The League of Gentlemen (1960)

A disgruntled veteran recruits a group of disgraced collegues to perform a bank robbery with military precision.

Director:

Basil Dearden

Writers:

John Boland (novel), Bryan Forbes (screenplay)

Stars:

Jack Hawkins, Nigel Patrick, Roger Livesey

Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 1 win.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jack Hawkins	...	Col. John George Norman Hyde
Nigel Patrick	...	Maj. Peter Graham Race
Roger Livesey	...	Capt. Mycroft
Richard Attenborough	...	Lt. Richard Lexy
Bryan Forbes	...	Capt. Martin Porthill
Kieron Moore	...	Capt. Stevens
Terence Alexander	...	Maj. Rupert Rutland-Smith
Norman Bird	...	Capt. Frank Weaver
Robert Coote	...	Bunny Warren
Melissa Stribling	...	Peggy
Nanette Newman	...	Elizabeth
Lydia Sherwood	...	Hilda
Doris Hare	...	Molly Weaver
David Lodge	...	C.S.M.
Patrick Wymark	...	Wylie

Storyline

Involuntarily-retired Colonel Hyde recruits seven other dissatisfied ex-servicemen for a special project. Each of the men has a skeleton in the cupboard, is short of money, and is a service-trained expert in his field. The job is a bank robbery, and military discipline and planning are imposed by Hyde and second-in-command Race on the team, although civilian irritations do start getting in the way.

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Plot Keywords:

bank robbery | veteran | planning | hiding | caper comedy | 

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Genres:

Adventure | Comedy | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 August 1960 (Sweden)

Also Known As:

Banken sprænges kl. 11

Filming Locations:

Fleet Street, Holborn, London, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

Allied Film Makers (AFM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

116 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Oliver Reed portrays one of the gay actors at the theatre.

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Goofs

A camera shadow can be seen as Hyde walks out of his house towards arrest.

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Quotes

Major Race: [after Hyde has explained his plan]
Major Race: Alright, I'm sold. I'll sign on, for the duration.
Lt. Col. Hyde: On my terms? Equal shares for all?
Major Race: Well, if you insist on this socialistic nonsense, yes. You're losing a friend, but gaining a second-in-command.
Lt. Col. Hyde: I'll settle for that.
[they drink a toast]

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Connections

References Beau Geste (1939)

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Soundtracks

"The Soldiers of the Queen"
(uncredited)
written and composed by Leslie Stuart

User Reviews

In a league of it's own

This movie is an involving, intriguing and ultimately poignant heist thriller. Since the advent of a comedy TV show which took it's name, the TV Guides have taken to describing this film as a 'comedy'. Obviously they've never watched it - the moral is, get your movie info from IMDB, not a rubbish newspaper or magazine TV Guide.

The movie's premise is good - a disenchanted ex-army officer dispairs of success on 'civvy street' so decides to organize his own squad of former soldiers and pull off a military operation with a difference - they will rob a bank. This film was the inspiration to the real-life Great Train Robbery, which involved a 20-man gang stealing £3,500,000 in 1963.

Characterization is good and believable; as with all British movies of the era, there is an excrutiating tendency to overly-ingenious rhetoric, one wonders sometimes how they think of such witty remarks. That aside, it's thoroughly convincing. The film code of the day of course required that no film could ever show a criminal benefiting from his crime, but instead of the usual tiresome accidental spilling of the booty out of a train/car/plane window, we have a more realistic, and indeed somewhat sad resolution.

Yes, it is a bit old now, but if you can hang-up your hang-ups about that, you may find yourself pleasantly surprised.