Woman of Straw is a British crime thriller film released in 1964. It was directed by Basil Dearden and stars Gina Lollobrigida and Sean Connery in the main roles. The movie was written by Robert Muller and Stanley Mann, and it is based on the 1954 novel La Femme de paille by Catherine Arley.

Playboy Anthony Richmond plans to get his uncle Charles Richmond’s £50 million fortune. Charles is a rich, mean, and proud old man who uses a wheelchair. Anthony hires a new Italian nurse, Maria Marcello, and offers her one million pounds to marry his uncle as part of his plan.

Tony has strong personal reasons to hate his uncle, Charles Richmond. He blames Charles for his father’s suicide and for having an affair with his widowed mother, who is now also dead. As part of his secret plan for revenge and money, Tony acts like he’s against the idea of Maria marrying Charles, while actually trying to convince her to do it. His plan is for Maria to marry the sick, elderly man, inherit his fortune when he dies, and then give Tony a £1 million “finder’s fee” for setting it all up.

Maria, who is kind and sincere, agrees to help. She tolerates Charles’s rude and abusive behavior—both at his mansion and during a yacht trip in Mallorca, Spain. During the trip, she marries him. Charles is touched by her honesty and loyalty. He changes his will, leaving his entire fortune to Maria and only £40,000 to his nephew, Anthony.

One morning, Charles dies on the yacht. To avoid suspicion, Anthony and Maria come up with a plan to pretend that he is still alive while they return to the estate.

But things change quickly when Maria becomes a suspect in Charles’s death. A series of unexpected complications begin to unfold. A police inspector (played by Alexander Knox) starts to question where and how Charles really died.

The first half of the film sets up the story, slowly putting the characters and their plans into place. It doesn’t happen as smoothly as expected, which creates more tension. Charles is such a terrible and unpleasant person that no one would really miss him but at the same time, his weaknesses, like being stuck in a wheelchair and his love for music, make him more human.

Tony, even though he seems charming and confident, is actually quite fragile his whole future depends on his uncle’s approval and money. Maria, on the other hand, is a woman of strong principles. She doesn’t let wealth control her, but it’s hinted that she may have used her beauty in the past to her advantage.

Later, Maria admits their scheme to the police and becomes a murder suspect. She eventually finds out that Anthony had actually killed his uncle by poisoning him with barbiturates. He also lied to Maria about Charles’s final will and testimony, trying to frame her for the murder so that he could inherit the money once she was found guilty.

Detective Lomer and the servant Thomas later play a tape that Charles recorded before he died. In the recording, Charles says that Anthony is the one who killed him. When Anthony tries to run away, Thomas pushes Charles’s empty wheelchair toward him. Scared, Anthony falls down the big staircase and dies. The wheelchair, looking like a ghost taking revenge, seems to watch over his death.

Maria is proven innocent in court. She gets justice and inherits Charles’s estate and fortune. The film ends with the credits.

The film was made between August and October 1963. It was filmed at Pinewood Studios, at Audley End House in Saffron Walden, Essex, and in Majorca, which is part of the Balearic Islands. The scenes in Majorca, including many filmed on a boat near the coast, were shot on location in September 1963.

Basil Dearden as the director, his role was to guide the overall creative vision of the movie. He was responsible for how the story was told on screen working closely with the actors, cinematographer, and other crew members to shape the performances, pacing, and visual style of the film. Dearden made sure that all parts of the production came together smoothly to bring the story to life.

Gina Lollobrigida plays Maria Marcello, a sincere and kind Italian nurse who is hired to care for Charles Richmond and becomes part of a plot involving marriage and inheritance.

Sean Connery plays Anthony ‘Tony’ Richmond, a charming but greedy playboy who schemes to steal his uncle’s fortune by manipulating Maria into marrying him. Sean Connery once said, “I don’t want to be Bond all the time… It annoys me when people call me Bond off the set… That’s why I’m doing films like Woman of Straw, hoping people will see me in other roles.”

According to the book The Films of Sean Connery by Lee Pfeiffer and Philip Lisa, Woman of Straw also gave Connery the chance to work with one of his favorite actors, Ralph Richardson, which was a special experience for him.

Ralph Richardson plays Charles Richmond, a wealthy, cruel, and controlling businessman who uses a wheelchair. He becomes the center of the inheritance plot and eventually changes his will before his mysterious death.

Beatrice Dawson designed the costumes for Woman of Straw, with special credit given to Dior for creating the wardrobe of the leading lady, Gina Lollobrigida. As Maria’s character rises in status and wealth throughout the film, her outfits reflect that transformation. She starts off in a simple nurse’s uniform, then moves on to elegant separates and colorful bathing suits, and later appears in glamorous, jewel-covered gowns and delicate, lacy nightwear. Her changing wardrobe mirrors her journey from caregiver to wealthy heiress.

Anthony’s selfish desire for money drives him to manipulate, lie, and even commit murder. But in the end, his own schemes turn against him, and he pays the ultimate price. The film shows that using others for personal gain and trying to cheat justice can backfire and that truth and integrity, as seen in Maria’s character, ultimately triumph.

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