The Lavender Hill Mob
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Movie Reviews of The Lavender Hill Mob
Movie Review: "Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these...
Summary: 4 Stars
...it might have been." In the early to mid 50's, many studios were churning out comedies, perhaps more so in an effort to get people past those old post war blues, but few did it as well or consistently as the British Ealing Studios (in my humble opinion), helped immensely by the talents of Alec Guinness...what?! Alec Guinness a comedic actor? The same Alec Guinness who starred in such serious films as The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Doctor Zhivago (1965), and A Passage to India (1984)? Yes, it seemed by the end of the 1950's, Guinness had pretty much dedicated himself to more serious parts, but not altogether as he later appeared in the fantastic comedy Murder by Death (1976), which I recommend to anybody in search of a truly good laugh. While many consider The Lavender Hill Mob (1951) to be one of the best of the Guinness/Ealing comedies, I'm partial to one of their later films, The Ladykillers (1955), which was recently remade by the Coen brothers and featured Tom Hanks (I've haven't seen it yet, but I heard not so good things about it). Directed by Charles Crichton (The Titfield Thunderbolt, A Fish Called Wanda), the film stars, along with Guinness, Stanley Holloway (Nicholas Nickleby, Passport to Pimlico). Also appearing is Sid James (The 39 Steps, Upstairs and Downstairs) and Alfie Bass (The Fearless Vampire Killers, Revenge of the Pink Panther).
This comedic caper begins in a tropical setting, where we meet a man named Henry Holland (Guinness), who seems quite popular probably because of the fact he's pretty free with his money. He thus begins to relate a tale to another man, taking us into a flashback that makes up the rest of the film and we learn Holland, prior to being a somewhat well to do philanthropist sort in South America, actually came from humble beginnings as in a previous life he was a mild mannered bank worker, responsible for regularly escorting gold shipments from the smelting facility (that's where they take the raw gold and turn it into bars), to the bank. His coworkers and superiors look upon him as a quiet, by the book sort with no ambition, imagination, or initiative, as `his one and only virtue is honesty'. And that's exactly the way Holland likes it...especially since he aspires to one day steal one of shipments of gold and live out his days well beyond his current means. The only problem is, once stolen, gold bars are extremely difficult to transfer into cash...but a solution soon presents itself in the form of a new tenant to the boarding house Holland resides, one named Alfred Pendlebury (Holloway)...the name of the tenant, not the boarding house...Mr. Pendlebury just happens to operate a modest die casting business, one whose specialty is producing paperweights, one perfectly suited for Holland's needs. Soon the die is cast (so to speak), and the pieces are in place, but, as everyone knows, even the best-laid plans are subject to disaster once in the implementation stage as the human element is always the most unpredictable.
As I said before, of all the Guinness/Ealing comedies, I prefer The Ladykillers most of all, probably due to the darker tone of the material and more outlandish nature of the characters, but that's not to say this film isn't of superior quality, as it won an Academy Award for best writing, story and screenplay, and earned Guinness his first nomination (Gary Cooper won for his role in High Noon). One of things I like most about these older comedies is they don't pander to the lowest common denominator in terms of comedic content, but rather speak to the audience with respect, maintaining a consistent level of intelligence not so often seen nowadays...but that's not to say this couldn't be enjoyed by anyone. I had originally seen this film quite a number of years ago, and appreciated it for the more visual elements as opposed to last night when I enjoyed the more subtle aspects due to a general understanding one usually gains with maturity. Regardless, this is one of those films where everything works well together to bring about a wonderful story. The direction is exceptionally strong and wastes none of the films lean 81 minutes running time. Guinness is about as good as you'll ever see him, fostering a belief that he is, now and forever, the meticulous, level-headed, slightly devious character of Henry Holland (at least until his next film), but is certainly assisted (nearly upstaged) by his costar Holloway, the romantic character, yearning to express his artistic nature, stifled by the drudgery of actually having to earn a living through the mass production of tourist souvenirs. There are any number of wonderful scenes and sequences presented throughout the film, but two come to my mind as being my favorites. One features Mr. Pendlebury moving into the boarding house where Holland lives, and Holland learning of Pendlebury's profession which sets in motion him gingerly broaching the possibility of utilizing Pendlebury's die casting business as a means to process the stolen booty. Holland and Pendlebury, both eventually on the same page, begin almost convincing each other and themselves of the very real possibility that it can be done...the other is the scene where Holland and Pendlebury go about enlisting a couple of extra, but necessary, members for the gang, as the gold shipment is too much for the two of them to handle themselves. It's not like you can put an ad out in the paper for such a thing, so they utilize a very unique method to contact prospective applicants. And there's a bonus! If you love classic movies, you'll be in for a treat...watch for the appearance of a minor character, played by a soon to be legendary actress, about three or four minutes into the film...yes, that's who you think it is...but don't blink, or you'll miss it...
Anchor Bay Entertainment provides a very clean and clear full screen (original aspect ratio) picture on this DVD, with a decent Dolby Digital mono audio. Special features include an original theatrical trailer, and an extensive Alec Guinness biography and liner notes. By the way, I heard there is a remake of this film in the works, scheduled to be released in 2006...I guess time will tell if it's any good or not, but the way I see it, what's the point? I hardly see how they could improve upon the original...
Cookieman108
By the way, there is, as I write this, an Alec Guinness DVD set offered by Anchor Bay Entertainment featuring five of his early comedies, including this one, offered at a price that is cheaper than purchasing these DVDs separately, so if you're interested, it might be worth looking into...
Movie Review: The hills are alive...
Summary: 4 Stars
Thanks to some richly comedic performances, `The Lavender Hill Mob' remains entertaining, charming and witty 50+ years after its initial release. The film isn't perfect, but it contains enough highlights to make it more than watchable.
The film tells the story of a quiet and reserved bank employee who surveillances the transport of gold bars for a living. One day, out of the clear blue, he decides to try his hand at stealing the bars. The only hitch is that he doesn't have a way of transporting it out of the country, which is the only way he could indulge in the fruits of his labor. Then he meets a man who melts down lead and makes Eiffel Tower figurines for a living. So, with the help from two `professional crooks', these men steal the gold and melt it down to make figurines to smuggle into Paris. None of these men truly know what they are doing and soon all their plans begin to derail as one problem after another rears its head.
Some of the film's hijinks can feel a tad overdone, especially since the film's true colors are not as outrageous as one would expect (it is far subtler than I thought it would be) but in the end the film maintains a sharp flow and contains some signature scenes that remain memorable and effective today. In particular is the actual heist, which is funny and exciting; and that image of Guinness with tape on his eyes and mouth is priceless.
Alec Guinness (who looks in this film to be the love child of Spencer Tracy and Peter Sellers; in other words, he looks like Geoffrey Rush) was a comedic goldmine and has delivered some of my favorite comedic performances of all time (his work in `The Horse's Mouth' is honestly one of the best EVER) and he doesn't disappoint here either. He underscores his character's naivety marvelously, showing his ineptitude while never leaving him completely clueless, so as to discredit his miraculous undertaking. Alec is aided by a top notch cast, especially Stanley Holloway.
The films climax is the best scene in the film, mainly because it gives that extra twist no one saw coming that just ends the film on such a high note; it's pitch perfect. The film as a whole fumbles in a few areas, but altogether comes off pretty smooth.
Watch and enjoy.
Movie Review: A minor pleasure
Summary: 4 Stars
Like most people, I am most familiar with Alec Guinness in his role as Obi-Wan Kenobi in Star Wars. Of course, by the time he made that movie, he had been an acclaimed actor for a while. The Lavender Hill Mob is one of the reasons for that acclaim.Guinness stars as Henry Holland, a bank clerk who has reached middle-age with little to show for it: he's been stuck in the same job forever and lives a quiet, lonely life in a boarding house. Holland is also a dreamer, with a goal of stealing all the gold he counts every day and retire quietly abroad. When opportunity knocks, he answers and forms a small criminal gang to execute his scheme.
It's a brilliant scheme, and of course, things go wrong. Chance events and Holland's cautious nature creates trouble. It makes for a nice caper flick, if not quite the same caliber as director Chricton's much later movie, A Fish Called Wanda. Yet this is a pleasant diversion (look for a young Audrey Hepburn in a cameo) and there are certainly worse ways to spend an hour-and-a-half.
Movie Review: Classic British Caper Film.
Summary: 4 Stars
This will be a short review, since I concur with the other positive comments on this classic Ealing comedy, as well as the extensive plot summary ( actually a little too extensive for people who have not seen the film ). I gave it four stars only because I consider "The Ladykillers" to be superior.As always, Sir Alec shines in the lead role, with fine support from Stanley Holloway and Sidney James, years before his "Carry On" fame. The humour here is dark and subtle, and of course there is a delightful "twist" at the end, an Ealing trade mark.
I found the quality of this DVD to be more than acceptable for a 50 plus year-old film. Some of the location scenes in London are interesting, with areas damaged by the "blitz" in World War II still very evident.
So--if you like comedy with genuine wit and style ( very rare today, in the era of teen-oriented gross-out movies ), you will enjoy this one. Recommended.
Movie Review: What we want is not always what we dream of...
Summary: 4 Stars
A retired bank clerk retells his life story of how he reached his goal of riches for a stranger in a bar in Rio de Janeiro. When he was bank clerk he meticulously oversaw the banks gold bar production and transportation. Eventually, he intended to steal this gold whenever an opportunity arose. One day a man moved into the same building in which he lived and the man's profession seemed to fit into the bank clerks dubious plan. In addition, he traps two accomplices for the plan and they put the plan into action. However, something seems fishy as the story unfolds. The Lavender Hill Mob is a well performed dark comedy about the theft of a hefty sum in gold that brings the audience to ponder the film in retrospect.