The Ladykillers

SPOILERS Once upon a time the British produced some of the finest comedy in the world. With legends like Peter Sellers, Alec Guinness and Frankie Howard, the country churned wonderful films out at an extraordinary rate. One of the finest of these was the Ealing production of "The Ladykillers". Little old Mrs Wilberforce (Katie Johnson) is looking for a tenant for her spare rooms. Turning up one day, the room is taken by the mysterious Professor Marcus (Alec Guinness). Telling Mrs Wilberforce that he and his friends are an amateur band, the Professor is in fact planning a robbery. Not taking account of the people human factor though, he doesn't take account of the involvement of Mrs Wilberforce. It's with films like this that we are shown just how things were done better in the old days. Recently remade into a modern American version, this original of the film is vastly superior with a better cast and a considerably darker feel. This is helped in particular by an absolutely stunning turn by Guinness as the criminal genius. He's not alone however. Aided by his gang of criminals, including Peter Sellers and Cecil Parker, Guinness is also aided in the film by some great cameos by Frankie Howard and Kenneth Connor. Aside from the cast, the true beauty of this film is the script and the plot. The way events turn against the gang and life gets increasingly uncomfortable is superbly handled, and the final Alec Guinness resolution is a moment to be remembered. All in all, it's films like "The Ladykillers" which remind us of just how good comedy should be. At only just over 90minutes, the film never drags and entertains from start to finish. Most modern comedians seem to rely on one joke repeated constantly. As a result, it's nice to see a film which still feels fresh and funny, fifty years after it was first released. If you want to watch a good comedy, ignore the modern stuff and go for this classic.

I saw the 2004 remake of this film and I said, "This movie looked as if it were attempting to be a comedy, if so, it failed miserably." I had no idea at the time that it was merely mimicking the original because my sentiments about the original The Ladykillers is exactly the same. It was caught somewhere between comedy and drama. I believe they call those dramedies but this didn't even succeed at that. Professor Marcus (Alec Guinness) and his assembled gang have a plan to steal some loot but it all rests upon the unwitting cooperation of Mrs. Wilberforce (Katie Johnson). If you want a mental image of Mrs. Wilberforce then think of the most annoyingly "helpful" advice-filled old woman you can think of. The kind of old lady that is both helpful and helpless but you can't decline to assist her or entertain her ramblings because that'd be rude, impolite, and socially unacceptable. It was that very aspect of her that made the entire caper challenging and made the band of robbers seem so inept. The problem I had with the movie (besides the annoyingness of Mrs. Wilberforce) was the awkwardness of the comedy. It is a British film so perhaps there is a cultural gap but the overtly slapstick moments didn't seem to fit the film. It established itself as a serious film-seemingly-then suddenly turned into a muted version of the Three Stooges. I found nothing funny and the story was just barely interesting. The remake did little to redeem this movie so maybe The Ladykillers will rest in peace.

This was supposed to be funny, I found it mostly frustrating and unbelievable. Once you realize the old lady is the center of the film it really goes downhill fast. The constant mindless interruptions wear thin really fast, if anything this film makes fun of the elderly at their expense, but still not funny. Absurd, obtuse, as fun as finger nails on a chalk board. Because the film is so outside of reality you know no harm will come to the old lady, which in reality, she would have been killed early on to make life easy on these "criminals". The silliness of British manners over riding common sense, again has little humor enter twined, the poor actors forced to act out this drivel, this would be a monumental flop is released today. perhaps simple minds would like this, no way for me to judge that.

This comedy is so laid back it's practically in a persistent vegetative state. There's nothing really wrong with it, except that it was clearly aimed at an audience whose expectations were so mundane and sedate they could have been equally entertained by a marathon game of "Got yer nose!" Watching this film reminded me of the Thundercats cartoon I enjoyed as a kid. When I saw an episode as an adult, I was astonished at how slow and simple and benign the show was. That's the same feeling I got from The Ladykillers. It's so subdued and placid that the few times the movie gets slightly energetic are more off putting than amusing. Professor Marcus (Alec Guiness) is a criminal mastermind who's hatched a scheme to rob an armored car with a quartet of fellow villains (Herbert Lom, Peter Sellers, Danny Green and Cecil Parker). The plan revolves around Mrs. Wilberforce (Katie Johnson), a frail, old busybody with a house that's went lopsided from the bombings during WWII. Marcus and company manage to pull off the robbery. Mrs. Wilberforce plays her unwitting part in helping them get away with the money. Getting away from Mrs. Wilberforce, however, turns out to be the most difficult thing of all. Alec Guiness gives a nice performance that starts with a prosthetic overbite and unfolds into an unceasing parade of mannerisms. On the stage and with some punchier material to work with, his Professor Marcus would have been a wonderful creation. Here, though, it's like a trickle of water in the desert; barely enough to keep your interest alive. Guiness and Peter Sellers are also the only actors giving recognizably comedic performances. The rest of the cast and, for that matter, 90% of the film could be transposed into a drama with only the most superficial of alterations. The overwrought soundtrack sounds like it came from a much more dramatic motion picture, which may be an intentional joke but is undone by how thunderously it echoes through this cinematic lull. The intent may have been humorous but it makes equally as much sense to take as a mistake. You could show extended excerpts from The Ladykillers to ignorant audiences and they would not be able to tell if it was a comedy or not. I hate to put the blame on her, but I think it's largely because of Katie Johnson. She has so little energy on screen and any humor in her role is so obtuse that Mrs. Wilberforce becomes an anchor that drags down everything else in the movie. If you've taken a lot of cold medicine or have popped out of the TARDIS from 1950s Britain, you might be able to enjoy this film. The rest of you would probably get as many laughs from watching Alec Guiness in The Bridge On The River Kwai as you would from The Ladykillers.

Alec Guiness has to be one of the greatest actors of all time, and his role in The Lady Killers does not buck the trend. From the first moment I saw his dark shape looming through the doorway, I knew the character would be well creepy. And boy was it! With that horrible grin, those horrible teeth and that horrible laugh, it's little wonder that even the grim Herbert Lom starts to get a little freaked out. Nevertheless, Katie Johnson as the infuriating Mrs Wilberforce almost succeeds in stealing the show. There cannot be a more annoying person in the world, from the point of view of policemen, criminals and baggage handlers alike. The best scene of all, in my opinion, is the very last one, but I won't spoil it for you if you haven't seen it. I haven't actually watched the re-make of the film, and I'm certainly a big Tom Hanks fan, but I think it must be hard-pressed to beat this hilarious original. 8 out of 10. Obviously, it's rather old-fashioned and might not appeal to everyone's sense of humour. Ko, Izzy.

London, 1955. Professor Marcus (Alex Guinness) plans to rob two armored cars with the help of a gang of crooks, played by an ensemble group of actors. They include: Louis (Herbert Lom), The Mayor (Cecil Parker), One-Round (Danny Green) and Harry (Peter Sellers). None of the men have previously met each other, but join together for the single heist. Their strategic planning takes place in the upstairs of a Victorian home owned by Mrs. Wilberforce (Katie Johnson), a somewhat eccentric older woman who is under the impression that Professor Marcus and his "friends" are part of a music orchestra and unite daily to rehearse. This leads to a film comprised of misconceptions, confusion, and bumbling antics, as the Professor has to spend more of his time keeping Mrs. Wilberforce off their backs than devoting it to planning the robbery. The film shares resemblance to Danny DeVito's "Duplex" in the scenes where Mrs. Wilberforce continuously interrupts the criminals' scheming, asking them to run errands for her. They reluctantly put up with her constant irritating questions and demands, since she is unknowingly a vital ingredient of their plan. They must use Mrs. Wilberforce in their robbery, and after a while she realizes this, then demands that they return the money, which leads them to the conclusion that they must kill the old woman or else risk losing their entire fortune. However, their constant mistakes and arguments only postpone the inevitable, and it soon seems that the group of tough guys aren't so tough after all. "I can't! I can't!" screams one of the criminals when he pulls the shortest toothpick and is handed the task of "whacking" the poor sweet lady. All actors are at their peeks here -- Guinness as the Professor is superb, but Sellers in his screen debut is especially noteworthy. The script by William Rose relies on macabre humor rather than constant slapstick. Admittedly, I expected the former when I sat down to see the film, although I came away rather surprised at its sophistication. The Coen Brothers remade the film in 2004, although the remake failed to capture the essence of this dark comedy. Made before political correctness (in the Coens' version there is the token black character of course), this is a delightfully irreverent black comedy. To be fair, most of the jokes don't hold up as well nowadays. It does not deliver a constant barrage of jokes, but rather a steady mix of black humor and plot -- a very good plot, too. One that keeps our interest and quite often manages to make us smile. "The Ladykillers" is a rare treat, better than the remake, a classic of the genre, and something that will be remembered years from now. It's a real gem of a movie, hard to devote long paragraphs to, much easier to devote 100 minutes of your life to.

One of the Ealing studio's finest achievements, this immensely entertaining crime caper looks at first glance to be pure, inconsequential entertainment. But it doubles as a sly, subtle rummage around the psychology of the respectable, old-fashioned middle classes, with Katie Johnson deserving top billing alongside Alec Guinness (she doesn't get it) for her remarkable turn as the lady in question, the redoubtable Mrs Wilberforce. No less than the not-quite-ruthless-enough gang of criminals who scheme in her house, she lives in her own private universe with its own particular rules and values. Though she begins the film as the stereotype of a maddeningly officious pillar of local society, it gradually emerges that there is a freer as well as shrewder spirit locked in there than meets the eye. The umbrella she is always losing (she herself suggests that she unconsciously _wants_ to lose it), the escapologist parrot, and most poignantly the memory of a 21st birthday party interrupted by the end of the Victorian age, all hint at an inner life that the comic plot could easily have done without. The screenplay, deservedly Oscar-nominated, has the genius and economy to provide us with all these hints without ever slowing down a tightly-edited and superbly directed narrative. The other characters are a good deal simpler, but Alec Guinness is in impressively seedy form as 'Professor' Marcus and Cecil Parker makes an appealing Major. Peter Sellers and Herbert Lom don't have a great deal to do and don't try to hog the limelight, but there's a nice cameo from Frankie Howerd. Ealing went out on a high.

Where did they dig up Katie Johnson? How she balances the act of a sweet old lady who is respected yet still patronized with the toughness of a strong woman who upholds justice is a joy to watch. All the while completely unawares of the true danger surrounding her. Her performance is simply great and side-splittingly funny. The rest of the cast display their usual talents, particularly the fumbling of Cecil Parker and the mean looking Herbert Lom. It's also interesting to see a very young Peter Sellers who would soon hit his stride a few years later. The dark lighting and moody scenes are perfect for this comedy and are very typical of British films of the era, so the look is familiar right away as you begin to watch. The "Tea Party" scene is just a riot. Odd to see so many negative comments on the film - it's one of if not the best Ealing film and deservedly regarded as one the best comedies of all time. They just dont make them like this anymore.

When film studios are churning out rubbish like 'The Full Monty' and 'American Pie' under the heading of comedy, you have to wonder what sort of brainless morons are filling cinemas with laughter. It is nothing short of tragic that gargantuan amounts of cash are being expended on useless blow-outs like Titanic,Star Wars- The Phantom Menace, and just lately, The Beach. When Ealing Studios ceased production, the cinema world was suddenly very much poorer. The Ladykillers is undoubtedly one of the finest comedies ever made, certainly the best Ealing film of them all. Here is a film from the golden age of British cinema that will forever amuse and entertain. It is easy to be nostalgic about these old films but they are still held in high regard for a good reason-they were made by people who knew the art of film making. Moreover, they were made at a time when a trip to the cinema was still a special occasion. So they were made with love and care and with respect for the audience. The Ladykillers is unusual for an Ealing comedy, being made in colour. It would have worked just as well in black and white, possibly even etter.( I have watched it in black and white on TV by turning the colour controls off!) The location shots, which were done around the back of King's Cross station in London, capture forever something of the old London I used to know as a child. I suppose they best description for this film is a comedy of a bank robbery gone wrong. The ensemble acting is of the highest order; Katie Johnson as Mrs. Wilberforce just about steals the film from Alec Guinness. The hilarious script leaves you wanting more, even though a lot of the comedy is based on sight gags; the extended scene when the supposed 'musicians' come downstairs one by one while the Boccherini Quintet continues playing is wonderful, as are the moments involving General Gordon the parrot. The cinematography is beautifully realised and so British. Having read all of the comments on this film, I was suprised that so many American film lovers liked this film - British comedy like this doesn't usually travel well across the water. So a sincere big thank you to all of you guys over there who commented favourably on The Ladykillers. I don't think that we will ever see the return of institutions like Ealing Studios again, so The Ladykillers should be watched, enjoyed and loved by generations of film lovers to come.

Mrs. Wilberforce (Katie Johnson) lodges five elegant men (Alec Guinness, Cecil Parker, Herbert Lom, Peter Sellers and Danny Green) in her home, who intend to rehearse string quintet music. Indeed, they are five small-time thieves having a very well planned strategy to robber an armored car. They use the naive Mrs. Wilberforce to bring the stolen money to her home. When they are leaving the house, an incident with the dumb One-Round (Danny Green) reveals the plan to the old lady. The success of the robbery fails due to the human element. The gang decides that she must be eliminated, but none of them has courage for killing her. A very funny end closes this great sarcastic black humor British comedy. Maybe what it is more amazing is that this film was made in 1955, and in 2003 it remains very funny and has not aged. The performance of the cast and the direction are fantastic in this movie. Katie Johnson is very irritating with her naive logic and procedures. An enjoyable classic in the genre, indicated for all public. As another user commented in IMDB, "a comedy that will live forever". My vote is eight. Title (Brazil): `O Quinteto da Morte' (`The Quintet of the Death')