Quartett

QUARTET is a subtle, understated anthology of stories by Somerset Maugham--entertaining but decidedly uneven in presentation. Nevertheless, as a study of various British personalities among the upper classes it does manage to evoke interest without furnishing any big surprises--which is what one usually expects from short stories.

What it does do, brilliantly, is show us Maugham's keen observations on human nature. MAI ZETTERLING and IAN FLEMING star in a story about a young man who fails to follow his father's advice and almost suffers the consequences; DIRK BOGARDE and HONOR BLACKMAN are the leads in a story about a man whose sole passion in life is to become a professional top-flight pianist but is told by FRANCOISE ROSAY that he has no such chance; the third story is a rather dated and foolish morality tale about a kite that just didn't make much sense to me; and the final story--probably the best--is about a man whose wife secretly writes a novel about her great love (a la "Lady Chatterly's Lover") and is confronted by her husband who demands to know who "the man" in the story really is. CECIL PARKER and NORA SWINBURNE play the couple and they're wonderful.

Nicely performed, well scripted and directed, QUARTET has an introduction by Maugham himself which manages to be self-effacing and informative.