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The Horse's Mouth

Play trailer Poster for The Horse's Mouth 1958 1h 35m Comedy Play Trailer Watchlist
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89% Tomatometer 19 Reviews 76% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
Gulley Jimson (Alec Guinness) is a boorish aging artist recently released from prison. A swindler in search of his next art project, he hunkers down in the penthouse of would-be patrons the Beeders (Robert Coote, Veronica Turleigh) while they go on an extended vacation; he paints a mural on their wall, pawns their valuables and, along with the sculptor Abel (Richard Gough), inadvertently smashes a large hole in their floor. Jimson's next project is an even larger wall in an abandoned church.

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The Horse's Mouth

Critics Reviews

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Jonas Mekas Village Voice 07/27/2021
Being an actor of distinction, Guinness again creates a unique and very personal character -- a caricature of an artist and a genius that is at once comical, pitiable, and tragic. Go to Full Review
Kenneth Cavander Sight & Sound 03/18/2020
Perhaps the result would almost have been happier with less worthy intentions. Go to Full Review
Moira Walsh The Catholic World 11/28/2023
In the first place the hero’s adventures have an inspired slapstick quality such as screen comedy seldom achieves nowadays. Secondly... on occasion, [it is] quite moving as a study of the temperament of the artistic genius. Go to Full Review
Clyde Gilmour Maclean's Magazine 10/21/2019
The style is at times too farcical under Ronald Neame's direction but much of it is gorgeously funny. Go to Full Review
Isabel Quigly The Spectator 02/15/2019
A vigorous, inconclusive film -- for what could it possibly conclude? I feel pretty thankful for its inconclusions. Go to Full Review
Dennis Schwartz Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews 04/07/2009
C+
It smacks more of an Ealing low-brow whimsical comedy than anything more artistic. Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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05/28/2019 More North Americans should see this classic film. This comedic romp is very British and seems to be well known in the United Kingdom, but did not make the transition to the shores of North America. The years have been no obstacle to this film, and it shows perfectly well today. Certainly, more Americans should be exposed to this classic movie, and unfortunately, there is only one way of doing it in today's world. Only Turner Classic Movies might play this movie (note: they did -- as a viewer request), but getting it into any type of rotation may prove difficult. The Bridge of the River Kwai is in a tight repetitive rotation and is shown every 2-3 weeks without fail. It's too bad this hilarious British movie can't be seen and appreciated by more North Americans. See more scott s 04/12/2016 Guinness is absolutely wonderful playing Gully Jimson. What I enjoyed about this film is how a scruffy, dirty painter has such a high art form. It makes you think about how much undiscovered talent is in our world because we focus to much on appearances than art. See more s r @ScottR 04/07/2016 Guinness is brilliant. See more 11/18/2015 A nice, light comedy, but an even nicer performance from Alec Guinness who really gets to grips with his volatile and angry artist, so much so we do see a flawed genius in his character. See more 09/27/2015 Guinness plays a rude obnoxious artist who plans to paint a controversial mural. A 1950s banksy if you will See more 09/23/2014 What a strange, really British film. I feel a lot of the comedy is lost in translation. That voice Guinness does is really grating. Can't say I found much that was funny, though parts were enjoyable enough while others went on too long. See more Read all reviews
The Horse's Mouth

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Movie Info

Synopsis Gulley Jimson (Alec Guinness) is a boorish aging artist recently released from prison. A swindler in search of his next art project, he hunkers down in the penthouse of would-be patrons the Beeders (Robert Coote, Veronica Turleigh) while they go on an extended vacation; he paints a mural on their wall, pawns their valuables and, along with the sculptor Abel (Richard Gough), inadvertently smashes a large hole in their floor. Jimson's next project is an even larger wall in an abandoned church.
Director
Ronald Neame
Producer
John Bryan
Screenwriter
Alec Guinness
Distributor
United Artists
Production Co
Knightsbridge Films
Genre
Comedy
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Nov 11, 1958, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 23, 2017
Runtime
1h 35m
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