The Lavender Hill Mob
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Movie Reviews of The Lavender Hill Mob
Movie Review: Truly a "Classic" Comedy
Summary: 5 Stars
I recently purchased The Horse's Mouth (1958) from Amazon as well as "The Alec Guinness Collection" which includes The Lavender Hill Mob (1951) plus four others: Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949), The Man in the White Suit (1951), The Captain's Paradise (1953), and The Ladykillers (1955). Frankly, I was amazed how well each of the six films has held up since I first saw it.This film was directed by Charles Crighton. Noteworthy in the first scene is a brief appearance by Audrey Hepburn, identified in the credits as "Chiquita." After she departs, Henry Holland (played brilliantly, as always, by Guinness) begins to recount the Lavender Hill saga to his companion. As he explains, he was a mild-mannered fellow who supervised the transportation by van of gold bullion. His boss, the armed guards who accompany him, and those who receive the shipments all respect his fastidious (albeit anal retentive) attitude toward his duties. Holland seems to have no private life except for his friendship with Alfred Pendlebury (played by Stanley Holloway) who owns a company which manufactures paperweights. For reasons which will not be revealed here, Holland and Pendlebury decide to steal a shipment worth (in 1951) several million pounds. They realize they will need help so they recruit two smalltime Cockney crooks, Lackery Wood (Sidney James) and Shorty Fisher (Alfie Bass), and thereby create the Lavender Hill Mob. In my opinion, how they plan and then complete the heist is far less entertaining than what happens afterward. T.E.B. Clarke received an Academy Award for his script which, paradoxically, is quite simple and yet wholly unpredictable. The acting is consistently first-rate. Also, while recently seeing this film again, I enjoyed the exterior shots London and Paris more than 50 years ago. This comedy is indeed a "classic."
Movie Review: The most engaging movie I have ever seen
Summary: 5 Stars
A robbery of the Bank of England filmed in the 50s. A small budget film with no today Hollywood superstars, no leading lady (Audrey Hepburn made her film debut which appeared not more than 2 minutes on screen), no explosion. And yet, the movie succeeded to tell an engaging story of 2 enthusiastic amateur thieves who kept their heads down and focused on their mission.
The film began with Alec Guinness recalling his life last year, as a 20-year bank clerk and how he plotted to steal a vast amount of gold. Stanley Holloway (who also starred as Eliza's father in My Fair Lady) and Alec Guinness made a wonderful couple. And watch out for the elegant Audrey Hepburn in the first 10 minutes of the movie.
The story unfolded nicely as Alec narrated how he formulated his plan, how he recruited partners (Stanley Holloway and 2 more) to execute his well-thought plan and how, when the plan did go wrong, the whole team improvised. The scene of their chasing after English school girls at the Eiffel Tower in Paris is particularly impressive. It is as if they were flying in the air and laughing their hearts out on a merry-go-round. I kept wondering how modern movies did not make such shots any more.
The movie has its comical moments. The two were helplessly delayed by the French customs and prevented from boarding the ship the English girls were on. It was funny to see how they persisted in order to succeed. They were like serious school kids who was intent on completing their project by any means. Never did they think of betraying their team members.
With an excellent script, fast pace, good laughs and a marvellous twist in the end, this movie is not a bit out of date and surpasses current movies by tellng a story well with likeable characters. Love to watch it again soon.
Movie Review: The Great Gold Theft
Summary: 5 Stars
What happens when an underpaid hard worker deals with large amounts of gold on a daily basis? Temptation. Alec Guinness is that man. One day he meets another lodger who manufactures trinkets. The wheels turn and a plot is devised to steal a truckload of gold, disguise it a cheap nick-knacks, and get it out of the country. But not all goes quite as planned when some of the gold winds up in the wrong hands.
Retrieving the disguised gold leads to wonderful hijinks including a police chase through a police convention/exhibition. In the end holding on to the gold is harder then getting it ever was. A comic masterpiece that borders on slapstick. Guinness and partner make a wonderful team as they are on the run from the police but always seem to be surrounded. Many plot devices are so classic that they have been mimicked in countless movies and television shows. This DVD gives you the chance to see how they got their start.
Guinness once again proves his ability as an actor as he plays the unlikely thief. But as unlikely as he is his motivations and descent into crime are one-hundred percent believable. Classic comedy combines with classic acting and Guinness at the top of his form to create a truly memorable film with one of the most memorable thefts in all of movie history. A true classic.
Movie Review: A Wonderful Film
Summary: 5 Stars
Charles Crichton, who 35 years after directing "The Lavender Hill Mob", would go on to direct "A Fish Called Wanda", paces this wonderful film with the skill of a master. There are a lot of elements that this film and "Wanda" have in common, besides the obvious crime comedy genre. Probably the most notable comparison is the frantic chase scenes at the conclusions of both. Probably the only difference between the two is that the latter is loaded with sexual situations and obscenities...but that was what the times permitted.
Alec Guinness, Stanley Holloway, Sid James, and Alfie Bass turn in bravura performances. (I especially liked the scene in which masterminds Guinness and Holloway "meet" their two gangmembers, James and Bass.) To me, though, the minor characters are equally enjoyable: the landlady, the old woman who loves pulp fiction, the cop who loves "Old MacDonald Had a Farm", and several others. This is an all-around wonderful film, with some significance for history buffs: the scenes of post-war, rubble-strewn London undergoing renewal is both sad and inspiring.
Movie Review: One of Ealing's Finest
Summary: 5 Stars
This film is one of the masterpieces of British Comedy. Alec Guinness and Stanley Holloway are an unlikely pair of "crooks". The inverted commas are there because neither the viewer nor the characters quite believe it themselves. The pair just want a bit of adventure and a taste of the high life. Guinness is brilliant as the timid bank clerk who despises the trust he is given because he knows he is seen by his superiors as too weak an individual to be a threat. That gives him the power to succeed in his daring plan. The catalyst is Stanley Holloway, a businessman with an eye for the main chance. However, he does not believe he can succeed until he meets Guinness, and Guinness does not believe that his little fantasy about robbing the bank can become a reality until he meets Holloway. When the pair meet up with a couple of real (but inept) crooks, the job is on! It's a wonderful cast and we like them so much that we hope they get away with it. It's a great story and highly entertaining. Everyone should have this in their DVD collection.