The film begins in Spain where a totally obnoxious and evil rich producer (Warren Stevens) has come to offer a talented Spanish lady (Ava Gardner) a film contract. His entourage includes an alcoholic director who is on the wagon (Humphrey Bogart) and a fast-talking idiot PR man (Edmund O'Brien). Ms. Gardner makes it big in Hollywood, but seems bored with it all and spends much of the rest of the movie running from herself until a very tragic conclusion.

Aside from a few clichés here and there, this is a pretty good film and has a pretty cynical view of stardom. However, I also felt pretty annoyed at times during the picture because most of the characters in the film are amazingly wealthy and/or famous and they spend all their time whining about how bored they are!! This is exactly the sort of film that gives Communist revolutionaries the incentive to destroy the 'decadent Capitalists'! The character Ava Gardner played was on top of the world but also spent much of the film in a depressed stupor and the rich guys around her were ALL selfish louts. In fact, the only decent person in the entire film was Bogart.

While very watchable, the film is highly reminiscent of the Godard film, CONTEMPT, as well as THE SUN ALSO RISES (also starring Gardner). It's almost like the producers of the these other two films teased apart THE BAREFOOT CONTESSA and broke it into two films.

Was really intrigued into seeing 'The Barefoot Contessa'. Joseph L Mankiewicz was responsible for 'All About Eve', which is one of my all time favourite films, and when you have the likes of Ava Gardner, Humphrey Bogart and Edmond O'Brien one does expect a lot.

'The Barefoot Contessa' was disappointing. It is a long way from an awful film and has several very good things, but with such a talented cast and a director who was really good when he is in his prime it could have been so much more. Can totally see the polarising reactions on both sides, while 'The Barefoot Contessa' has a good deal to admire (more so than has been given credit for) it is not going to appeal, and has not appealed, to everybody. 1954 saw some great films, 'Rear Window', 'On the Waterfront', 'A Star is Born', 'Sabrina', 'Dial M for Murder', 'White Christmas' and '20,000 Leagues Under the Sea', 'The Barefoot Contessa' to me just isn't in the same league.

Starting with what is good about 'The Barefoot Contessa', it looks great visually with beautiful autumnal cinematography and sumptuous costumes and settings, the very meaning of extravagant. The music score from Mario Nascimbene is lush and subtly done. There are some cracking lines and there is evidence of sincerity. Was very surprised at how daring and ahead of its time it was.

Ava Gardner lives up to her glamorous "the world's most beautiful animal" image and character and is positively luminous and graceful, she is very much in her prime here. Late-career Humphrey Bogart, rightly regarded as a cultural icon who died far too soon (only three years later),is as commanding as ever and not only the best actor in the cast but also one of the film's strongest elements. Edmond O'Brien is deliciously oily and in his best moments on dynamite form. Warren Stevens is very good too.

Rossano Brazzi was the weak link however in the cast, his role has little if anything to it and the only thing Brazzi brings to it is handsome looks, everywhere else he's very wooden and dull. Mankiewicz really is not at his best in the directing, he delivers on the style but elsewhere it's pedestrian and uninspired.

His writing fares even weaker, despite some moments of sincerity and cracking lines the acerbic wit that sparkled in 'All About Eve' four years earlier does not come through enough. Most of the film is too talky and rambling, as well as overwrought, flimsy and too rehearsed. The thin and sometimes muddled story does suffer from dull pacing that rarely fires on all cylinders and an overlong length, and feels both overblown as a result of being overwritten and bland due to the lack of depth to the writing and characterisation. Despite the great efforts of the cast the characters are under-explored and don't have much to allow us to connect properly with them.

Overall, beautiful but uneven. 5.5-6/10 Bethany Cox

If there were any more beautiful women ever walked this planet of our's than Ava Gardner, they must have existed long before Thomas Edison invented the movies. Else they would have been film stars.

Maris Vargas is so different from the real life Ava. She's a silly girl filled with romantic notions and isn't about to give in to anyone unless it's for love.

When we meet her, she's dancing in a Spanish cafe and being eyed by Warren Stevens who's playing Kirk Edwards a not so veiled portrait of Howard Hughes who did in fact have the real Ava on his short list of desirable conquests. Stevens wants to sign her, but also to bed her. One doesn't go without the other.

Screenwriter Harry Dawes played by Humphrey Bogart foils Stevens's plan by having other producers view her test. With a bidding war on, Stevens has to sign Ava on her terms.

Ava doesn't give it up for Stevens and later neither to international playboy Marius Goring. Goring's character is based on Dominican diplomat and legendary lover, Porfirio Rubirosa. That's a story that would rate a film. I can see Antonio Banderas in the part.

She finds herself finally with Italian count Rossano Brazzi and she's sure this is it. But Brazzi has a terrible secret and Ava's efforts to deal with it bring nothing but tragedy.

Humphrey Bogart is top billed, probably as per his contract. But the film is really Ava's show. You won't easily forget her as Maria Vargas.

Edmond O'Brien won a Best Supporting Actor that year as sweaty press agent Oscar Muldoon. His is a profession that inspires cynicism by nature, yet O'Brien proves to have a lot more character than originally thought. O'Brien was up that year against Tom Tully from The Caine Mutiny and Karl Malden, Rod Steiger, and Lee J. Cobb from On the Waterfront. Of course those three split the vote and O'Brien was the lucky beneficiary.

Warren Stevens got his first real notice in The Barefoot Contessa and Marius Goring probably has his best film role of his career as Alberto Bravano the thinly disguised Rubirosa.

It's a sad tale and a cautionary one against silly romantic notions.