Herbert Lom Movies
Born Herbert Charles Angelo Kuchacevich ze Schluderpacheru, Herbert Lom enjoyed a successful acting career in his native Czechoslovakia, principally in theater. He made his screen debut in Zena Pod Krizem (1937) and made one more movie in Czechoslovakia before emigrating to England in 1938. He acted at The Old Vic in London, among other companies, before turning to British films, where his good looks, cultured accent and mannerisms, and intense eyes got him cast in such unusual roles as Napoleon Bonaparte (in The Young Mr. Pitt) in between slightly more anonymous parts. Lom's real breakthrough role was in Compton Bennett's 1946 psychological drama The Seventh Veil, as Dr. Larsen, the psychiatrist treating neuroses of the pianist portrayed by Ann Todd. Lom might have become a kind of Eastern (or Middle) European successor to Charles Boyer, but he was too good an actor to limit himself to romantic parts; instead, he was more like a Czech Jean Gabin. Lom often played highly motivated villains in the 1950s and '60s, most notably in Jules Dassin's Night and the City (1950), in which he brought surprising humanity to the role of a brutal, vengeful gangster, and Sidney Gilliat's State Secret (1950). He reprised the role of Napoleon in King Vidor's sprawling 1956 production of War and Peace, and was a memorably humane, well-spoken Captain Nemo in the Ray Harryhausen production of Mysterious Island (1961); he also played the title role in a 1962 production of The Phantom of the Opera, but Lom's best movie during this period -- despite having some of his shortest screen time -- was Anthony Mann's El Cid, in which he played the Muslim leader Ben Yussuf. He counter-balanced this work with a newly revealed flair for comedy, utilized in the Pink Panther movies, starting with A Shot in the Dark, where his long-suffering bureau chief Dreyfus was forever dreading Inspector Clouseau's latest blunder. He was also Simon Legree in the 1965 German musical production of Uncle Tom's Cabin (as Onkel Tom's Hütte). During the late '60s and '70s, he began appearing in horror films of various types, following a path similar to that blazed by his British-born contemporary Michael Gough. He has kept his hand in gentler and more complex roles, however, including that of the sardonically humorous Soviet bureau chief in Ronald Neame's Hopscotch (1980), and a sympathetic physician in David Cronenberg's The Dead Zone (1983). In 2012, Lom passed away in his sleep at the age of 95. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi- 1954
Ginger Rogers and her then-husband Jacques Bergerac costar in this British melodrama, released in the U.K. as The Beautiful Stranger. Impoverished showgirl "Johnny" Victor (Ginger Rogers) moves into the villa owned by her British millionaire sweetheart Louis Galt (Stanley Baker), who has promised to marry her once he secures a divorce from his present wife (yeah, sure). By and by, Johnny falls in love with equally impoverished French artist Pierre Clement (Jacques Bergerac). When Galt is killed, Johnny and Pierre find themselves the chief suspects, especially since all evidence points to them and them alone. Taking it on the lam, the two lovers are carefully monitored by the actual murderer, who was involved in a myriad of illegal activities with the late Mr. Galt. The film's title song, "Love From a Beautiful Stranger," was written by José Ferrer and Ketti Frings, respectively the star and screenwriter of the 1955 film The Shrike. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Ginger Rogers, Stanley Baker, (more)
- 1954
David Niven returns to his native England to star in the frothy comedy The Love Lottery. Niven plays a Hollywood movie star who is the "prize" in a lottery dreamed up by his press agent. The lucky lady who "wins" Niven will be able to spend a week in his company. Sensing the silliness of the whole enterprise, Niven promises publicly to marry the winner--and that's where starry-eyed fan Peggy Cummins enters the proceedings. Herbert Lom is the film's fly in the ointment, dogging Niven's trail to Italy to make certain that he keeps his promise. There's an amusing celebrity cameo in The Love Lottery, but to reveal the identity of the film's "special guest star" might spoil the viewer's fun. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- David Niven, Peggy Cummins, (more)
- 1953
A Georges Simenon novel was the source for the Anglo-American The Man Who Watched Trains Go By. Claude Rains stars as Kees Popinga, chief clerk for a Dutch trading company. Scrupulously honest, Popinga goes off the deep end when he discovers that his employer has been cooking the books to support a mistress. Upon learning that his boss intends to abscond from Brussels to Paris with company funds, Popinga prevents this from happening by stealing the money himself. Through a series of wild coincidences, he winds up entangled with the very woman (Marta Toren) who'd caused his boss' downfall. The Man Who Watched Trains Go By was released in the U.S. as Paris Express. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Claude Rains, Märta Torén, (more)
- 1953
Project M7 is the American title for the British The Net. Based on a novel by John Pudney, the film is set in an aviation research station. At the moment, the researchers are working on a revolutionary new aircraft, and competition to be first with the results is fierce. There's little love lost amongst the scientists, but no one expect the personal animosities to result in murder. The killing in question was committed by an enemy spy...but which one of the scientists is the guilty party? ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Phyllis Calvert, James Donald, (more)
- 1953
Scripted by Eric Ambler from a novel by Geoffrey Household, the British Rough Shoot top-bills Hollywood stars Joel McCrea and Evelyn Keyes. McCrea plays Taine, an American colonel stationed in England. When he spots what appears to be a prowler, Taine tries to scare the fellow away with a round of buckshot. The prowler immediately falls to the ground -- dead. Assuming that he's responsible, Taine hides the body, an act that sparks a chain reaction of sinister events, resulting in the colonel's involvement in an Iron-Curtain spy ring and an exciting finale at Madame Tussaud's wax museum. Evelyn Keyes' role as Colonel Taine's wife is overshadowed by the scene-stealing performances of supporting actors Herbert Lom and Marius Goring. Rough Shoot was originally released in Great Britain as Shoot First. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Joel McCrea, Evelyn Keyes, (more)
- 1952
Released in Britain as Whispering Smith Hits London, this economically produced whodunit stars Richard Carlson as famed pulp-novel amateur sleuth Whispering Smith. While vacationing in London, Smith becomes intrigued by a suicide case. He suspects that there's more to this than meets the eye, and of course he's right: the so-called suicide was really a murder -- and also the tip of the iceberg in a massive cover-up conspiracy. Greta Gynt co-stars as the Woman in the Case, who may not be All She Seems. For reasons unknown, the British prints of Whispering Smith vs. Scotland Yard credit the screenplay to John Gilling, while the American prints bestow sole screenwriting credit upon Steve (I Wake Up Screaming) Fisher. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Richard Carlson, Greta Gynt, (more)
- 1952
Herbert Lom deservedly receives star billing in the British farce School for Brides. Lom plays Ford, the crafty butler of businessman Dick Lawson (Hugh McDermott). When Lawson makes a trip to Paris, Ford pulls strings to place both his master and his master's wife (Brenda Bruce) in compromising situations. He then inaugurates a blackmail plot, which in addition to being the cause of his ultimate undoing is good for several laughs. Originally released in England as Two on the Tiles, School for Brides gives evidence of being completed some time before its official 1950 British release date. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Herbert Lom, Hugh McDermott, (more)
In this farce, an enigmatic writer (Mai Zetterling) begins using the pen-name Dominic Danges, a popular writer believed dead. The dead writer "returns" to peruse his newest book, which he didn't write. He soon meets the woman who is using his name and after several engaging misdirections, the two fall in love and marry. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- 1951
Mr. Denning (John Mills) is bedeviled by a blackmailer with whom his daughter Liz (Eileen Moore) has fallen in love. In a sudden fit of rage, Denning murders the scoundrel. Panicking, he drives northward with the corpse in the back seat, dumps the body in a lonely rural area, and carefully eliminates all traces of his involvement in the crime. To deflect the authorities, Denning places a highly distinctive ring on the body's finger, so that the dead man will be misidentified. A perfect crime? Well, it seems that Denning's new prospective son-in-law (Sam Wanamaker) is an American attorney with a very inquiring mind. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- John Mills, Phyllis Calvert, (more)
- 1950
In this adventure, an archaeologist is working at a Tunisian dig and having a passionate affair with a local girl when he finds himself entangled with a murderous band of arms smugglers. The story is based on one of Victor Canning's novels. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Trevor Howard, Herbert Lom, (more)
Jules Dassin's Night and the City opens with cheap grifter Harry Fabian (Richard Widmark) running for his life through the streets of London. Harry wants to be big-time, and he does not care how he raises cash for his schemes. Like a junkie, he uses and steals from his girlfriend Mary (Gene Tierney), a singer at the Silver Fox, a seedy nightclub owned by the physically grotesque Phil Nosseross Francis L. Sullivan. Harry, who also works for Phil steering unsuspecting customers to the club, comes up with a plan to wrest control of professional wrestling from promoter and underworld kingpin Kristo (Herbert Lom) by manipulating Kristo through his father, retired wrestling great Gregorius (Stanislaus Zbyszko). For financial backing, Harry turns to Phil and Phil's wife Helen Googie Withers, both of whom give him the money, but only to further their own ends. When Gregorius is accidentally killed by his protege's upcoming opponent, Strangler (Mike Mazurki), and Phil realizes that Helen is leaving him for Harry, the scheme quickly unravels. Truly a glimpse of hell, Night and the City's distorted visuals and dark symbolism depict an underworld from which there is no escape and in which redemption comes at a very high price. ~ Steve Press, Rovi
- Starring:
- Richard Widmark, Gene Tierney, (more)
- 1950
Cage of Gold was a rare non-comic effort from Britain's Ealing Studios. Jean Simmons stars as Judith, who awakens the morning after her wedding to discover that her new husband has deserted her. Later on, she is told that her husband is dead. After a period of mourning, Judith remarries--only to be subjected to blackmail by husband number one. It's all a racket, of course, but Judith doesn't go to the police until it's almost too late. Featured in the cast of Cage of Gold as a slimy smuggler is Herbert Lom, who later gained worldwide fame as Inspector Dreyfus in the "Pink Panther" comedies. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jean Simmons, David Farrar, (more)
Partly conceived as a follow-up to Prince of Foxes, 20th Century-Fox's The Black Rose, reunites the earlier film's two stars, Tyrone Power and Orson Welles. Filmed on location in England and Morocco, the story concerns 13th-century Saxon nobleman Walter of Gurnie (Tyrone Power), who, after sparking an unsuccessful rebellion against the Norman conquerors of his homeland, sets out to seek his fortune in the Far East. In the company of his friend Tristam (Jack Hawkins), Walter makes the acquaintance of megalomanic North African warlord Bayan (Orson Welles). Journeying farther, Walter and Tristam arrive in China, where they are treated with deference--so long as they never try to leave. Eventually escaping his Chinese hosts, Walter returns to his native country. Previously renounced by King Edward (Michael Rennie) because of his role in the a Saxon rebellion, Walter is welcomed back with open arms because of all the cultural and scientific wonders he's brought back from China (including gunpowder). The "Black Rose" of the title is the beauteous Maryam (Cecile Aubrey), with whom Walter fell in love while both were the prisoners of Bayan. A bit lacking in terms of spectacular adventure sequences, Black Rose scores points on its star power and splendid Technicolor photography. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Tyrone Power, Orson Welles, (more)
- 1949
It isn't surprising that The Great Manhunt invokes fond memories of Alfred Hitchcock; the film was scripted by Frank Launder and Sidney Gilliat, the two former Hitchcock collaborators responsible for the screenplay of The Master's The Lady Vanishes (38). Gilliat also directed this fast-paced political adventure, starring Douglas Fairbanks Jr. as an American heart surgeon summoned to operate on the ruler of a Balkan dictatorship. When the dictator dies, Fairbanks becomes a security risk for those who wish to perpetuate the totalitarian regime. The doctor desperately seeks a means of escaping the country; along the way, he teams up with a showgirl (Glynis Johns) who likewise wants to get home in a hurry. Meanwhile, the head of the secret police (Jack Hawkins) tries to keep one step ahead of Fairbanks. A healthy strain of comic cynicism pervades Great Manhunt, with both hero and villain making self-deprecating comments on the fickle nature of political power. Released in the US as State Secret, The Great Manhunt was based on Roy Huggins' novel Appointment With Fear. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Glynis Johns, (more)
- 1949
A frequent visitor to the Late Late Show, the Anglo-American Snowbound is set in the frozen Alps. Robert Newton and Dennis Price head an expedition in search of a fortune of gold, stashed away by the Nazis in the last days of the war. Snowed into an old cabin, the men quickly get on one another's nerves. Just when tension reaches the boiling point, one of the party saves the day. He happens to be a movie screenwriter, who uses his cinematic knowhow to reach a solution to their dilemma. Snowbound is based on The Lonely Skier, a novel by Hammond Innes. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Robert Newton, Dennis Price, (more)
- 1948
Good Time Girl, directed by David MacDonald and based on a story by Arthur La Bern (It Always Rains On Sunday) starts off unpromisingly, as juvenile justice official Flora Robson tries to keep a would-be female felon on the straight-and-narrow, telling the cautionary tale of Gwen Rawlings (Jean Kent). A victim of an unhappy home and her own stupidity, Rawlings leaves home and, with help from her sleazy new neighbor Jimmy Rosso (Peter Glenville, the future director), gets a job as a hat-check girl at a club run by Max Vine (erbert Lom). But Jimmy's jealousy soon gets him fired, and leaves him aiming for revenge on Max and Gwen. Despite the best efforts of Michael Farrell (Dennis Price), the one truly decent man she's ever met, Jimmy achieves his goal and Gwen is sent to a reformatory. It is there that she's truly corrupted by being locked up with more seasoned juvenile (and not so juvenile) felons, who know how to game the system -- whem she escapes, she's a professional criminal, and, taking on a new alias, falls in with a pair of loose-living gents. She manages to commit a vehicular homicide, and then falls in with a pair of American military deserters (Bonar Colleano, Hugh McDermott) who aren't above committing pre-meditated murder. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi
- Starring:
- Jean Kent, Dennis Price, (more)
Radio personality Levis manages to stop a Buddhist art connoisseur from collecting a rare artifact in this comic thriller. ~ Rovi
- 1948
Portrait from Life is an over-orchestrated "guilty pleasure" from the glory days of British romance pictures. A German professor sees a portrait in an art gallery which looks exactly like his daughter, who is assumed to have died in the war. The girl (Mai Zetterling) has been living as an amnesiac in Europe, under the protection of a former Nazi bigwig. British army major Guy Rolfe tries to cut through red tape and an tangled-up espionage plot to rescue the girl. Portrait from Life was issued in the US under the imaginative title The Girl in the Painting. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Mai Zetterling, Guy Rolfe, (more)
- 1947
Herbert Lom essays a dual role as a team of trapeze artists. When a circus colleague finds himself in possession of a winning lottery ticket, the twins conspire to kill the man and claim the fortune for themselves. One twin makes certain to establish an alibi for the other, so that no one will suspect the pair of the crime. But blood isn't quite as thick as greed, and the twins come to a bad end when they fall out over their ill-gotten gains. Dual Alibi uses its meager budget to its advantage; most of the film is photographed with deep, dark shadows, which serve to hide any deficiencies in the split-screen work. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Terence de Marney, Phyllis Dixey, (more)
- 1946
If nothing else, the British melodrama Night Boat to Dublin had topicality going for it. As Captain David Grant, Robert Newton heads the cast of this spy-hunt caper. The plot concerns the efforts to rescue a Swedish scientist from the clutches of Nazi ringleader Keitel (Herbert Lom) and his minions. The scientist is of course of the "atomic" variety, meaning that it's crucial to smuggle him to safety before the Germans can learn his secrets. The authentic Dublin dialects heard throughout the film add charm and authenticity to the proceedings, though they are a bit hard to understand at times. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- Robert Newton, Raymond Lovell, (more)
- 1945
Ann Todd stars as an amnesiac mental patient, Francesca Cunningham, who hopes that psychiatrist Dr. Larsen (Herbert Lom) will help her lift the veils of her memory. In a series of flashbacks counterpointed by a lush piano concerto background score, Francesca discovers that she has been a victim of the cruelties of others all her life. Only Nicholas (James Mason), an embittered, crippled musician, has ever shown her any compassion, training the girl to become a top concert pianist. Even he turned on Francesca when she becomes romantically involved with other men, but as the flashbacks end, Francesca arrives at a startling realization about Nicholas's true feelings for her. Filmed on a shoestring, The Seventh Veil rang in as the biggest British box-office success of 1946. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- James Mason, Ann Todd, (more)
- 1945
Leo Martin (William Hartnell) is a low-level member of a smash-and-grab gang run by shady dance-club owner Loman (Raymond Lovell), who is cajoled into a risky job on a major jewelry store. When the robbery goes wrong, and Martin is caught (and his wrists broken), the hood keeps silent and does his stretch in prison -- all along, he nurses a grudge against Loman and his driver Hatchett (Victor Weske) for running out on him. And that grudge grows to full-blown, murderous vengeance when Loman blows off the newly-released Martin as no use to the gang (as his hands aren't what they used to be). Now Martin plans to get even by squeezing Loman dry of everything he has, starting with his peace-of-mind -- he implicates the club owner in a murder, while planning a seemingly perfect alibi for himself, and also manages to latch on to the ring-leader that Loman is fronting for, "respectable" art dealer Gregory Lang (Herbert Lom). Lang has a knack for tying up loose ends -- including Loman -- and thinks he can handle a low-level spiv like Martin, but he doesn't reckon with the latter's rage, deviousness, or resourcefulness. Martin's planning gets him past all of the obstacles in his way, even -- so it seems -- the plodding efforts of Inspector Rogers (Robert Beatty), still investigating the killing that put Martin's plan into operation. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi
- Starring:
- William Hartnell, Raymond Lovell, (more)
- 1944
Based on the Eric Ambler novel entitled "Epitaph for a Spy," this is the story of a medical student on the Riviera during the Summer before WWII begins. A refugee from Austria, he has been photographing wildlife. When the film he develops contains secret installations, he must prove that he is not a German spy or be deported. With the police and help from a romantic interest that pops up along the way, he has to try to flush out the real spy to clear himself. Critical reviews were mixed, though Mason did an admirable job on his character. ~ Tana Hobart, Rovi
- Starring:
- James Mason, Lucie Mannheim, (more)
- 1943
Beneath the gay billows of the big-top seethes a veritable stewpot of illicit romance, false friends, rivalry and murder in this crime drama that contains the feature film debut of distinguished character actor Herbert Lom who plays a recently hired hypnotist who falls in love with a female trapeze artist, whose jealous partner is the brother of the circus owner. Desperately wanting the woman for himself, the new fellow mesmerizes the girl and suggests that she drop her partner during the next performance. She does, but the wicked hypnotist gets his comeuppance at the end. ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi
- Starring:
- Ben Lyon, Anne Crawford, (more)
- 1943
Tomorrow we Live is the more upbeat American title of the British war drama At Dawn we Die. When his village is overtaken by Nazis, Frenchman Jean Baptiste (John Clements) tries to go to England. Armed with secret information about a German submarine base, Jean hopes to avenge his countrymen. Unfortunately, thanks to inquisitive soldiers and fifth columnists, Jean may never make it to the White Cliffs of Dover. On the plus side, however, Jean's fellow patriots do their best to sabotage the enemy until the (hopefully) inevitable day of Liberation. The strangest aspect of Tomorrow we Live is that all the Frenchmen are played by popular British actors, despite the influx of French expatriates in the United Kingdom. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi
- Starring:
- John Clements, Godfrey Tearle, (more)
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