Description:Alec Guinness received his first Oscar nomination as Best Actor for his delightful performance as Henry Holland, a meek clerk who devises an ingenious plan to rob a fortune in gold bullion from his own bank. But when Henry and his odd accomplice (Stanley Holloway) melt the gold into souvenir Eiffel Towers to smuggle into France, theirAlec Guinness received his first Oscar nomination as Best Actor for his delightful performance as Henry Holland, a meek clerk who devises an ingenious plan to rob a fortune in gold bullion from his own bank. But when Henry and his odd accomplice (Stanley Holloway) melt the gold into souvenir Eiffel Towers to smuggle into France, their perfect crime becomes a disastrous caper of Cockney crooks, customs chaos and an ill-timed group of British schoolgirls, all leading to some of the most hilarious and unexpected surprises in criminal history.
This classic comedy from Ealing Studios stars Alec Guinness as Holland, a mild-mannered bank clerk who masterminds an ingenious robbery. For the past 20 years, Holland's job has been to escort shipments of gold bullion from refineries to his bank's vaults. However, he's fed up with his lot in life and so decides to team up with three accomplices to smuggle a load of gold from England to France. Holland cooks up a clever, secret plan to melt stolen gold into models of the Eiffel Tower and then ship them off to Paris as souvenirs. Although the scheme seems foolproof, the caper proves tricky to pull off. Soon the motley gang of thieves are being chased through the streets of London--and their stash has fallen into the hands of some very unlikely people. THE LAVENDER HILL MOB is one of the finest comedies to come out of England in the 20th century.
Mr. Holland (Alec Guinness) has supervised the bank's bullion run for years. He is fussy and unnecessarily overprotective, but everyone knows he is absolutely trustworthy. And so, on the day the bullion truck is robbed, he is the last person to be suspected. But there is another side to Mr. Holland--he is also Dutch, the leader of THE LAVENDER HILL MOB. Prolific Ealing writer T.E.B. Clarke won an Oscar for his deft script for THE LAVENDER HILL MOB. But he was helped greatly by the precise direction and impeccable timing of director Charles Crichton, and by the brilliance of Alec Guinness's performance. When he tries to recruit Mr. Pendlebury (Stanley Holloway) as Pendlebury chips away at one of his sculptures, Guinness circles Holloway, playfully seducing him into the idea of robbery and, as Holloway finally understands the proposition, Guinness looks back over his shoulder like some elfin Lucifer. When the mob goes over its robbery plans, Guinness insists on a detail and Shorty (Alfie Bass) acknowledges that Guinness is the boss. Guinness, concentrating, agrees. Then, as he relaxes and eases back in his chair, Guinness sheds his years of servitude to the bank--Dutch Holland is indeed the boss. ... (more)(less)
Release date : 10 September 1951 UPC: 013131147599
"'The Lavender Hill Mob' is another comedy masterpiece from Ealing. Although it is less frequently mentioned than 'Kind Hearts and Coronets' or 'The Ladykillers', 'The Lavender Hill Mob' is every inch their equal. Fast-paced, concise, funny and thrilling, this brilliant little crime caper features a stunningly subtle central performance from Alec Guiness as a bored bank clerk who hatches a plan to steal a fortune. Also excellent is Stanley Holloway as his more verbose accomplice. Like many Britis"
Michael M added this to a list 9 months, 3 weeks ago
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