The Ladykillers (1955)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Director:

Alexander Mackendrick

Writers:

William Rose (story)
William Rose (screenplay)

Release Date:

December 1955 (UK)

Genre:

Comedy | Crime | Thriller

Tagline:

Meet "The Unholy Five"...The Most Befuddled Set of Assorted Thugs That Ever Fouled Up a Million Dollar Bank Robbery!!

Plot:

Five diverse oddball criminal types planning a bank robbery rent rooms on a cul-de-sac from an octogenarian widow under the pretext that they are classical musicians.

Plot Keywords:

Widow | Planning | Criminal | Octogenarian | Bank Robbery

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 2 wins & 2 nominations

Cast

Alec Guinness	...	Professor Marcus
Cecil Parker	...	Claude (a.k.a. 'Major Courtney')
Herbert Lom	...	Louis (a.k.a. 'Mr. Harvey')
Peter Sellers	...	Harry (a.k.a. 'Mr. Robinson')
Danny Green	...	One-Round (a.k.a. 'Mr. Lawson')
Jack Warner	...	The Superintendent
Katie Johnson	...	The Old Lady
Philip Stainton	...	The Sergeant
Frankie Howerd	...	The Barrow Boy

Also Known As:

The Lady Killers

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Australia:G | Sweden:11 (1975 re-rating) | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 (original rating) | UK:U

Filming Locations:

Argyle Street, St. Pancras, London, England, UK

Company:

Ealing Studios

Trivia:

The producers originally rejected director Alexander Mackendrick's choice of Katie Johnson for the role of Mrs. Wilberforce on the grounds that she might be too frail for the project, and so they cast a younger actress - who died before filming began.

Goofs:

Audio/visual unsynchronized: When Major Courtney is cornered on the roof by Louis, he backs away and shouts, "Louis!" but his lips do not move.

Quotes:

Professor Marcus: You're most kind, and if I may say so, you have a very curious and charming house. Such, um, pretty windows.
Mrs. Louisa Wilberforce: Oh, thank you,
[pointing to a window]
Mrs. Louisa Wilberforce: And I rather favour positions...
Professor Marcus: [interrupting] I always think the windows are the eyes of a house, and didn't someone say the eyes are the windows of the soul?
Mrs. Louisa Wilberforce: I don't really know. Oh, it's such a charming thought, I do hope someone expressed it!

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 50 Greatest Comedy Films (2006) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Music

Classic dark comedy with lots of mood and style

Soon after this atmospheric black comedy begins, aged widow Johnson putters around her house (situated near a railyard) as an imposing shadow seems to peer at her from every window (accented by dramatic music.) When she opens the door, there stands Guinness, in one of his amusingly creepy personas. He rents a room from the lady and arranges to have his cronies come over to practice their quintet. Unfortunately, he has something else in mind and the quintet is merely a cover for a greater plan. The film has detail, wit and character to spare. Guinness (and his friends, played by legendary character actors like Sellars and Lom) are a funny, motley lot. However, the story really belongs to Johnson. Shamefully underbilled and unsung, she perfectly embodies the role at hand and is incredibly memorable in her understated sweetness and supposed vulnerability. This is a woman who looks for the best in everything and everyone and fights injustice whenever she encounters it. Johnson gives a quiet, yet towering performance and it is astonishing how disrespectful her billing is in the film and how little she's been given even in recent packaging. There is nothing wrong with Guinness's work, but this is Johnson's film. (Ironically, according to Robert Osborne, a younger actress was cast in the film, to be made up as older, because the producers felt that the sometimes demanding director would be too much for Johnson to bear. However, that actress died before filming, so Johnson was used and got on fine!) It is truly the type of film that won't be made again. (It may be RE-made, but never with the same quaint, understated style, nor with such polished actors.)