Anything for Love

source: Anything for Love

11 Harrowhouse

A light as air but undeniably entertaining heist film. Diamond broker Charles Grodin and wealthy girlfriend Candice Bergen are hired by billionaire madman Trevor Howard to rob a diamond clearing house (address is 11 Harrowhouse). Extremely clever and a lot of fun with great chemistry between Grodin & Bergen. Grodin's narration is hysterical and Bergen, looking stunning, shows early comic promise. Howard, not usually seen in anything approaching a comedy, is very funny. Director Aram Avakian brings a lot of style and moves things along at a lightening pace. Michael Lewis contributes a first rate score and the supporting cast includes James Mason, John Geilgud and Helen Cherry (in a most unlikely role). It's unlikely you'll see a movie make such good use of cockroaches.

Now I don't share the views of that other critic. Many of Grodin's movie characters have similar traits.(See him in Catch-22) Really this is a worthwhile film and a good show. He seems to have left out one of James Mason's darker performances,as he sticks it to his stiff employer! Trevor Howard is delightful as a psychotic,eccentric billionaire.(How much money does the guy need?) The film is narrated by Grodin in a matter-of-fact way that adds to the dry humor. All of the actors pull off their characters well... P.S. I watch a great deal of movies.

I laughed through this years ago, and have looked for copies on video and then on DVD over the years. Why is this one of my all time favorite movies like "Sneakers"? It is the poor, trod upon common man trying to outsmart "the establishment". Charles Grodin mentions in his autobiography, "It Would Be So Nice If You Weren't Here" that this movie needs a crowd to pick up on the humor and make it infectious. The original reviewer watched a private screening and dead-panned it. That was the review the movie houses used to base their order on, so it had a two week run and was gone before word could get around. (Did you see "My Big, Fat Greek Wedding in the first two weeks it was out? No, it needed time for word to spread) If you are in a bit of a silly mood with a group of friends and feel like watching someone thumb their nose at 'them with the power' with a fun twist at the end, this can make for a fun evening.

This could have been a fairly entertaining caper movie, but it never comes to life. It has a promising cast, but most of the performers are given nothing to do; James Mason brings the only traces of humanity to an otherwise very mechanical movie. In the last 15 minutes, the filmmakers even throw in some car chases and shoot-outs, probably hoping that the movie would gain some tension (since there are no laughs), but it remains strangely indifferent and uninvolving throughout. (**)

Charles Grodin, who co-wrote is almost always self-conscious, and it's self-consciousness that ultimately sinks this otherwise entertaining diamond heist caper. The excellent starring and supporting cast can't quite prevent the audience from being confused as to whether this is supposed to be a smart parody or a complicated thriller. The director was the excellent film editor of "Jazz On A Summer's Day", "Lilith", "The Miracle Worker", etc

Charles Grodin is dryly disengaged throughout this sleepy comic caper, which he co-adapted from the book by Gerald A. Browne. An American thief hopes to rob Great Britain's clearing house of its diamonds, but both Grodin and accomplice/girlfriend Candice Bergen are so lethargic they fade into the woodwork. A wily supporting cast (including James Mason, John Gielgud and Trevor Howard) enlivens the picture considerably, but Aram Avakian's airy direction is practically non-existent. The film looks like it was cheaply-made, with poor editing and muddy cinematography, and yet a smugness hangs over the proceedings (as if it were a great inside joke). A flop at the box-office--the roach on the poster probably didn't help--it was quickly reissued under the title, "Anything For Love". ** from ****

I'm a movie buff in my mid 50's, and though I own many hundreds of movies, this is among my top 10 most enjoyable films to watch and I hate that it is not available on DVD, not to mention BluRay. I own the LaserDisc version in widescreen with the Grodin narration. I re-watch this movie every few years, and enjoy it just as much every time. Grodin and Bergen are extremely charming, and the British supporting cast is world class. Some incorrectly describe this as a spoof, which gives the entirely wrong impression, though it is certainly witty and self-deprecating. It certainly isn't entirely realistic, but the tone, mood and wit of the film are extremely engaging.

Charles Grodin plays a small time diamond merchant jumps at the chance to supervise the purchase and cutting of a large first class diamond. But when the diamond is stolen from him, he is blackmailed into pulling off a major heist at the Diamond Exchange, located at 11 Harrowhouse, Candice Bergen, is Grodin's glamorous lover interest, James Mason also stars he aids Grodin in his scheme to rob 11 Harrowhouse in a very ingenious way! Trevor Howard is the shady Lord Massey, John Gielguld is in typical full on snob mode, '11 Harrowhouse' or if shown elsewhere or on television it is also known as 'Anything for Love' it's been unavailable for years, only on Laserdisc, but at this moment as i type it is available from the 'Shout factory label' in widescreen, 11 Harrowhouse is an enjoyable rainy day feel good film,