The Fallen Idol

When the great directors of film are named these days, the incomparable Carol Reed is rarely mentioned. He has been completely surpassed in the public esteem by his British contemporary David Lean. After the success of Reed's English films, a period which began in 1940 with the coal-mining film "The Stars Look Down" and ended with "The Outcast of the Islands" in 1954, the director was discovered by the big Hollywood studios; he went on to direct a number of big-budgeted Technicolor international productions –-"Olivier," "The Agony and the Ecstasy," and "Trapeze"—all of which he handled with consummate professionalism, but somehow their box-office success unfairly diminished his reputation with the critics. He is perhaps best remembered today for "The Third Man," which many people erroneously think Orson Welles directed. Although Reed's early films were shot in London films studios and on location all around the word, they remain quintessentially British in understated mood and attack --B&W films made in collaboration with the best expatriate talent that had gathered in London during the war years. ("The Fallen Idol" is photographed by the French cinematographer Perinal, the Jugoslavian editor Hafenrichter, and the Hungarian set designer Vincent Korda.) Reed at his best has the unique ability to portray the most complex of human relationships with voices lowered; witness how masterfully he directs the detectives and suspects in the final reels of this superb film.

Just saw "The Fallen Idol" at the Nu-Art in West Los Angeles on the last day of its one week run, with a new crystal clear 35 mm print. The meaning of the title only becomes clear at the film's conclusion, so I won't say much more on that score. From a Graham Greene novella which I have never read, the author drafted the screenplay, so presumably the film remains faithful to Greene's perennial themes: loyalty and betrayal; faith and faithlessness; marriage and divorce. What makes these issues intriguing is that the film largely revolves around the point of view of an innocent, charming young boy called Phillipe, played to perfection by Bobby Henrey. He lives in the London embassy of a French speaking country, which is a sort of purgatory (always the Catholic themes with Greene) which is both in England and not subject to its laws. He is taken care of by a kind valet/ chef de maison called Baines (understatedly played by Ralph Richardson) and his Cruella De Ville of a wife (played as the personification of small-minded evil by Sonia Dresdel). Phillipe has no mother (she has been unwell and away for a long time), and no memory of her. Insteads, he has the run of his own Garden of Eden-the huge Embassy with its lovely views over London, great rooms and sweeping staircases. He even has his own snake- a pet that he hides behind a brick on the balcony and carries around in his pocket. He hero-worships Baines, who indulges him and talk to him and hates Mrs Baines who orders him around, hectors him and threatens him at every turn. The story of the film occurs over a week-end, where Phillippe and the Baines' are left alone in the Embassy as the ambassador has gone to bring back his wife from her convalescence, and revolves how Phillipe understands the love triangle between Mr Baines and Mrs Baines and the lovely Julie (played with cheek-bones high) by Michele Morgan, speaking both French and English.

Look out for some terrific performances by the main cast (especially Bobby Henrey as Phillipe), but also by a series of supporting characters : two washerwomen, a sharp tongued lady of the night, a kindly bobby, several detectives and a perceptive doctor. The photography bears mentioning. There are shades of the "Third Man", as well as a great hide and seek game in darkness under the furniture in the empty Embassy, and a truly memorable run through the empty streets of London in the dark. From a personal point of view I enjoyed several scenes shot on location at the London Zoo, which was all very familiar even from a fifty year vantage point.

The film won a British Academy award so it's not exactly undiscovered, but it's not been easy to find at revival theaters or on DVD, but it deserves to be. As I said at the top, a minor masterpiece which operates on many levels. (Los Angeles-April 2006).

A riveting little movie. Very Hitchcockian in its style. Smart, economical dialogue. After a somewhat slow, crafty build, it will grab hold of you. Wonderful bit with a paper airplane. Filled with superb little touches.

I'm amazed at the time of writing this, there are only 33 comments and 1700 votes. How is it that more people haven't seen this movie.

Another classic pairing of Directot Carol Reed with Writer Graham Greene - who would later go on to even more success with their collaboration in "The Third Man". While I wouldn't rate this movie quite as high as TTM, it is very good film in its own right.

This is a tale as seen from a child's eyes in a very grown-up world with very adult issues. This is captured superbly in the cinematography that uses low angles at child height and looking up. This is also a story of secrets and lies - and so the camera is very effective in changing shots and angles to always give them impression that others are spying or eavesdropping. This is also conveyed very effectively with the set - which is filmed substantially withing the Embassy residence which is a huge, lavish mansion. It has many levels and staircases - none so impressive as the ornate, curving main staircase. The camera also makes good use of close-ups and wide angle shots. Often times, movies with stick with one or the other. I think it helped keep it interesting.

The characters were all well cast. I especially liked Ralph Richardson as the butler whom the boy, Phillipe (Bobby Henry), idolizes. Richardson has just the right balance of decorum and warmth to make you understand why the boy, who is starved for attention, follows after him. He has a very smooth speaking voice that is pleasant to listen to. He reminds me a lot of Kevin Spacey in his appearance and demeanor (especially in "Pay it Forward"). I think the director did a great job of eliciting a good performance out of the then 8 year old Henry. I heard that the director's secret was not to have the child respond to an actors lines - but to que the child himself in a different take. I think the precociousness and spontaneity of the child were captured quite well with this.

There are quite a few memorable scenes - hide and seek in the dark, cavernous mansion; the boy running through the dark London streets with all the alleys, archways, wet streets and glowing lanterns; the paper airplane flying from the upper balcony and circling all the way down, slowly, to land at a detectives feet; the detective questioning Baines at the top of the stairs, all the while the tilted window is visible in the background. The music changes pace with the story, and at times it was frantic and frenetic to match the suspense and fear of the story. I felt it was used quite effectively.

The story addresses themes of loneliness, betrayal, secrecy, lies, and loss of innocence in a plot that kept my interest from beginning to end. My only complaint is that at times the dialogue was difficult to understand with the clip, British accents. I wish this had been offered in closed captions so I could catch some missed conversations.

Was there ever a more civilized treatment of infidelity than this British suspenser. Ralph Richardson's butler Baines is the very last word in polished civility and stiff upper lip no matter how extreme the provocation. Yet he's so unfailingly kind and considerate to the boy Phillipe that he's among the most admirable of transgressors. The bond between the lonely son of the French ambassador and the hen-pecked English butler is memorably touching and the emotional heart of the film.

Director Carol Reed has basically a single set to work with. But it's a great one with the sweeping staircase, high domed ceiling, and checkerboard tiles, all keeping the eye entertained at the same time the sinister events unfold. Those events are driven by poor Sonia Dresdel who has the thankless role of the cruel wife and housekeeper Mrs. Baines that she plays to the hilt. You just know from the start that Phillipe's pet garter snake, MacGregor, is doomed in her bleak household. In fact, the screenplay has loaded the deck by making her such an unsympathetic figure. Who can blame Baines for his covert rendezvous with the lovely Julie (Michelle Morgan) when his shrewish wife remains in the empty embassy waiting to pounce.

What really distinguishes the movie is its skill at viewing adult actions through the eyes of the child. Thus, instead of a conventional two-shot close-up of Baines and Julie in intimate conversation, Reed gives us a three-shot from the perspective of Phillipe as he watches them. We may know what's up with them, but we also share the boy's puzzlement over a world he has yet to grow into. We share that perspective throughout, which is not only an unusual one, but visually reinforces the touching bond between the child of the elite and the highly polished commoner. It also turns the emotional climax (not the dramatic) into a memorably revealing one-- a rite of passage, as it were.

Anyway, in my little book, the movie qualifies as a genuine classic, placing Carol Reed in the same Pantheon as contemporary British masters Hitchcock and Michael Powell. Once you see it, you don't forget it.