Gulley Jimson is a tremendous success when it comes to painting, and an incredible failure when it comes to being a human being. Widely respected for his artistic talents, he now bides his time by harassing his benefactor, trying to steal his works back from an ex-wife, and being baled out of jail by his fans. Soon, with the help of his admirers, he sees his way out of dereliction and to his greatest achievement yet: an ambitious public works display. "The Horse's Mouth" is an aimless and clunky film that seeks to recreate the success of the venerable and just ceased Ealing comedies. Alec Guinness is a versatile master, an actor I truly admire, but in the lead role here, I couldn't believe how off-putting and off-key his performance was. Also writing the screenplay, which bafflingly got him an Oscar nod, it should come as no surprise that this wound up being his only writing credit. With classic comedies such as "The Ladykillers" and "The Lavender Hill Mob" just under his belt, it is no wonder that Guinness wanted to recreate those successes and a great puzzlement as to why this film is so banal.
