
Holland, a shy retiring man, dreams of being rich and living the good life. Faithfully, for twenty years, he has worked as a bank transfer agent for the delivery of gold bullion. One day he befriends Pendlebury, a maker of souvenirs. Holland remarks that, with Pendlebury's smelting equipment, one could forge the gold into harmless-looking toy Eiffel Towers and smuggle the gold from England into France. Soon afterwards, the two plant a story to gain the services of professiona... (Full plot summary below)
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Holland, a shy retiring man, dreams of being rich and living the good life. Faithfully, for twenty years, he has worked as a bank transfer agent for the delivery of gold bullion. One day he befriends Pendlebury, a maker of souvenirs. Holland remarks that, with Pendlebury's smelting equipment, one could forge the gold into harmless-looking toy Eiffel Towers and smuggle the gold from England into France. Soon afterwards, the two plant a story to gain the services of professional criminals Lackery and Shorty. Together, the four plot their crime, leading to unexpected twists and turns.
Leave your thoughts about The Lavender Hill Mob.
| The New YorkerPauline KaelThe Lavender Hill Mob, along with Passport to Pimlico and Genevieve, is one of British cinema's most evocative films. |
| Time OutTom HuddlestonCharles Crichton’s direction is subtle but inventive – check out the snaking, near-single-take opening in a Rio cabana – and the performances, writing and plotting are faultless. |
| Total FilmJamie RussellInflation may have dented the allure of its 1m bullion heist, but this 1951 Ealing comedy is still 24-carat gold. |
| Empire MagazineDavid ParkinsonAlec Guinness shines in this hilarious British comedy. |
| Daily Telegraph (UK)Sukhdev SandhuHelped by a peerless script and a great team of actors (Alfie Bass and Sid James as professional thieves; Stanley Holloway as an oratory-inclined artist-scamster), the film is both a joyous comedy and a tense thriller. |
| EmanuelLevy.ComEmanuel LevyAlec Guinness received a well deserved Oscar nomination for this hilarious British comedy |
| GuardianPeter BradshawIt's tremendously good fun, though lighter in tone than Ealing's two scabrous masterpieces Kind Hearts and Coronets and The Ladykillers, and not quite matching their elegant perfection; I've never been able to rid myself of the feeling that, however superbly set up, the aftermath of the heist itself is ever so slightly lacking in tension. |
| Sarasota Herald-TribuneChristopher LloydThe real joy of the movie is less about the caper than these two invisible, workaday men discovering the thrills of attempting something extraordinary - even if it is felonious. |
| Los Angeles AlternativeJay AntaniFun, perfectly realized Ealing Studios outing |
| The A.V. ClubKeith PhippsThough [Guinness's] performance may not immediately announce itself as his best, it's certainly one of his most representative, a thoroughly recognizable character of unseen depths and unexpected capabilities. |