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Surprise Package

  • 1960
  • Approved
  • 1h 40m
IMDb RATING
5.7/10
363
YOUR RATING
Surprise Package (1960)
ComedyCrime

An American gangster is exiled from the United States for criminal activity and is sent back to the Greek island where he was born. Once on the island, he is watched by a corrupt local polic... Read allAn American gangster is exiled from the United States for criminal activity and is sent back to the Greek island where he was born. Once on the island, he is watched by a corrupt local police chief. Upon meeting an exiled king, he attempts to purchase the king's family jewels for... Read allAn American gangster is exiled from the United States for criminal activity and is sent back to the Greek island where he was born. Once on the island, he is watched by a corrupt local police chief. Upon meeting an exiled king, he attempts to purchase the king's family jewels for a million dollars. However, when he wires for the money to his associates back home, they... Read all

  • Director
    • Stanley Donen
  • Writers
    • Harry Kurnitz
    • Art Buchwald
  • Stars
    • Yul Brynner
    • Mitzi Gaynor
    • Noël Coward
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    5.7/10
    363
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Stanley Donen
    • Writers
      • Harry Kurnitz
      • Art Buchwald
    • Stars
      • Yul Brynner
      • Mitzi Gaynor
      • Noël Coward
    • 16User reviews
    • 2Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos13

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    Top cast28

    Edit
    Yul Brynner
    Yul Brynner
    • Nico March
    Mitzi Gaynor
    Mitzi Gaynor
    • Gabby Rogers
    Noël Coward
    Noël Coward
    • King Pavel II
    • (as Noel Coward)
    Eric Pohlmann
    Eric Pohlmann
    • Chief of Police Stefan Miralis
    George Coulouris
    George Coulouris
    • Dr. Hugo Panzer
    Guy Deghy
    Guy Deghy
    • Tibor Smolny
    Warren Mitchell
    Warren Mitchell
    • Klimatis
    Lyndon Brook
    Lyndon Brook
    • Stavrin
    Alf Dean
    • Igor Trofim
    • (as Man Mountain Dean)
    Michael Balfour
    Michael Balfour
    • Oscar
    • (uncredited)
    Harold Berens
    • Max Schissel
    • (uncredited)
    Jim Brady
    Jim Brady
    • Man In Hotel Bar
    • (uncredited)
    Paul Carpenter
    • Television News Broadcaster
    • (uncredited)
    Marie Devereux
    • Constancia
    • (uncredited)
    Charles Farrell
    Charles Farrell
    • Nick Jamieson
    • (uncredited)
    Barry Foster
    Barry Foster
    • US Marshal
    • (uncredited)
    Claire Gordon
    Claire Gordon
    • King's Girlfriend
    • (uncredited)
    Danny Green
    Danny Green
    • Nicky Canfield
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Stanley Donen
    • Writers
      • Harry Kurnitz
      • Art Buchwald
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews16

    5.7363
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    Featured reviews

    5bkoganbing

    King Coward

    Charlton Heston in his memoirs said that when he was signing for his part in Touch of Evil it was mentioned that Orson Welles was going to be playing the sheriff, but that Universal still hadn't selected a director. Well says Heston, why don't you get Orson Welles to direct. Duh, says the studio heads, that's a splendid idea.

    On Surprise Package with none other than Noel Coward in the cast, why didn't they get him to take charge of the whole thing. It is amazing to me that with all the talent in this project a better product didn't emerge.

    This is a caper film involving a deported U.S. gangster played by Yul Brynner now living on a Greek island trying to steal the crown of the exiled King of Anatolia played by Coward. Along for the ride is Mitzi Gaynor as Brynner's moll and the baddie played by George Coulouris from the People's Republic of Anatolia, the gang that overthrew the king. The director is Stanley Donen from a novel by humorist Art Buchwald.

    Brynner is terribly miscast in his part. A gangster I can believe him as, but he just has no flair for comedy. There were some comic moments in the King and I, but that's overall, a serious part. Coward looks bored by the whole thing, I wish he had scripted and directed it also and he probably wished he did too. George Coulouris was his usual menacing self.

    Mitzi Gaynor was a fine musical talent who came along just when musical films were ending. She was probably grateful for a number or two in this film. Jimmy Van Heusen and Sammy Cahn wrote the title tune which she sings as well as Noel Coward. Can you imagine if he had contributed some musical number as well?

    The script has some topical references to the Cold War, the Appalachian underworld gathering, rigged quiz shows, etc. etc. that Yul and the cast comment on.

    It also would have been nice since this takes place in the Greek Islands to have splurged for some technicolor.

    If you see it, try to view it as a curiosity. Someone should have whispered in ears of the studio heads at Columbia the way Charlton Heston did at Universal.
    4MOscarbradley

    Hardly Donen's finest hour.

    Stanley Donen may have been the producer and director and the stars might be Yul Brynner and Mitzi Gaynor, as well as Noel Coward, but this comedy is a British production, filmed mostly on the island of Rhodes and shot, not in picture-postcard colour, but in black and white. The thin plot has deported gangster Brynner planning to steal exiled king Noel Coward's crown and the largely British cast includes George Coulouris, Warren Mitchell, Lyndon Brook and Eric Pohlmann as a corrupt police chief. Brynner does his best but he's not a natural comic actor and this is one of his poorest performances and try as he might, even a miscast Coward can do nothing with the mostly limp material, (though at least he does stop the show when he sings the title song). The film's real surprise is Gaynor as Brynner's moll. She's no actress but she sure is sprightly in that perky Mitzi Gaynor way of hers. It's not terrible; in fact, it's quite amusing in its very daft way but it's hardly Donen's finest hour.
    7Lipstik

    I love Yul Brynner

    Yul Brynner is very hard to understand in this movie because he talks fast and his accent gets in the way, but he is still eye candy to me nonetheless. He does play a good brat. Not the same sort of brat Rameses was in The Ten Commandments. The brat he plays in this movie is a wealthy gangster who was exiled back to his birth country of Greece. He's not smart by any means, maybe street smart, but he spelled the only correct word in the Scrabble game between he and Gabby. He pouts, he name-calls, he tells people to shut up, he has a tantrum, etc.

    Mitzi Gaynor (Gabby) is a cute girlfriend/sidekick to Yul's gangster character (Nico). Noel Coward's character (King Pavel) bores me to tears.

    Cute movie, but not brilliant by any means. Some funny parts, but could be funnier.
    bruno-32

    Another Pepe la Moko?

    I just caught this film while trying out my remote ( a favorite tool of mine lately ) and watched about 15 minutes of it. It was a comedy as far as I could tell and looking and listening to Yul Brenner's character and the way he was dressed, brought to mind another foreign actor, Charles Boyer, in the great movie "Algiers" with Hedy Lamarr. At times I thought I would 'hear' Boyer's voice listening to Yul, and thought it would be a good idea if they ever were going to rehash "Algiers" ( there are certain movies that could not be rehashed and "Algiers" was one them, but if they decided to do it, he would have been perfect as Pepe :a Moko. As for Mitzi, very poor acting the little I saw of her and indeed decorative for musicals only. Noel Coward was wasted.
    4malcolmgsw

    Waste of talent

    You can only wonder why theyou bothered to make such a woefully unfunny film.YulBryner next film would be zThe Magnificent Seven,in the role of Chris.Coward would appear in a few more films.This was to be the end of Gaynors film career.What was Stanley Donenen thinking of.In fact the best part of the film were the opening credit titles which were designed by the great Maurice Binder.

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    Related interests

    Will Ferrell in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)
    Comedy
    James Gandolfini, Edie Falco, Sharon Angela, Max Casella, Dan Grimaldi, Joe Perrino, Donna Pescow, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Tony Sirico, and Michael Drayer in The Sopranos (1999)
    Crime

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      There is only one scene in the entire film where Yul Brynner is not seen smoking a cigar. The actor died of cancer some 25 years afterwards and attributed his illness to smoking; his last appearance was in an anti-smoking commercial.
    • Quotes

      Tibor Smolny: Money won't make you happy; but you can buy so many tranquilisers, you won't know the difference.

    • Crazy credits
      Opening credits by Maurice Binder feature a comic animation of the three leads avoiding gangsters and bullets.
    • Soundtracks
      Surprise Package
      Words & Music by Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen, respectively

      Sung by vocal chorus over credits and performed in duet by Noël Coward & Mitzi Gaynor

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • November 11, 1960 (United Kingdom)
    • Country of origin
      • United Kingdom
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Paquete sorpresa
    • Filming locations
      • Shepperton Studios, Shepperton, Surrey, England, UK(studio: made at Shepperton Studios-England)
    • Production company
      • Stanley Donen Enterprises
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 1h 40m(100 min)
    • Color
      • Black and White
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

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