The Ladykillers (Dir: Alexander Mackendrick, 1955).
Alec Guinness heads an ensemble cast in the last great Ealing comedy.
Seemingly mild mannered Professor Marcus (Guinness) leads a gang of oddball criminals, masquerading as classical musicians, in the planning and execution of a daring bank van raid. When their elderly landlady Mrs Wilberforce (Katie Johnson) learns of the wrongdoings they all agree she must be silenced. However, Mrs Wilberforce is not as easy to do away with and their perfect crime begins to go awry.
Disguised with an oversized set of false teeth, Alec Guinness is excellent in his role as the cardigan wearing criminal. An outstanding ensemble cast makes up the rest of the gang. Cecil Parker as a corrupt retired army major, Herbert Lom as a Soho gangster, a subdued Peter Sellers as a cockney spiv and Danny Green as a dim-witted heavy all give superlative performances. Upstaging them all, however, is the marvellous Katie Johnson as the seemingly frail but no-nonsense little old lady who outsmarts the robbers. Also notable is perennial police man Jack Warner as police superintendent and Frankie Howard in a small role as a disgruntled barrow boy.
One of only a handful of Ealing productions shot in Technicolor, cinematographer Otto Heller's beautiful muted colour palette lends it an oddly surreal, atmosphere. This is complemented by Jim Morahan's excellent art direction; the wonderful tumbledown Victorian house in which much of the movie is set adding to the general off kilter ambience.
Director Alexander Mackendrick fashioned a deliriously dark comedy of the highest order; the only film blacker in the Ealing canon is Kind Hearts and Coronets. He elicits career best performances from his distinguished cast in what is among his greatest films. The Ladykillers was to be Mackendrick's last film for Ealing. The following year he decamped for Hollywood to direct the excellent Sweet Smell of Success (1957). By the end of the 1960s he had retired from filmmaking and was made Dean of the Walt Disney founded California Institute of the Arts. He remained at CalArts for over two decades, until his death in 1993.
William Rose's BAFTA winning and Oscar nominated screenplay balances the light and dark with tightrope precision; neatly offsetting the contrasting worlds of ruthless criminals and twee little old ladies. Some broad farce involving an escaped parrot should sit uneasily with the subtle humour but, amazingly, the whole thing gels perfectly. Rose also made his way to Hollywood post Ealing and was responsible for classics It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (Stanley Kramer, 1963) and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (S. Kramer, 1967)
The Ladykillers has the distinction of being the last comedy shot at the Ealing Green studios before the location was sold to the BBC. Ealing would continue as a production company based at Borehamwood, through a deal with MGM British. But at this point they were a company in decline. By the end of the decade Ealing would cease to exist. As well as being the last comedy shot at the studio, The Ladykillers was also the last truly classic Ealing comedy. More comedies were to follow: Barnacle Bill (Charles Fend, 1957) is in the classic Ealing mould, while Who Done It? (Basil Dearden, 1956) and Davy (Michael Relph, 1958) were really vehicles for established stars Benny Hill and Harry Secombe, respectively. All three are worth watching but cannot help be viewed as disappointments considering the Studio's track record.
Alec Guinness heads an ensemble cast in the last great Ealing comedy.
Seemingly mild mannered Professor Marcus (Guinness) leads a gang of oddball criminals, masquerading as classical musicians, in the planning and execution of a daring bank van raid. When their elderly landlady Mrs Wilberforce (Katie Johnson) learns of the wrongdoings they all agree she must be silenced. However, Mrs Wilberforce is not as easy to do away with and their perfect crime begins to go awry.
Disguised with an oversized set of false teeth, Alec Guinness is excellent in his role as the cardigan wearing criminal. An outstanding ensemble cast makes up the rest of the gang. Cecil Parker as a corrupt retired army major, Herbert Lom as a Soho gangster, a subdued Peter Sellers as a cockney spiv and Danny Green as a dim-witted heavy all give superlative performances. Upstaging them all, however, is the marvellous Katie Johnson as the seemingly frail but no-nonsense little old lady who outsmarts the robbers. Also notable is perennial police man Jack Warner as police superintendent and Frankie Howard in a small role as a disgruntled barrow boy.
One of only a handful of Ealing productions shot in Technicolor, cinematographer Otto Heller's beautiful muted colour palette lends it an oddly surreal, atmosphere. This is complemented by Jim Morahan's excellent art direction; the wonderful tumbledown Victorian house in which much of the movie is set adding to the general off kilter ambience.
Director Alexander Mackendrick fashioned a deliriously dark comedy of the highest order; the only film blacker in the Ealing canon is Kind Hearts and Coronets. He elicits career best performances from his distinguished cast in what is among his greatest films. The Ladykillers was to be Mackendrick's last film for Ealing. The following year he decamped for Hollywood to direct the excellent Sweet Smell of Success (1957). By the end of the 1960s he had retired from filmmaking and was made Dean of the Walt Disney founded California Institute of the Arts. He remained at CalArts for over two decades, until his death in 1993.
William Rose's BAFTA winning and Oscar nominated screenplay balances the light and dark with tightrope precision; neatly offsetting the contrasting worlds of ruthless criminals and twee little old ladies. Some broad farce involving an escaped parrot should sit uneasily with the subtle humour but, amazingly, the whole thing gels perfectly. Rose also made his way to Hollywood post Ealing and was responsible for classics It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (Stanley Kramer, 1963) and Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (S. Kramer, 1967)
The Ladykillers has the distinction of being the last comedy shot at the Ealing Green studios before the location was sold to the BBC. Ealing would continue as a production company based at Borehamwood, through a deal with MGM British. But at this point they were a company in decline. By the end of the decade Ealing would cease to exist. As well as being the last comedy shot at the studio, The Ladykillers was also the last truly classic Ealing comedy. More comedies were to follow: Barnacle Bill (Charles Fend, 1957) is in the classic Ealing mould, while Who Done It? (Basil Dearden, 1956) and Davy (Michael Relph, 1958) were really vehicles for established stars Benny Hill and Harry Secombe, respectively. All three are worth watching but cannot help be viewed as disappointments considering the Studio's track record.
In actuality comedy only made up a small percentage of Ealing output; their run of wartime drama, social realist films and occasional ventures into portmanteau horror are equally notable. However comedy has proven to be Ealing’s lasting legacy. Not only is The Ladykillers an important film in British cinema history, it is also unarguably a masterpiece of comedy movies. Its mix of humour and thrills is irresistible and as an ambassador for the Ealing legacy it cannot be bettered.
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