The Lavender Hill Mob

Alec Guinness plays Henry Holland, a quiet bank clerk who helps move gold bullion and realizes he can steal it. The plan turns the gold into miniature Eiffel Tower souvenirs, which is why Paris becomes part of the 1951 Ealing comedy.

It was made by Ealing Studios, directed by Charles Crichton, and written by T. E. B. Clarke. The British Film Institute later ranked it 17th on its list of the greatest British films.

Yes, Audrey Hepburn appears briefly in an early screen role before her major international breakthrough in Roman Holiday in 1953. The main comic pairing is Alec Guinness with Stanley Holloway as the souvenir maker Pendlebury.

The film runs about 81 minutes, so it is much tighter than many modern heist movies. Its story is built more around timing, irony, and escalating mistakes than around action set pieces.