User reviews

One with the Grodin narration, and one without. I suspect many of the negative reviews refer to the highly edited TV-version. Unfortunately, I'm not sure if the commercial VHS tape offered is the edited version, so caution is advised.

As a fan of heist films, I only recently learned of this rare film and had an opportunity to obtain the widescreen laserdisc presentation. And while it's true that this isn't a top-notch comedy or thriller, it's certainly better than you would think given the majority of less-than-flattering reviews here.

There are clever heist tricks - many of which have not been used again since this film. You know how much Hollywood likes to "borrow" clever ideas and use them over and over to the point where they become sad clichés. Well, you have to admire the use of cockroaches and chocolate cake to defeat an ultra-secure vault! How many times have you seen that done before? Or since?

If you're a fan of the heist genre or a Grodin devotee - this is a 'must see'. Otherwise, I'd wait 'til it gets a DVD release.

Apparently someone had a really good idea to save 11 Harrowhouse. They added a voice-over narration by star Charles Grodin, sharp and laconical that really lifts the film from the mediocre to the good. There seems to be another version of the film without it, but I can't imagine it being as good as this.

11 Harrowhouse is the name of the address where a few people headed by John Gielgud control the diamond market of the world. They have billions of dollars or English pounds if you will of gems in their vaults and manipulate the world market value like a yo-yo. Gielgud is a cold and forbidding man and he's one who delights in screwing the little people in his employ. One of them is diamond cutter James Mason who is as reliable as Alec Guinness was in The Lavendar Hill Mob. He's also got a plan. When Grodin and Candice Bergen come up short with 'the System' as Gielgud's consortium is called, Mason has them as allies.

The three of them have the backing of billionaire Trevor Howard who also likes messing with people. He messes with Grodin and Grodin has no choice but to aid in the robbery.

The best part of the film is the robbery itself. Someone has to be sacrificed, but the idea is incredibly ingenious and bloody simple.

Mason comes off best in this, a little man who just wants to get even with those who have treated him like a doormat all his working life.

An enjoyable caper film, diamond exchange in Amsterdam, take note.

Charles Grodin lends his distinctively dry comic persona to this somewhat tongue in cheek adaptation of a more serious novel by Gerald A. Browne. He also narrates, and does a good job at maintaining a fairly light tone. He plays a diamond merchant who regularly visits the worlds' largest clearinghouse for gems, located at 11 Harrowhouse in London. He ends up approached by a slimy, yet genial, oil baron named Clyde Massey (Trevor Howard) to steal the places' inventory, and although that usually isn't his trade he and his spirited female companion Maren (Candice Bergen) prove up to the challenge, coming up with an ingenious way to pull off the robbery. For one thing, it involves using a cockroach, but more importantly, it includes an angry employee, Charles Watts (James Mason) who they convert to their cause. At first glance, Grodin (who also is credited with adapting the story) would seem an unlikely lead for such a film, but his presence gives it a little something extra; his narration ensures that this feels like kind of a parody of the genre. Bergen is lovely, of course, and appealing as his girlfriend, a wealthy widow and ace getaway driver who's skillful, not reckless. The mostly British cast includes some very big names who give "11 Harrowhouse" some gravitas; Mason is a real standout as the willing participant in the robbery who wants to make sure that his family is provided for. John Gielgud is excellent as his serious-minded boss, and appearing as well are Helen Cherry, Peter Vaughan, Cyril Shaps, Leon Greene, Jack Watson, and Clive Morton. Director Aram Avakian handles it all in style, cranking up the excitement factor for a breathless final act involving a chase. All in all, this is pretty enjoyable; even if it's not that memorable it's hard to resist while it lasts; the climactic robbery sequence is fun and great use is made of the various locations. Worth a look for fans of the caper film and of the actors on hand. Seven out of 10.

Considering the pedigree of the cast it's odd that this film didn't do better. There's much to recommend this story of a diamond broker being maneuvered into robbing a London diamond exchange of its inventory (a caper involving such tools as a desperate employee, a piece of chocolate cake and a cockroach). The dialogue is liberally peppered with Grodin's wry voice-over commentary, and this film is one of the few places where his style of humor actually manages to work. It's no Topkapi, but a pleasant way to waste some time. Considerably more light-hearted than the Gerald Browne book on which it was based.

"11 Harrowhouse" is a heist film from 1974 starring Charles Grodin, Candice Bergen, James Mason, John Gielgud, Trevor Howard, and the recently deceased Peter Vaughan.

I, unfortunately, saw a bad print of this which took away from my viewing. I love heist films, and the robbery of jewels here is clever and entertaining, as is the car chase toward the end.

Grodin is a diamond trader, Howard R. Chesser, though he is not a major player. The Diamond Exchange in London, address 11 Harrowhouse, monitors the control of diamonds, hoarding tons of them to keep the value high.

A multi-millionaire, Clyde Massey (Howard) wants a large diamond named after him and gives the million-pound deal to Chesser. Alas, when Chesser and Maren (Bergen) go to have the diamond cut, it's stolen from them.

Massey then blackmails him and orders him to steal the four tons of diamonds at the Exchange. With the daredevil Maren and an inside man (Mason), Chesser gets to work.

The film painstakingly shows the planning and execution of the heist, so the real excitement is the car chase that takes place.

Grodin has that wry way about him that worked for the character. Though I love Candice Bergen, I've never held her acting in high esteem - her metier turned out to be comedy. She's beautiful - it's not a great role. And you can't go wrong with people like Gielgud, Mason, and Howard, all of whom are terrific.

Clever heist film, attractive stars, and entertaining.

From reading the comments, I'm not sure exactly how many versions of this film exist, but I have seen it twice, once as a kid when I totally loved it; and years later as a film buff when I totally loathed it! However, I must say that the novel it was based on, 11 Harrowhouse St, by Gerald A Browne, has stood the test of time, and is a very good read.

I'm curious to know if anyone has ever actually found Harrowhouse Street in Central London, but it's not in my A-Z. I think it was meant to be around either Hatton Garden or St Paul's. Maybe the street has been renamed, or was fictitious? Also, I think the little black sports car was a Lotus Europa, but am not sure. If anyone can confirm this I'd be grateful. TIA.

I saw Harrowhouse on TV many years ago and loved it for it's period atmosphere, modest intrigue, topped off with a somewhat tongue-in-cheek narration by Grodin. Where the B-grade plot and action fell short, the dry humour of the narration supplied irony and maybe self-parody. Renting it on VHS many years later, it took some time to figure why it fell so flat - the VHS version had no narration, and presented as merely a sincere but inadequate attempt at thriller/drama genre.

I'd be curious to know which version each reviewer saw - the 'vanilla' but one-dimensional (original?) version, or the narrated and somewhat quirky TV version. I'm hoping that the narrated version eventually appears on DVD - it's on my list.

This is another of those films that I recalled fondly from childhood. "Chesser" (Charles Grodin) is a small time diamond dealer who, along with girlfriend "Maren" (Candice Bergen) finds himself ensnared in a cunning plot to rapidly increase the value of diamonds (though without the aid of "Pussy Galore's Flying Circus") by removing around $18bn from the global reserves. The trading centre for these jewels is the eponymous, unremarkable, London townhouse occupied by the imperious Sir John Gielgud ("Meecham") and his dedicated assistant "Watts" (James Mason). We learn quickly that "Watts" is a man on borrowed time, and that his boss couldn't really care less - so this makes the former character ripe for co-operation with "Chesser". Their scheme is ingenious, and their planning and implementation is as an enjoyable a heist scenario as I've seen. Sadly, though, it all rather falls away in a last half hour that sees too many false endings, spokes in the wheels - and a really silly horse chase with Trevor Howard that reduces it to little better than a routine crimi-caper. I wasn't an huge fan of the narration that accompanied the story - it tries to be sarcastic, but lacks any real bite. It's a film of two halves, and the first one is where all the goals are.

This could have been a fairly entertaining caper movie, but it never comes to life. It has a promising cast, but most of the performers are given nothing to do; James Mason brings the only traces of humanity to an otherwise very mechanical movie. In the last 15 minutes, the filmmakers even throw in some car chases and shoot-outs, probably hoping that the movie would gain some tension (since there are no laughs), but it remains strangely indifferent and uninvolving throughout. (**)

I am biased- I love this movie.

In the theaters when I was a kid it was so much fun thanks to the added commentary over the movie by Charles Grodin. It was dry and hilarious and brought the story to life. Years later, on a video I found at a store the narration was gone and the movie seems flatter.

It is a diamond heist movie filled with unique characters and it has a lighter tone than the novel it was based on which was not only darker and tougher but had a very different ending.

The mostly English cast is great, Candice Bergen is gorgeous, Grodin seems like an odd choice but by the end turns out to have been right for it, Michael Lewis' score is wonderful, and I laughed a lot (as did the rest of the audience in 1974). On top of that the caper plot is very clever and overall I think it is worth your time- if you like such things.

Charles Grodin is dryly disengaged throughout this sleepy comic caper, which he co-adapted from the book by Gerald A. Browne. An American thief hopes to rob Great Britain's clearing house of its diamonds, but both Grodin and accomplice/girlfriend Candice Bergen are so lethargic they fade into the woodwork. A wily supporting cast (including James Mason, John Gielgud and Trevor Howard) enlivens the picture considerably, but Aram Avakian's airy direction is practically non-existent. The film looks like it was cheaply-made, with poor editing and muddy cinematography, and yet a smugness hangs over the proceedings (as if it were a great inside joke). A flop at the box-office--the roach on the poster probably didn't help--it was quickly reissued under the title, "Anything For Love". ** from ****

Charles Grodin, who co-wrote is almost always self-conscious, and it's self-consciousness that ultimately sinks this otherwise entertaining diamond heist caper. The excellent starring and supporting cast can't quite prevent the audience from being confused as to whether this is supposed to be a smart parody or a complicated thriller. The director was the excellent film editor of "Jazz On A Summer's Day", "Lilith", "The Miracle Worker", etc

This is an entertaining caper film given a little extra special something by Charles Grodin's deadpan voice-over. I'm alarmed to note from other comments that there's a version without the voice-over at large, wreaking untold damage and stopping the film gaining the cult rep it would surely otherwise enjoy. This is a desecration and those responsible must be hunted down with hounds.

Grodin is by turns funny and cool as hell as a small-time gem dealer forced to mount an ingenious large-scale heist against London's biggest diamond monopoly, the snobbish and deadly cabal at 11 Harrowhouse, enjoyably personified by an ice-cold John Gielgud and Peter Vaughan in full troll mode. James Mason is touching as the only decent man in the organisation and Trevor Howard on great form as the shady/barking-mad aristocrat who finances the robbery. Candice Bergen is adorable as Grodin's smart, beautiful, feisty paramour and accomplice.

In some ways the film is of its time (1974), mostly in a good way. In fact the only potentially laughable/winceable groovy-London moment is when Bergen casts the I-Ching while speeding along in her sports car; even that struck me as pretty cool actually. The schmaltzy piano-bar soundtrack works wonderfully, I think. London itself - buildings, vehicles, Pools-playing cockney security guards - looks gorgeously down-at-heel and I never watch this film without a twinge of nostalgia.

Catch it if it's ever on TV and you're in the mood for escapist fun - do make sure it's the version with the voice-over, though.

The only redeeming feature of this movie is that it ends. It's a complete waste of time. The film is wretchedly photographed. The music often sounds as though it emanated from a high school group. Long car chases, exploding cars. Charles Grodin has exactly one facial expression. Candice Bergen has two. Sexless. Humorless. Adventureless. Not even the fifteen-year-old males for which the film is obviously ended could keep from falling asleep. It should have aired only on the USA channel.

Leonard Maltin gave this three stars. He couldn't possibly have sat through it. I, alas, did. And the ending is the most absurd part of the film. Spare yourself. You could better spend your time in a chat room.

Charles Grodin died recently, so I decided to watch this lesser-known movie of his. Aram Avakian's "11 Harrowhouse" is a lighthearted heist comedy, with Grodin as a man plotting to steal some diamonds from the headquarters of a British company. The movie is nothing special - and the narration is a little distracting - but Grodin and Candice Bergen make an excellent team, with James Mason as the inside man.

We could make the argument that there are so many heist movies that they've gotten stale, but I'd say that one of the charms here is the contrast between Candice Bergen's youthfulness and the fuddy-duddy upper class represented by Mason, John Gielgud, Trevor Howard, etc. It's probably not the sort of movie that you'd watch more than once, but you'll probably like it if you see it.

The rest of the cast includes Helen Cherry (who died twenty years ago next week*), Peter Vaughn (Maester Aemon on "Game of Thrones") and Leon Greene (also recently deceased).

*Imagine dying less than three weeks after the 9/11 attacks.

Now I don't share the views of that other critic. Many of Grodin's movie characters have similar traits.(See him in Catch-22) Really this is a worthwhile film and a good show. He seems to have left out one of James Mason's darker performances,as he sticks it to his stiff employer! Trevor Howard is delightful as a psychotic,eccentric billionaire.(How much money does the guy need?) The film is narrated by Grodin in a matter-of-fact way that adds to the dry humor. All of the actors pull off their characters well...

P.S. I watch a great deal of movies.

The IMDb classifications for this movie are comedy, crime, and thriller. Only one of those, crime, fits. Terrible acting, terrible script, and terrible direction, and it was a terrible idea to think narration could save this bomb. The book was outstanding and deserved a much better transition to film. I can't imagine James Mason and John Gielgud counting this as their finest moments.

I'm a movie buff in my mid 50's, and though I own many hundreds of movies, this is among my top 10 most enjoyable films to watch and I hate that it is not available on DVD, not to mention BluRay. I own the LaserDisc version in widescreen with the Grodin narration. I re-watch this movie every few years, and enjoy it just as much every time. Grodin and Bergen are extremely charming, and the British supporting cast is world class. Some incorrectly describe this as a spoof, which gives the entirely wrong impression, though it is certainly witty and self-deprecating. It certainly isn't entirely realistic, but the tone, mood and wit of the film are extremely engaging.

Charles Grodin plays a small time diamond merchant jumps at the chance to supervise the purchase and cutting of a large first class diamond. But when the diamond is stolen from him, he is blackmailed into pulling off a major heist at the Diamond Exchange, located at 11 Harrowhouse, Candice Bergen, is Grodin's glamorous lover interest, James Mason also stars he aids Grodin in his scheme to rob 11 Harrowhouse in a very ingenious way! Trevor Howard is the shady Lord Massey, John Gielguld is in typical full on snob mode, '11 Harrowhouse' or if shown elsewhere or on television it is also known as 'Anything for Love' it's been unavailable for years, only on Laserdisc, but at this moment as i type it is available from the 'Shout factory label' in widescreen, 11 Harrowhouse is an enjoyable rainy day feel good film,

I laughed through this years ago, and have looked for copies on video and then on DVD over the years. Why is this one of my all time favorite movies like "Sneakers"? It is the poor, trod upon common man trying to outsmart "the establishment". Charles Grodin mentions in his autobiography, "It Would Be So Nice If You Weren't Here" that this movie needs a crowd to pick up on the humor and make it infectious. The original reviewer watched a private screening and dead-panned it. That was the review the movie houses used to base their order on, so it had a two week run and was gone before word could get around. (Did you see "My Big, Fat Greek Wedding in the first two weeks it was out? No, it needed time for word to spread) If you are in a bit of a silly mood with a group of friends and feel like watching someone thumb their nose at 'them with the power' with a fun twist at the end, this can make for a fun evening.

Charles Grodin, who co-wrote is almost always self-conscious, and it's self-consciousness that ultimately sinks this otherwise entertaining diamond heist caper. The excellent starring and supporting cast can't quite prevent the audience from being confused as to whether this is supposed to be a smart parody or a complicated thriller. The director was an excellent film editor of "Jazz On A Summer's Day", "Lilith", "The Miracle Worker", etc