- A distant poor relative of the Duke D'Ascoyne plots to inherit the title by murdering the eight other heirs who stand ahead of him in the line of succession.
- In the hours before his execution for murder, Louis, the 10th Duke of Chalfont, writes his memoirs. In them he details how, though descended from nobility, he grew up poor and had to pull himself up by his bootstraps, career-wise. Then, discovering that only eight members of the D'Ascoyne family stood between him and the dukedom, he systematically started killing them, making the murders look like accidents.—grantss
- Deprived of his birthright when his noble mother eloped with an Italian opera singer and was disowned by her aristocratic family for marrying beneath her social class, Louis D'Ascoyne Mazzini, the 10th Duke of Chalfont and now a humble assistant in a draper's shop, vows revenge. Clearly, weeding out every successor is the only way to achieve his bloody goal, and as hate-filled Mazzini sets about his mission of vengeance, he crosses paths with two seductive femmes fatales whom he conquers with his eloquence. Still, killing everyone in the way is like playing with fire. Will Louis ever become Duke of Chalfont?—Nick Riganas
- In Edwardian London, Louis Mazzini feels the need to write his memoirs due to his current circumstances. He grew up in a humble, working class household despite his mother being from the wealthy D'Ascoyne family, who disowned her when she, in their eyes, married beneath them in Louis' father, who Louis doesn't even remember in he having passed when he was an infant, being a poor opera singer. She was in direct line to become the Duchess of Chalfont. The D'Ascoynes refused even to recognize Louis' existence as a result. The last straw in this matter for Louis was when they refused her last request to be buried on the Chalfont estate upon her passing. But it wasn't until vain and opportunistic Sibella Hargrove, with who he was in love but was instead going marry his rival Lionel Holland who could afford to keep her in the lifestyle to which she aspired, that Louis decided to pursue what he considered his rightful place in the D'Ascoyne family and the title of Duke of Chalfont. Pending other issues such as children being born into the family by other heirs, Louis decided to achieve his goal by not only needing to eliminate the Duke but the then eight other D'Ascoynes who were in line as Duke or Duchess before him, the easiest way in his mind to commit the murders being either to ingratiate himself into their lives or learn in great detail about them to do the acts easily but without detection. What may have thrown a wrench into the proceedings is falling in love with Edith, a D'Ascoyne by marriage and who is/was in opposition to Sibella in his life.—Huggo
- Louis Mazzini's mother belongs to the aristocratic family D'Ascoyne, but she ran away with an opera singer. Therefore, she and Louis were rejected by the D'Ascoynes. Once adult, Louis decides to avenges his mother and him, by becoming the next Duke of the family. Murdering every potential successor is clearly the safest way to achieve his goal.—Yepok
- Louis D'Ascoyne Mazzini (Dennis Price) is a descendant of a family of English aristocrats, but when his mother married below her station, the D'Ascoyne family disowned her, which Louis finds disgraceful. When his mother's dying wish, to be buried in the family crypt, is not granted by the family, Louis is enraged and eager for revenge. Many D'Ascoynes stand between him and the dukedom bestowed upon the D'Ascoyne family many generations ago. In a rage, he resolves to kill all of them, one by one, and, thereby, become the duke. He studies the D'Ascoyne family and finds ways to weave in and out of their lives, gradually endearing himself to them and gaining the access he needs to carry out his murderous plot.
In the course of his systematic, and wholly undetected, elimination of the D'Ascoynes (all played by Alec Guiness), Louis becomes very intimate with Edith (Valerie Hobson), the lovely but priggish widow of one of the D'Ascoynes he has murdered. This creates some tension with his flirtatious (and married) childhood girlfriend Sibella (Joan Greenwood).
Once the homicidal plan is carried out successfully, Louis secures the dukedom he has coveted, but in a strange twist, he is accused of a murder which he has not committed, found guilty, and condemned. In fact, Louis has been betrayed by the testimony of Sibella, who wishes to be duchess, but sees that Edith, already a D'Ascoyne by marriage, will attain the title.
A doomed man soon to be hanged, Louis passes the time in prison by writing his memoirs, a detailed account of his murderous exploits. Sibella unexpectedly visits Louis in prison, which he finds distasteful as she figured so prominently in his prosecution, but she quickly makes the motive of her visit clear. She offers to 'discover' evidence of suicide (which she originally withheld) that would clear Louis from guilt if he agrees to marry her after leaving prison. He makes the deal with her and, just in time, he is pardoned and released.
As he exits the prison, both Sibella and Edith are there to meet him, and he is faced with a choice of two beautiful ladies, each with a reason for believing she will be chosen, and both of whom he wants for different reasons. As he ponders his choice, a reporter approaches him concerning the possible publication of his memoirs, and, disgustedly, Louis realizes that he has left evidence that will surely doom him within the walls of the prison, a sudden and particularly cruel twist of fate!
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By what name was Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949) officially released in India in English?
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