Films Based on Plays: Film Guide

Depicts a jury of men who must decide the fate of a teenage boy who has murdered his abusive father. The jurors are from all walks of life, and bring with them their own opinions, prejudices, fears, and personal demons.

Adapted from Shaffer's play, the film presents the life of Antonio Salieri, a mediocre 18th century Viennese composer obsessed with and jealous of the musical genius of the age, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Set in 1985. Revolves around two very different men with AIDS, one fictional, one fictionalized. Roy Cohn, personifies all the hypocrisy, delusion and callousness of the official response to the plague. Nothing shakes Roy's lack of empathy: even on his death bed, he's fighting with his gay nurse and taunting the woman he helped put to death, Ethel Rosenberg. The other patient is Prior Walter, who is visited by an angel and deserted by his self-pitying lover, Louis. Louis moves on to a relationship with Joe Pitt, a Mormon lawyer whose closeted homosexuality drives his wife to delusions and brings his mother to New York.

The Greek tragedy of Sophocles in which King Creon orders Antigone's death for burying her slain brother against the King's desire.

An easy-going drama critic is shocked to discover that his elderly aunts, the seemingly gentle-natured Abby and Martha, have a habit of poisoning gentlemen callers and burying them in the cellar of their old Brooklyn mansion.

A comedy about a young newlywed couple in New York and the difficulties that they encounter in adjusting to marriage and life together in a fifth-floor walk-up apartment.

Despite differences in rank and background, King Henry II and Thomas Becket are lifelong friends. When the Archbishop of Canterbury dies, Henry has a brilliant idea: rather than another pious cleric loyal to Rome, he will appoint his old friend, Thomas Becket—technically a deacon—to the post. Unfortunately, Becket takes the job seriously, holding devotion to God and the Church above his loyalty to the throne, or the person of its inhabitant. In opposition to Henry, he proves abler than his predecessors do, and the clash of two powerful personalities leads to destruction.

Eugene has been sent to boot camp where he encounters lots of new experiences.

A corrupt millionaire junk dealer, embarrassed by his girlfriend's lack of social sophistication, arranges to have her trained in a crash course in "culture." He is surprised and outraged when after becoming aware of her role as pawn in his crooked business deals, she refuses to cooperate.

A witty, perceptive and devastating look at the personal agendas and suppressed revelations swirling among a group of gay men in Manhattan. Harold is celebrating a birthday, and his friend Michael has drafted some friends to help commemorate the event. As the evening progresses, the alcohol flows, the knives come out, and Michael's demand that the group participate in a devious telephone game unleashes dormant and unspoken emotions.

Three Australian lieutenants are court-martialed for executing prisoners as a way of deflecting attention from war crimes committed by their superior officers. Based on a play and true story.

Fifteen-year-old Eugene Jerome is trying to uncover life's mysteries in this adaptation of a Broadway hit about growing up in Brooklyn during the late 1930's.

A comedy-drama about a naive but brash young cowboy from Montana who goes to Phoenix to compete in a rodeo and learns about life and love from a cafe singer whom he tries to force into marriage.

A story of deception which is destroying a patriarchal Southern family as its members gather for the imminent demise of their "Big Daddy."

A group of teenage girls meets in the woods at midnight for a secret ceremony. When the ceremony is witnessed by the town minister, the girls are accused of witchcraft. Soon the entire village is consumed by hysteria, and innocent victims are put on trial, leading to a devastating climax.

A rich, scheming widow, a predatory rake and a beautiful, virtuous woman take the field in the age-old battle of the sexes in the eighteenth century.

Dark drama of a failed man, Willy Loman, whose life did not measure up to his expectations. Starring Dustin Hoffman and John Malkovich

Set in 19th century New England, this is a classic tale of greed, lust and family hatred which shatters a family's life.

Nora is sheltered first by her father and then by her husband. All her life, she has been protected like a fragile possession ... like a doll in a doll's house. After she marries, Nora becomes frustrated, realizes that under the dominance of her husband she will never have an identity of her own, and leaves to find a new life for herself.

1964, St. Nicholas in the Bronx. Father Flynn is a charismatic priest who is trying to upend the schools' strict customs, which have long been fiercely guarded by Sister Aloysius Beauvier. The Sister is the iron-gloved principal who believes in the power of fear and discipline. With the winds of political change, the school has just accepted its first black student, Donald Miller. But when Sister James shares with Sister Aloysius her suspicion that Father Flynn is paying too much personal attention to Donald, Sister Aloysius sets off on a personal crusade to unearth the truth and to expel Flynn from the school. Now, without any proof, besides her moral certainty, Sister Aloysius locks into a battle of wills with Father Flynn. This threatens to tear apart the community with its irrevocable consequence.

Set in Atlanta in the 1950's, a textile factory owner insists on hiring an ever-patient chauffeur for his aging head-strong mother. The Jewish woman and her African American driver eventually build a relationship over many years.

A middle-aged psychiatrist tries to find out why a young man has blinded six horses entrusted to his care.

A brash Navy lawyer is teamed with a gung-ho litigator in a politically-explosive murder case. Charged with defending two Marines accused of killing a fellow soldier, they are confronted with complex issues of loyalty and honor—including its most sacred code and its most formidable warrior.

Frankie, a waitress at a N.Y.C. coffee shop, has had a series of hurtful relationships and the last thing she's looking for is a new man. Johnny, an outgoing ex-con hired as the new short-order cook, falls head-over-heels for Frankie, who wants nothing to do with him.

Richard Nixon is the disgraced president with a legacy to save. David Frost is a jet-setting television personality with a name to make. This is the legendary battle between the two men and the historic encounter that changed both their lives.

A strong willed woman attempts to impose her shattered dreams into the life and personality of her shy, reclusive daughter.

A powerful story of desperation and betrayal set in the world of real estate.

When a woman's ex-husband sublets her apartment right out from under her and she refuses to move, the new tenant, a Chicago actor, moves in, touching off a comic, hate-love relationship.

Berlin's plushest, most expensive hotel is the setting where in the words of Dr. Otternschlag "People come, people go. Nothing ever happens." The doctor is usually drunk so he misses the fact that Baron von Geigern is broke and trying to steal eccentric dancer Grusinskaya's pearls, but ends up stealing her heart instead. Powerful German businessman Preysing brow beats his lowly bookkeeper, Kringelein, but in the end it is Kringelein who holds all the cards. Meanwhile, the Baron also steals the heart of Preysing's mistress, Flaemmchen, but in the end, she doesn't end up with either one of them.

Comedy about a good-natured fellow whose constant companion is a six-foot tall invisible rabbit. His sister is determined to marry her daughter off and decides to commit her brother to a mental hospital to get him out of the way. Due to a mix-up the sister is committed instead, and it is up to the kindly brother and his imaginary friend to straighten things out!

The story of a woman's tormented search for self-fulfillment in a world dominated by men.

In the faded, Vermeer-like light of Harry Hope's 1912 New York skid row bar, a ragtag group of fallen men await the annual arrival of their friend Hickey. But now Hickey is sober, and he wants his drunken friends to follow the same path.

Algernon is a gentlemen from a wealthy family. Algernon's close friend Jack, has a ward, Cecily. Both Algernon and Jack have created alter egos to make life more interesting. Algernon arrives for a weekend visit in the country posing as Earnest. Having heard of Earnest's misadventures, Cicely has developed an infatuation with the rogue, and Algernon's impersonation of him works famously on Cicely. Meanwhile, Algernon's cousin, Gwendolyn, arrives for the weekend, and is startled to discover Jack is also there -- except that she knows him as bad-boy Earnest. So just who really is who?

A small Tennessee town gained national attention in 1925 when a biology schoolteacher was arrested for violating state law and teaching Darwin's theory of evolution in the classroom.

Historical drama of the conflict between King Henry II of England and his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine over Henry's successor to the British throne.

Based on Eugene O'Neill's 1956 autobiography, this film depicts a day in the life of a family deteriorating under drug addiction, alcoholism, and imminent death.

Set during World War II, this is the story of two brothers sent to live with their domineering grandmother after their mother's death. Also living with her is their Aunt Bella, a somewhat backward 36 year-old who escapes to the movies whenever she can. But when Uncle Louie, a small-time gangster, arrives, everyone gets a surprising second chance at happiness.

A carefree tailor leaves Paris to collect on a past due bill at an aristocratic client's chateau. Mistaken for royalty, he attempts to woo a lovely princess.

A carefree tailor leaves Paris to collect on a past due bill at an aristocratic client's chateau. Mistaken for royalty, he attempts to woo a lovely princess.

Based on the life of King George III, this is the story of royal intrigue, sexual indiscretions, backstairs plotting and a battle for power between Parliament and the throne, all occurring while the King is being treated for an unknown mental illness.

Two Parisian sisters, Solange and Claire, serve as maids to a cruel socialite, but whenever she leaves, the two act out a bizarre, complex role-playing psychodrama of domination and control that feeds their powerful lust for revenge upon the mistress they serve.

Sir Thomas More, Chancellor of England, has an unquestioning faith. As a devout Catholic, More refuses to support King Henry VIII's divorce from Catherine of Aragon. In quest of a son, Henry wants to marry his mistress, Anne Boleyn. When the petulant king breaks with Rome and the Pope, More resigns his chancellorship in protest. Unsure in his new position as head of the Church of England, the king is unnerved by More's continued refusal to acknowledge his suzerainty. For his stubborn convictions, More ends up imprisoned in the Tower of London.

A dramatization of the story about the struggle of a Boston teacher, Annie Sullivan, to communicate with and teach the deaf, blind, and mute child, Helen Keller.

Comedy about two divorced men who live together but can't stand each other's habits.

Desperate to pass one of her classes, Carol approaches her professor John behind the closed doors of his university office. Words are exchanged. A touch. A glance. And what began as a simple meeting between teacher and student, suddenly spirals wildly out-of-control. But when Carol files harassment charges against him, the wheels are set in motion for a high stakes game of cat-and-mouse with shocking, devastating results.

Shows the conflicts between three generations as the Thayers, a crotchety old professor and his wife, spend their summer together on a lake in New England. The couple agrees to mind their estranged daughter's boyfriend's child, while daughter and boyfriend go on a trip. The boy bonds with the old man in a way his daughter never did. Shows the terrors and graces of aging.

A study of life, love, and death in a New England town at the turn of the 20th century.

A sophisticated romantic comedy about a rich, spoiled socialite who learns some things about who she is and what she really wants on the eve of her second marriage.

A movie buff periodically receives tips from the spirit of Humphrey Bogart on how to make it with women.

A devoted daughter who comes to terms with the death of her father, a brilliant mathematician whose genius was crippled by mental insanity, with the help of one of her father's former students.

Film of the award-winning play about a struggling black family living on Chicago's South Side and the impact of an unexpected insurance bequest. Each family member sees the bequest as the means of realizing dreams and of escape from grinding frustrations.

Rhinoceros tells the story of a French town plagued by rhinoceri. These are not ordinary rhinoceroses, but people who have been victims of "rhinoceritis." Or is it something else entirely?

The fringe characters from Shakespeare's Hamlet take center stage at Elsinore.

David and Linus are brothers running the family corporation. When the chauffeur's daughter comes back from Paris she finds she has the attention of David, whom she has always liked, but starts to fall in love with Linus. Includes bonus features.

A black army attorney is sent to Fort Neal, Louisiana, near the end of World War II to investigate the murder of Sgt. Waters, a black man who despised his own roots.

A young diabetic's decision to have a baby may cost her life. This choice leaves her own mother torn between love and anger, while her loyal friends support her and try to deal with their own feelings.

An uncensored version of the story of a widow, driven by the loss of the family estate to stay with her sister in New Orleans, is drawn into conflict with her brutish brother-in-law.

Beautiful Catherine Holly is committed to a mental institution after witnessing the horrible death of her cousin at the hands of cannibals. Her rich aunt tries to influence a young neurosurgeon to surgically end Catherine's haunting hallucinations. By utilizing injections of truth serum, the neurosurgeon discovers that Catherine's delusions are in fact true and must confront the rich aunt about her own involvement in her son's violent death.

A couple is invited to the home of a professor and his sharp-tongued wife, and are treated to verbal battles by their hosts.

An English professor, who alienates her students, has always had control over her life. That is until she is diagnosed with a devastating illness. She agrees to undergo a series of procedures that are brutal, extensive and experimental. She finds that the fine line between life and death can only be walked with wit.

Comedy about the Sycamores, an eccentric family of free spirits, and the problems that arises when Alice, the one stable member, falls for her boss's son.

A travelling theater group has so much going on behind the curtain, they almost ruin their performance in front of the curtain.