1954 was an outstanding year for leading ladies in film, and sadly, with only five Oscar nominees, there have to be some who do not get nominated. Unfortunately, one of those not nominated gave one of the greatest performances ever seen on screen, one that truly stands the test of time and will tear your heart out. That is Shirley Booth, fresh from her Oscar winning turn in "Come Back Little Sheba", returning for her second film and every bit as memorable as she was in that William Inge classic. When you first meet Mrs. Leslie, it is assumed that the "Mrs." part is simply just an honorary title she has not to be considered an old maid by the people who rent rooms from her. They include a man who likes to drink far too much (and runs over her flowers when trying to pull in the driveway), an idealistic young lady searching for love, and a spoiled teenager filled with entitlement who will make you want to reach through the screen and throttle her. Their assumptions about their landlady are completely wrong, as the audience finds out through her reflections on her life with the shy Robert Ryan, playing against type.Once a nightclub chanteuse, Booth met the handsome industrialist Ryan who swept her away for summer vacations on the ocean and gave her the romance she has been craving all of her life. When around Ryan, Booth can truly be herself, and she gives up her career as a singer so she can be with him. But they are summer flings only, and when September arrives, it is back to reality for Booth who must find other ways of supporting herself because of a blackballing in the nightclub scene for her running out on her contract simply to be with Ryan. She mothers him in a way he obviously seems to need mothering, as it is obvious that his character has many hidden demons that would prevent them from actually getting married. But he gives her the honorary name of Mrs. Leslie when they are together simply so she won't feel that their romantic summers are about living in sin.The connections between her past and present lives help make her more understandable in the way she deals with her tenants, particularly the nasty Eilene Janssen as the 18 year old tenant who expects Booth to wait on her hand and foot and shows no gratitude for anything, leading to a confrontation when Booth ends away Janssen's ill-mannered date. So her character is far from perfect, interfering in subtle ways that makes her more human. Brief appearances by familiar character actors such as Ellen Corby (a gossipy neighbor), Percy Helton (a frustrated bartender), Harry Morgan (a business associate of Ryan's) and Mabel Albertson (a fussy customer) add some amusing characterizations. This is extremely well written and directed, but when it is all over, you will come out singing the praises of Ms. Booth who only did one film comedy ("The Matchmaker") before taking on the TV sitcom role ("Hazel") which overshadows much of the great dramatic work she did on screen and has made her classic stage work ("My Sister Eileen", "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn") completely forgotten.

was horribly miscast as the off and on romantic lead to one of America's great scientists, Robert Ryan (Hendershall), who was already married with 2 children. Throughout the first half of the move, before we learn of Mrs. Hendershall and the boys, I was starting to think that not only was Robert Ryan's character might be gay, but that this was an early Hollywood forage into that material. But as it turned out, he was married, had 2 kids and used Mrs. "Leslie" as a mere diversion (which of course will be debated ongoing). What was a complete turnoff was her addressing him as Mr. Leslie up to the last time she saw him. There were some very bizarre sexual dynamics at work throughout the film until the very last scene with the two young kids.The movie never succeeds until the last five minutes when the young couple in love are ready to embark on a lifetime of "happiness". The juxtaposition of youthful optimism with the cynicism and realism of the Shirley Booth character, Mrs. Leslie, forces the viewers to reflect on some of the choices in their own lives, thus engaging the viewer with the on screen action.Shirley Booth was a wonderful actress. She wasn't right for this part but she would go on to win a Tony (stage), Golden Globe and Academy Award for Best Actress for Come Back Little Sheba. She was one of the true bright lights of Broadway stage and film.

If people did not accept back street arrangements like Shirley Booth did in About Mrs. Leslie a whole lot of romance novels and soap operas would never be written. In one of her few film appearances Shirley Booth plays Mrs. Leslie who owns a boardinghouse in Los Angeles and deals with the problems of her tenants while thinking back on her wartime romance with what was called then, a dollar a year man.Her dollar a year man is Robert Ryan whom she met back east when she was singing in some second rate supper club. They more than hit it off and she accepts his proposition for a six week vacation on the southern California coast though her breaking her contract puts her career such as it is in jeopardy.She only finds out about who this man really is when she sees a newsreel in the theater and finds out that 46 weeks a year he's a business executive and former World War I ace who married a Senator's daughter to advance his career. Ryan regrets this and Booth regrets having to settle for back street status though in the end financially she comes out well.Combining elements of both Back Street and Maytime, About Mrs. Leslie is a fine film, one which we used to call a woman's picture. Booth made too few feature films for the big screen, but when she got there everyone was a gem.About Mrs. Leslie is an uncut diamond. It should be broadcast more often.

I came across this little film and thought if Shirley Booth was in it, it must be interesting. This is a great little film - a true gem! Seeing Hazel in a swimming suit on the beach and evening gown acting seductive as a nightclub singer is worth everything! Although the film was made a few years before "Hazel" and Shirley is slim and young, she is still "Shirley" - she was no great beauty but her acting makes up for any of that and you don't even think about it. Her genuine smile and easy manner win viewers over in an instant. I loved this film! Old movie buffs will definitely appreciate this true and rare insight into Shirley Booth's acting, outside of "Hazel" - which I loved by the way. Younger viewers should take a look at this to understand what "real" acting is, instead of the lax luster films Hollywood churns out these days.