Three Wicked Melodramas From Gainsborough (Criterion Collection - Eclipse Series 36)

Lush and racy costume dramas were the order of the day for England's Gainsborough Pictures in the 1940s, as seen in this three-disc collection. James Mason is "The Man in Grey" (1943), a cruel and self-centered 1800s nobleman who, desiring an heir, marries a poor teacher (Phyllis Calvert) but later has an affair with her best friend (Margaret Lockwood). Stewart Granger co-stars. Then, Lockwood skirts the law as "The Wicked Lady" (1945), a bored 17th-century aristocrat who is seduced into a life of crime by a roguish highwayman (Mason). With Patricia Roc, Michael Rennie, Griffith Jones. Also includes "Madonna of the Seven Moons." 5 1/2 hrs. Standard; Soundtrack: English PCM mono.