration . however and the story an uneasy mix of an uninvolving outdated sappy soap opera story of the torn man and his nobly suffer wife and with a murder trial that have drama but no surprise at all be pretty bad . be in the world of the reluctant debutante and witness for the prosecution and dial m for murder and midnight lace upper middle class 1950s london ( it the sort of movie where and a they change from black tie and gown and they might say represent do you enjoy the philharmonic tonight and darling . well and the oboe be a trifle off . don not forget we have lord and lady x come for dinner tomorrow . he pull a face while she smile and embrace him and praise him . ) . you both love this atmosphere it doesn not seem stifle at all yet understand how the angry young men and then the beatles could have want to blow it up . a major criticism represent this movie have the kind of mindset that launch feminism . woman exist either to ensnare men to their doom with their beauty or to nobly suffer and praise and forgive their heroic and if unfaithful in the heart and men . time and again and we hear of the unfeminine curiosity of one woman ( whose interest be entirely prurient ) and and we see the absolute shock on peck face when his client say that an adulterous affair in her past be at her initiation . a minor criticism represent there be no explanation why an american ( peck ) be a barrister . rex harrison would have be a good choice . another minor criticism represent the dialogue be so repetitive . e. g. and how often be peck told he tire . sometimes four time in a singleanother minor criticism represent the music be too heavy and the story just isn not enough to really grab u so the music must tell u what we be suppose to feel . yet the movie be still enjoyable the character of gregory peck and charles laughton and charles coburn and louis jourdan be well draw and enjoyably relate to each other . laughton be particularly good loathsome yet real seeming . alida valli be beautiful and exotic . ethel barrymore have obviously have far far good role ann todd be actually quite a good actress in other thing and but have absolutely nothing to work with here and so the viewer will find her tiresome ( not the movie intention ) . if hitchcock and these star be not involve in this movie and no one would ever watch it and and it would probably still sit gather dust somewhere and unreleased for home viewing . so and see it it be enjoyable to see these star in this atmosphere and but expect some irritation and do not expect to remember it in a year .