The Millionairess

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The Millionairess
original film poster
Directed by	Anthony Asquith
Produced by	Dimitri De Grunwald Pierre Rouve
Written by	George Bernard Shaw Riccardo Aragno Wolf Mankowitz
Starring	Sophia Loren Peter Sellers
Music by	Georges Van Parys
Cinematography	Jack Hildyard
Editing by	Anthony Harvey
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release date(s)	1960
Running time	90 min.
Country	United Kingdom
Language	English
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

The Millionairess is a 1960 romantic comedy film set in London, directed by Anthony Asquith and starring Peter Sellers and Sophia Loren. It is a loose adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's 1936 play of the same name.

Sellers plays Ahmed Kabir, a socialist Indian doctor, who meets a willful and arrogant heiress (Loren) who must marry to satisfy the conditions of her father's will. Rather memorable performances are given by Alastair Sim, playing the head of the millionairess’s business empire, Vittorio de Sica as the proprietor of a pasta production sweatshop, and Alfie Bass as a self-employed Cockney fish curer.

The film was a huge hit in England at the time of its release, but received mixed reviews. However, the film did not do well in the United States. In recent years, the reputation of The Millionairess has waned somewhat and it is no longer considered a classic, especially in light of earlier George Bernard Shaw films such asPygmalion and Major Barbara, both films on which Shaw actually worked and on which he had final casting approval. In particular, the broad stereotyping of Sellers’ Indian character has been criticised, but fans note that he is also portrayed as intelligent, diligent and professional.

"Goodness Gracious Me", a duet between Sellers and Loren (as his patient), was released as a single to publicise the film, and became a chart hit. The song also gave its name to Goodness Gracious Me, a popular UK radio and television sketch show from the late 1990s, and a modernised form of the tune with bhangra elements was used as the theme for the programme.