I've seen half-a-dozen films at least on the subject of a payroll heist, and as long as they are all different, they can be good in their own way. What makes this one stand out is the hard-boiled atmosphere of the company and the streets surrounding it, involving the clever plans that we'd to the actual theft and the tension that occurs before, during and after what takes place. It's violent and gritty, and you do get to see some blood (in black and white that is), and then you get to see the revenge that comes out of a head of a widow of one of the participants.
From the inside, there's clerk William Lucas who has become forced to participate because of a self-centered wife (Françoise Prévost), all of a sudden finding himself threatened by Billie Whitelaw ("The Omen"), the widow of the driver of the payroll truck whose coldness in that horror classic has made her a legendary film villainess, and she's equally as treacherous here although this time her motivations are clearly understandable. Prévost is the real villain here, so cold towards her husband that the idea of prison for him probably seems like an escape.
Michael Craig, Kenneth Griffith, Tom Bell and Barry Keegan are the key members in the heist, with Lucas the mastermind behind the scenes, nervous over how everything will turn out because he is not there. This is another one of those great British dramas that shows the darkness of the working class oh, and the use of location footage makes it a stunning atmosphere to be a part of. This has elements of drama and desperation that you don't rarely see in American films from this era, and once again, this is a film that seems way ahead of its time.
From the inside, there's clerk William Lucas who has become forced to participate because of a self-centered wife (Françoise Prévost), all of a sudden finding himself threatened by Billie Whitelaw ("The Omen"), the widow of the driver of the payroll truck whose coldness in that horror classic has made her a legendary film villainess, and she's equally as treacherous here although this time her motivations are clearly understandable. Prévost is the real villain here, so cold towards her husband that the idea of prison for him probably seems like an escape.
Michael Craig, Kenneth Griffith, Tom Bell and Barry Keegan are the key members in the heist, with Lucas the mastermind behind the scenes, nervous over how everything will turn out because he is not there. This is another one of those great British dramas that shows the darkness of the working class oh, and the use of location footage makes it a stunning atmosphere to be a part of. This has elements of drama and desperation that you don't rarely see in American films from this era, and once again, this is a film that seems way ahead of its time.