Cheap The Ladykillers (DVD) (Alexander Mackendrick) Price

Related Products

Customer Reviews of The Ladykillers

I can see why Tom Hanks wanted to remake this
It must have been great fun to make this film. In watching it I can certainly see how Hanks must've thought it'd be great fun to do it himself, although by all accounts the remake is a flop I've not seen it and, having now seen the original, I don't care to; this one is just perfect as it is. <
> <
>Alec Guinness stars as a criminal mastermind with a questionable mental state and some of the worst teeth you've ever seen. He plays the slimy Professor in all his retentive glory. Peter Sellers & Herbert Lom, well known as Inspector Clouseau & Chief Inspector Dreyfuss of the Pink Panther films, are excellent here too, Sellers as a pre-60s "mod" young man in one of his first featured roles and Lom as a paranoid murderer. The gang is rounded out with a couple of lesser known actors who are absolutely brilliant as One Round, the dim-witted muscle man with a heart of gold and the sophisticated Major. <
> <
>But the lady at the heart of it all trumps the whole cast. Sweet little Mrs. Wilberforce (Katie Johnson) was a scene-stealer of the first degree in this film, and I've not seen here in anything else but would love to. She's the kind of little old lady you want to spend time with just because she's so deeply sweet you hope it rubs off on you...but she's no gullible caricature, and she sets things to right and has a happy ending. <
> <
>And it's all absolutely hilarious and brilliant, watching this gang's perfect robbery derailed by the humanity of those involved. A charming, riotously funny movie that's worth watching repeatedly. It just doesn't get much better than "The Ladykillers."

---

May the Wilberforce be With You
The original classic that the Tom Hanks film is based on. Miss Wilberforce is a force to be reckoned with, or at least avoided. This is apparent in the opening scene when her mere presence sends an infant into hysterics. Her busybody attitude at the police station gives the viewer an idea of what to expect of her. But while the viewer suspect, The Professor (Alec Guinness) is not privy to that information. <
> <
>Guinness is the mastermind behind a robbery and he has signed up as a lodger at the Wilberforce home. There he meets with his partners while posing as musicians. But while the caper is pulled off the real trials begin. The thieves must deal with each other and the ever-present and meddlesome Wilberforce as mistrust builds rapidly and secrets get harder to hide. Tempers flare and more crimes need to be committed to keep the theft secret until the final conclusion. <
> <
>This is black comedy at its best. Miss Wilberforce is an almost delight as she seems to move unscathed and uninformed through the machinations of the thieves. Her actions in the opening and closing scene are priceless classics and no remake could recapture the feeling. A must see for any fan of Alec Guinness or of black comedy in general. Although filmed in color, the railway yard scenes are as black as if they had been filmed in black and white. Check it out.

---

Classic British Comedy
A great classic crime comedy. The cast is great, featuring Alec Guinness and Peter Sellers. The plot is that Guinness is organizing a crime, in which a main ingredient is a little old lady, Mrs. Wilberforce whose house the thieves need to stay in during the heist. As you might geuss, things don't go just as planned. Parts of it are really hilarious. It's a classic British comedy.