Hellen I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much

Rosie Searle It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Deanna There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

Bob This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

gavin6942 A butler working in a foreign embassy in London falls under suspicion when his wife accidentally falls to her death, the only witness being an impressionable young boy.Carol Reed is one of those names that people don't know. Sure, film buffs know, but the general public not so much. And this is a shame because I would argue that "The Third Man" is possibly the greatest movie ever made. "Fallen Idol" is not quite on that level, but not terribly far behind.What really makes it great is the kid. I can't say he's the best actor or the most enjoyable character to watch. But it is interesting to see the world through his eyes. Can he distinguish fantasy and reality? And if not, when his word is all that can save (or convict) his friend, what is he going to tell the police? It is a very clever story.

LeonLouisRicci Those Darlings of Critics, British Director Carol Reed and Author Graham Greene Team Up for this Slightly Overrated Suspenser.Films with a major Child Character are iffy and it's Difficult to make one that keeps the Audience from being Irritated and Annoyed by the Behavior and Acting of a Non-Adult. Two Good Ones are "Invaders from Mars"(1953) and "The Window" (1949) as examples.Here We have a decidedly Adult Story shown almost Completely Through the Eyes of a 10 Year Old. There are constant Questions, Misconceptions, and Deceptions. The Film is about Lies. The Kid's Idol Baines Says..."Sometimes a lie is a kindness" (paraphrasing Shakespeare's "Cruel to be kind" line). The Movie is Full of Lies. mostly, but Not entirely, about Extramarital Affairs.It has an Edgy Tone and comes Close to Breaking the Code a Number of Times. It is Clever the Way Certain "Truths" are Interrupted by Dialog or Other Things. An Engaging Film with some Noir Flourishes and Tone. The Child's Adventure through the Streets and at the Police Station and some Distorted Perspectives and Expressionism around the House.The Film is Slow at times and Not for All Tastes. But it is a Well Crafted and Acted Piece of Work with some Memorable Scenes. Not All of this Works, Especially the Ending that Goes On Far too Long. Above Average but Not Great.

dougdoepke 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.

Turfseer For awhile, 'The Fallen Idol" was part of the Criterion Collection but according to what I've read, the rights have now been acquired by Lionsgate. Be that as it may, any film that ends up as part of the Criterion Collection (even for a short while) is supposed to be considered a highly rated 'art' film, if not a 'masterpiece.' Certainly the film has things going for it including some wonderful noirish cinematography, Director Carol Reed's remarkable coaching job of a child actor, solid acting performances on the part of the adult actors and haunting on-location shots in 1948 London.Despite the classy 'look' of the film, the screenplay itself is weak and as a result, I relegate the whole affair to the pantheon of 'B' melodrama. The weakest aspect of the film is obvious: the character of Mrs. Baines, who is just such a vapid, unlikeable martinet who would have been probably diagnosed as bipolar if she were alive today. And is Mr. Baines much better a character than the evil Mrs.? What exactly do we find out about the wily butler besides the back story that he killed a black man while he was living in Africa before working at the Embassy? As it turns out, that's just a tall tale Baines has made up to impress Phillipe. Otherwise, Baines spends most of his time trying to convince Phillipe to keep his mouth shut so that no one finds out about his affair with Julie, an Embassy employee who works in the steno pool.I suppose it was very progressive of director Reed to hold up Baines and Julie as 'the good guys' despite the fact that they were having an affair (Reed himself was the product of an illegitimate union). But why should we hold them in such high esteem? Just because they're the victims of the unreasonable Mrs. Baines? I appreciate the fact that Baines wins points because he's kind to Phillipe but really that's all we know about him. And as far as Julie is concerned—to my mind, she's seems to be a complete empty vessel.In watching the documentary about director Reed as part of the DVD 'supplement', we learn that he was master in extracting wonderful performances from the child actors he worked with during his long career. The case of Bobby Henrey who played Phillipe was no exception. Henrey reportedly could never sit still and eventually Reed had to hire a magician to perform tricks for the boy in order to keep his attention. Reed expertly brings out the child's confusion as he misunderstands the reason for Mrs. Baines' death which leads to Baines being placed in jeopardy (the child believes that Baines 'murdered' his wife after confusing that event with Baines' tall tale which initially the butler appeared to communicate as a 'murder' but later clarifying it as 'self defense').The rest of "Fallen Idol" involves the rather stodgy police investigation into Mrs. Baines' death. Will the boy gum things up despite attempting to cover for the butler at every turn? Since he's just a kid, he's unable to cover up the discrepancies in Baines and Julies' story and after they're found out, Baines is on the verge of suicide. Fortunately an eagle eyed cop comes upon Mrs. Baines' footprint next to the window where she fell; this of course ends up exonerating the happy (or shall we say semi-happy) couple. I believe that the original ending from the book the film was based on, was Baines doing himself in, and some internet posters would prefer the more unpleasant denouement. I was actually pleased that the films' scenarists changed the ending to a happy one as the thought of having that child experience such an awful event as suicide would have ruined the picture for me.If there is a moral in this story, it's probably 'always be honest' because Baines and Julies' decision not to tell the truth almost led to their arrest and complete downfall. Despite the fact they prevail in the end, I would have much preferred that Phillipe had a direct hand in saving them. As it turned out, it was pure coincidence that saved Baines from the hangman's noose and not little Phillipe who will only be remembered for not being able to keep his big mouth shut.Like Hitchcock, The Fallen Idol is concerned with an innocent man being unjustly accused. Unlike Hitchcock, the characters of The Fallen Idol have little or no ambiguity. And when the protagonist is finally saved, it's not from his own exciting efforts or efforts on the part of a valuable ally (in this case, a nine year old boy) but from a slow-paced, pedestrian police investigation. Where was Hitchcock when you needed him?