Karry Best movie of this year hands down!

ChicDragon It's a mild crowd pleaser for people who are exhausted by blockbusters.

Bessie Smyth Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

Stephanie There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

HotToastyRag Daniel Mann, a master director of dramas, reunites with leading lady Shirley Booth after their successful collaboration in Come Back, Little Sheba to create the wonderfully romantic drama About Mrs. Leslie. If you like these two of their films, be sure to check out their third film together, Hot Spell!Told in flashbacks, Shirley starts the film off as the owner of a boarding house. Her tenants and neighbors often come to her with their problems, since she's such a sympathetic mother type, and while she deals with their trifles, she remembers her earlier years, before she was Mrs. Leslie. Back then, she was a nightclub singer who fell in love with the handsome, charming, enigmatic Robert Ryan. Their slow-burning love affair is fascinating to watch, and while both actors are naturally likable anyway, they'll instantly win a place in your heart.As you might expect, since this is a Shirley Booth movie-her movies are much different than Hazel-you might want to keep your Kleenexes handy. Her darling wobbly voice and her terribly sad face makes me cry every time.

marcslope I'd seen this years ago on AMC and remembered little about it, but a revisiting on TCM reveals it to be a surprisingly solid, moving, adult romance. Sure, it's soap opera, and disconcertingly close to "Back Street" (or Capra's "Back Street" ripoff, "Forbidden"), and it's not helped by unexciting cinematography or a soupy, repetitive Victor Young score, like he's trying to be Max Steiner. What lifts it well out of the ordinary are the screenplay and the leads. Ketti Frings was a frequent adapter of literary works (she did the stage drama of "Look Homeward, Angel") who could plumb expertly beneath the surface; her co-screenwriter, Hal Kanter, was more of a sitcom specialist. Together, they probe with remarkable depth this illicit affair between a married industrialist and an unmarried chanteuse. These two behave like grownups, have real conversations on a variety of topics, with a surprising amount of Civil War history, of all things, mixed in, and say unexpected, witty things to each other. Shirley, who's superb, may not be a glamour gal, but it's entirely credible that the handsome Ryan, who underplays effectively, would fall for this intelligent, generous, questioning woman. There's a second couple, Marjie Millar and a not-very-good Alex Nicol, and you may wonder why so much time is being spent on them, but their narrative does complement the first couple nicely, and the other residents of Mrs. Leslie's boarding house provide color and contrast. Soap opera, yes, but I was moved, and ready for a second viewing not long after the first. Too bad Hollywood couldn't find more for the prodigiously gifted Ms. Booth to do, but this is one of her best roles, and you'll long remember her reactions, her delivery, and the way Daniel Mann lovingly lingers on her face.

audiesgirl It amazes me how this movie is so seldom shown is not available on DVD. It's one of the most original love stories ever made, the leads are superb, overcoming the initial impression they are miscast. That proves what gifted actors Booth and Ryan were. This bittersweet love story between a less than glamorous piano girl in a shabby bar and a handsome businessman covers several years of their annual clandestine meeting until their romance is interrupted by World War II. All along the way you have a foreboding of doom for these two unlikely secret lovers, but you root for them anyway. I've written to TCM begging them to show this film, I hope they do so soon.

hipthornton One of Shirley Booth's true acting performances. For audiences who thought she could only play burned out losers like the plodding,dull houswife in "Come Back,Little Sheba," this film shows she definitely had leading lady status. The story of a boarding house owner recalling her one great love in conjunction with the woes of her boarders is very good. The entire cast shines in support. The carping of Robert Ryan is a strange one.He is entirely believable as her lover. Miss Booth's appearance was almost a shock,she wears nice dresses and tailored suits with ease.Not every woman back then looked like Lana Turner!Surely show business had singers who were slightly dumpy and past their prime. Miss Booth duly projects the longing and lonliness all people feel at one time.The final scene where the last of the boarders leave is sadly sweet,as she sighs and puts out her rooms for rent sign again