I Promised to Pay (1961) User Reviews

Suave and sophisticated British heist flick!

[The_Void · 8/10 · 12 August 2009]

Payroll is a British crime flick based on a novel by Derek Bickerton, and it is the story of a heist and its effects on all the people involved. What surprised me most is the fact that the film is so obscure! How come so few people have seen this? It's suave, sophisticated and entertaining; and it also has a great director in Sidney Hayers. It's certainly a film in need of urgent rediscovery! The film differs from many other films in its class because it focuses on the planning of the crime, the crime itself and then the effects it has on many people involved with it. The main character is Johnny Mellors; a streetwise criminal who is planning to rob the payroll of a factory. However, his plans are thrown into disarray when the firm hires a new company to guard the payroll; complete with an armoured van. The crooks decide to proceed with the crime anyway, and put a meticulous plan together to snatch the loot. However, things don't go exactly according to plan which has repercussions for everyone involved.

The plotting of this film is very good and director Sidney Hayers keeps it flowing well at all times by providing a constant stream of action. The characters presented are all interesting in their own right and the interactions between the various members of the gang are good. Things are kicked up a notch by the involvement of other parties too; as well as the central criminals, we also focus on their inside man, the police and the widow of a man killed during the robbery who is out for her own revenge. The style of the film is very sixties and feels very cool throughout, which is a big bonus to the film and gives it a real slick edge. Things remain entertaining throughout and things are left open enough to ensure that we never really know where it's going to go; by the time the ending comes, there's still several possible ways for it all to end and the ending itself is made up of many twists and turns. Again I have to reiterate my surprise at the obscurity of this film - it's certainly good enough to have a bigger following and I would certainly recommend it to anyone that considers themselves a fan of crime thrillers!

The kids? Haven't you heard? They're orphans.

[hitchcockthelegend · 8/10 · 26 August 2013]

Payroll is directed by Sidney Hayers and adapted to screenplay by George Baxt from the novel written by Derek Bickerton. It stars Michael Craig, Françoise Prévost, Billie Whitelaw, William Lucas, Kenneth Griffith, Tom Bell and Barry Keegan. Music is by Reg Owen and cinematography by Ernest Steward.

A vicious gang of crooks raid an armoured van carrying the wages of the local factory. When all doesn't go to plan and the driver of the van is killed, the gang start to come apart from within, just as the police and a vengeful widow close in on them...

As tough as old boots! Out of Beaconsfield Studios, Payroll is the kind of British neo-noir that is adored by those that have seen it and yet it still remains a sleeper. Set up in the North East of England in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, there's a real sense of working class struggle pulsing through the picture. The character dynamics at work are nothing new in the history of the heist gone wrong movie, but the makers here insert two ladies into the equation and let them be prominent antagonists, and with some conviction as well. Time is afforded build up of characters, letting us into home lives and the planning of the crime, and then bam! It's the robbery and it pulls no punches.

Story is not without violence, and murders are coldly executed, and as the band of thieves begin to crack, led by ice cold scumbag Johnny Mellors (Craig), director Hayers puts them into a world of grim alleyways, terrace houses, back street pubs, sweat stained garages, marshy bogs and an imposing dockside ripe for a denouement. The mood is firmly set at fatalistic realism, and as Hayers tightens the noose around the dwindling gang of thieves, and Reg Owen's jazzy score flits around the drama (love that ominous double bass), we are led to a wholly satisfactory conclusion. Cast are great, especially the wonderful Whitelaw, and Steward's photography is crisp and on the money. 8/10

Footnote: Some scenes were filmed in Rugby, Warwickshire, so it's not exclusively on location in Newcastle. And of course as any Geordie will tell you, there's a distinct lack of Geordie accents in the picture.

Superior British crime thriller

[sheridanelliot · 7/10 · 21 May 2011]

Payroll is a product very much of its time, borrowing elements from the urban realism of fifties and sixties British cinema upon which to hang its fast-paced, wages-of-sin morality tale. The film is set in Newcastle (though you'd never guess it from the accents) and features strong performances from Michael Craig and Billie Whitelaw, with Françoise Prévost sizzling as the femme fatale par excellence.

The film starts out as a by-the-numbers heist thriller, before taking a sharp turn into territory that almost anticipates the revenge movie vogue of the seventies and eighties. The parallel story lines are handled adroitly, as is the animal attraction between Katie (Prévost) and Mellors (Craig), although William Lucas's turn as Katie's useless husband lacks subtlety.

Payroll is still an engrossing, entertaining and even mildly shocking watch. One weakness which will jar with the modern viewer is the incongruous hot jazz score; silence would have been preferable and more suited to the film's aesthetic.

Well worth a watch, even half a century on.

A terrific British thriller

[searchanddestroy-1 · 27 December 2015]

I agree that this story is not so unusual. Robbery, revenge...But the acting, directing and everything in this crime drama are outstanding. You are glued to this film, and the armored truck robbery is one of the most impressive, brutal, among all those I have ever seen; let me tell you that I am a heist movie specialist, and not only the greatest ones, even the most underrated from all over the world are in my huge collection. This attack sequence is very brutal, especially for this period. This crime flick is typical from those late fifties and early sixties movies from UK. See for instance the grade B features made by Danzingers or Butchers Productions; with nearly always those likes of William Lukas in most of them, the equivalent, for those years, of today Ray Winstone or Bill Murray - not the American one. The Butchers or Danzingers Brothers studios gave us such items, but with a length time much shorter. One of the best gangsters movies from UK ever made, for this time, and even of all time. But unfortunately not the best known, and that makes no difference for me.

PAYROLL (Sidney Hayers, 1961) ***

[Bunuel1976 · 7/10 · 13 March 2009]

I recall catching this as a kid on a now-defunct Sicilian TV channel; besides, my dad owns the paperback edition of the original Derek Bickerton novel (published in conjunction with the film's release). Clearly influenced by the seminal French noir RIFIFI (1955), this caper flick may not have the necessary qualities to attain equivalent classic status but it is proficiently handled nonetheless (in the recognizable style that characterized hard-hitting British cinema of the mid-1950s and beyond i.e. till the advent of the Swinging 60s). Of course, PAYROLL is highlighted by a heist sequence (meticulously planned in advance) – though, in complete contrast to the one seen in the Jules Dassin film, it is a brusque, messy and violent job! Typically, too, the gang is a very unstable outfit – Michael Craig is the brains (appropriately tough and rugged but perhaps too young to carry the requisite world-weariness of the role, he largely comes across as unsympathetic instead!), heavy-set Barry Keegan the brawn (thus the first to bite the dust), Tom Bell the hot-tempered member who even challenges Craig's leadership, Kenneth Griffith the mild-mannered nervous type who invariably sows the seeds of their downfall, and William Lucas as the obligatory 'inside man' (an exemplary employee who then snaps at the critical moment). Up to here, the plot is routine, that is to say, predictable; the film's coup, then, is in presenting two complex female figures: Francoise Prevost plays Lucas' ambitious (and obviously bored) foreign wife who flirts with Craig, strikes a bargain with him (when she realizes the nature of his association with her hubby), and whom she even tries to double-cross (though he has the last laugh); Billie Whitelaw actually starts off in the colorless role of housewife (of the payroll guard killed in the robbery) but who subsequently turns – believably – into dogged and resourceful avenger! For the record, though a police investigation into the crime is conducted, it reaps little to no results: the gang brings about its own doom through mistrust, greed and foolishness: Griffith and Bell perish in quicksand, while a dazed and exhausted Craig typically 'buys it' at the finishing line (the open sea) thanks to Whitelaw's vigilante tactics. PAYROLL, therefore, supplies the expected quota of action, thrills, hard-boiled dialogue and moody location shooting; all in all, it stands as director Hayers' most satisfying work after the splendid occult horror piece NIGHT OF THE EAGLE aka BURN, WITCH, BURN! (1962)…though I should also be re-acquainting myself presently with his rare adventure film THE TRAP (1966), whose memory has similarly been relegated thus far to a long-ago Sunday Matinée' childhood viewing on local TV.

Good For Its Time.

[screenman · 7/10 · 15 May 2008]

I saw this as a kid at the cinema with my father on its release, and much later on television.

Things had certainly dated the second time around, but that's not really the movie's 'fault'. In 1961, censorship was still pretty strict as regards stuff like the depiction of criminal violence. And of course, the villains must never be seen to succeed.

At the same time - as other commentators have mentioned - it was filmed on Tyneside but without the 'Geordie' accent. The strength of that regional voice was still so marked at the time as to have been largely incomprehensible to the general (read, home counties) British public. It certainly wouldn't have been understood across the Atlantic. So; safe and clearly-spoken actors were parachuted in. And why not? Authenticity is not much use if it's incomprehensible.

Ten years later, even in the much grittier 'Get Carter', how many strong regional accents do you hear? Jack Carter himself is played by London-born-and-bred Micheal Caine. Whilst Ian Hendry, and John Osborne were likewise southern boys. In fact, the only genuine northerner with a substantial role was Alun Armstrong. The 'accented' rest mostly came from the midlands. It would take another 20 years (1991) and the appearance of Jimmy Nail's 'Spender' before the authentic voice of Tyneside would finally be heard in crime drama. So give it a break.

The players did pretty well for what was, as a British production, an evidently limited budget. Tom Bell was excellent. His was a sampler of what would later be realised as 'Frank Ross' in the well-crafted TV serial 'OUT', and later 'Prime Suspect'. Micheal Craig was adequate as a slimy-smart master villain. Dunno 'bout the French bird. Maybe to southern middle-class film-making luvvies, a French accent was easier on the ear than an English northern one.

The build-up of the plot was well paced and tense. The depiction of the robbery itself was extremely grim. You don't see the sort of preposterous gore and slaughter of a modern flick with its multiple camera sequences and endless flash-cutting, but it was dramatic enough and menacing enough to convey a very plausible sense of violence. The simplicity itself made it more convincing. That's something the slick directors of today with their plethora of special-effects seem to have forgotten. The flawed bank-robbery in 'Heat', for example, is no more tense for all of its mayhem and gunfire.

I agree that the story lost a little of its edge towards the end. The concept of a vengeful woman bringing the baddies to book was itself not a very original idea, being an element of Graham Greene's 'Brighton Rock'. But all the gang got their desserts in suitably unpleasant ways, and right finally prevailed.

I must also mention the unusual theme/incidental music which was rather daring for its time. A spartan 8-note base guitar riff like something concocted by 'The Shadows' provided extra layers of tension or respite, depending upon the tempo of the moment. It was simple and effective, and carried a surprising sense of menace when the jazz band upped the pace. One is again reminded of 'Get Carter, or even 'Pelham 123'.

I wouldn't exactly call this a 'gem' of a movie, but then it certainly wasn't bad either. A movie of the time, like 'Hell Drivers' or 'Frightened City'; you certainly got your money's worth, but not much else.

I'm giving it 7/10, which seems fair.

Francoise Prevost who brings this film to life

[christopher-underwood · 7/10 · 16 September 2008]

This is a very decent British crime film with some excellent moments. Tom bell carries off the part of the main baddie pretty well but I do not feel he is consistently good throughout, although this may well be shortcomings in the script, which certainly needed tightening up. I thought Billie Whitelaw rather unconvincing as mother of two and amateur sleuth, but she just about gets away with it. No, for me it is Francoise Prevost who brings this film to life. She dominates every frame she is in and the whole film seems to step up a gear. We are uncertain as to her motives and I am sure this is intended if unusual in a film such as this. Most refreshing that we should take to a character and then not really be sure whether we should be cheering or not. Shades of 'The Wire'?!! There is some fine location action and indeed it is some of the car or hideout interiors that slow the film down. Overall though, well worth a watch and something out of the ordinary.

A very underrated thriller.

[highrickman · 10/10 · 28 January 2005]

'Payroll' is astonishingly good and deserves a DVD release asap! Even though this movie is over forty years old there are still some super tension mounting scenes which had me on the edge of my seat! The ever reliable Michael Craig was particularly convincing, and well supported by the equally impressive Billie Whitelaw. William Lucas over-acted like mad in the scene where he breaks down, but other than that he was in fine form. The b/w film complimented the tale and made the seedier elements even more gripping and believable. I've seen this movie on auction sites a few times and it always attracts a number of bidders. In my opinion its a British gem!

Another payroll robbery, but worth seeing!

[JohnHowardReid · 7/10 · 11 October 2017]

Producer: Norman Priggen. A Julian Wintle—Leslie Parkyn Production, presented by Nat Cohen and Stuart Levy. Copyright 25 May 1962 by Lynx Films. U.S. release through Allied Artists: June 1962. New York opening (on the lower half of a double bill with Day of the Triffids) at neighborhood theaters: 10 May 1963. U.K. release through Anglo Amalgamated: 21 May 1961. Australian release (if any): Not recorded. 9,450 feet. 105 minutes. Cut to 94 and then 80 minutes in U.S.A. SYNOPSIS: Harry Parker (William Peacock) and his wife Jackie (Billie Whitelaw) have a couple of kids, are happy and are getting along fine. The future looks bright, for Harry and his partner Moore (Glyn Houston) have got the contract to carry the weekly payroll of a large company in their new, bandit-proof car — a security assignment that could lead to many more for the new two-man business. This news comes as a shock to handsome Johnny Mellors (Michael Craig). For months he has, with the help of a weak company employee, Dennis Pearson (William Lucas), tailed and timed the old car that used to do the wages run. And that's time well spent when the payroll in question is £100,000 a week.

Despite the armored car, Johnny is not going to let go of the prize. His plan to grab this fortune in notes is simple and bold.

COMMENT: (On the full DVD version from Optimum): They took 25 minutes out for the U.S. release and it's hard to imagine where they got this amount of slack footage from. True, Miss Prevost is somewhat lacking in color and glamour and undoubtedly some of her scenes could go without being missed, but otherwise this is a compact and excitingly staged, if predictably plotted crime melodrama, with the advantage of appropriately atmospheric actual locations in grimy Newcastle.

It's competently acted, though William Lucas rather overdoes his part as a nervous clerk and Miss Whitelaw is neither photographed nor costumed to her advantage.

The direction is at its best in the action spots, though sharp film editing increases the tempo of the film whenever things seem to be slowing down. And at least Mr. Craig is much less wooden than usual.

Payroll Delivers the Goods

[mackjay2 · 9/10 · 21 April 2008]

One one level, PAYROLL (1961) is another in the long line of heist films so perfectly initiated by John Huston's THE ASPHALT JUNGLE (1950). At that level, the film holds its own: a British version of the familiar plot concerning a planned robbery, interpersonal conflicts, betrayals, and tragedy. But PAYROLL deserves special mention among the likes of ARMORED CAR ROBBERY (1950), RIFIFI (1955), THE KILLING (1956), ROBBERY (1967) and numerous others. This film has a fast pace and a dynamic directing style all its own. A fantastically exciting film with top-drawer performances by a cast that includes a few names that would achieve greater fame later on. A top-drawer Noir-tinged thriller with a strong sense of fatality, aided by Reg Owen's jazz-inflected music and by stark black & white photography, displaying Newcastle locations to great effect.

And pay they shall.

[mark.waltz · 7/10 · 20 December 2021]

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.

Payroll (1961)

[ackstasis · 9/10 · 17 October 2010]

Every so often an unknown film comes along to sweep you off your feet. I absolutely loved 'Payroll (1961)'; I found it gripping and thrilling and everything that a good noir should be. I've always been particularly impressed with British takes on the style ('Brighton Rock (1947)'; 'Odd Man Out (1947)'; 'Night and the City (1950)'), perhaps due to the frequent use of on-location photography, which gives the story a refreshingly gritty edge. Sidney Hayers' 'Payroll' was shot on the blustery streets of Newcastle. Johnny Mellors (Michael Craig) heads a ragtag group of criminals intent on hijacking the wage delivery of a local factory, contained within the walls of a seemingly impenetrable armoured truck. Their approach isn't exactly subtle – a far cry from the breathless heists of 'The Asphalt Jungle (1950)' and 'Rififi (1955)' – but is nevertheless effective.

Post-robbery, with the heat of law enforcement on their backs, the crooks begin to turn on each other, their best-laid plans delicately curling into ashes. While the police scramble about for leads, Jackie Parker (Billie Whitelaw)– the wife of a man killed during the heist – decides to take matters into her own hands. The film thankfully doesn't overplay this angle (which always has the potential to become an outing with Miss Marple), but there's one adroit scene where, strolling past the home of one of the heist participants, Jackie suddenly puts all the pieces together: a man drops a wife home, followed shortly thereafter by another man… the husband. With its gritty, unsympathetic realism, and a flair for taut, fatalistic storytelling, 'Payroll' deserves a far wider audience, and certainly ranks up there with the best of British film noir.

The Scary Widow

[kalbimassey · 7/10 · 25 January 2024]

Michael Craig has a fast car, it's a Jaguar. William Lucas drives a Ford Popular, popular a decade earlier. These chalk and cheese characters are integral to the planning and success of a daring security van heist. Craig is the ruthless, stop at nothing robber. Lucas, the jittery, bite yer fingernails down to the elbows, inside man.

With boastful claims about the newly introduced van's safe as houses structure and state of the art technology, as the gang prepare and the tough, occasionally violent modern jazz score kicks in, there is a sense of predictability. Needless to say, setbacks occur on the day. Stuck in a traffic jam, the truck (central to the operation) contrives to convert a three point turn into a 103 point turn attracting police attention along the way......obviously!

When the robbery results in the death of the van driver and the fatal shooting of a gang member, every thing starts to unravel. Guilt ridden Kenneth Griffith joins Lucas as newly signed up members to The Lachrymose Club, whilst Craig and Tom Bell turn on each other in a welter of greed and jealousy. As the police talk a good game, but do little else, widowed Billie Whitelaw remains calm and unflappable. Calculatedly targeting the weakest link, unhappily married to Francoise Prevost; (they never get along like a house on fire!) she spooks and intimidates the already broken Lucas through stealth and secrecy, hoping that her composed approach will lead to the main protagonist.

Grim and unforgiving. The polar opposite of the previous year's 'League of Gentlemen', 'Payroll' takes on an unremittingly tense and abrasive tone. The only minor gripe: Whitelaw is clearly seen leaping aboard a Newcastle Transport bus.....yet there's not a hint of a Geordie accent from start to finish.... Wae aye man!

Rare British example of the genre.

[ericannjones · 5/10 · 2 February 2005]

An underrated British film about naive working class criminals. I agree with previous comments regarding the miscasting of Michael Craig, but he was a prominent British leading man so it is understandable that he was chosen for box-office appeal. (Today,one would perhaps cast Albert Finney.) I actually worked on the movie as an extra and met most of the actors. I was particularly impressed with Tom Bell having followed his work in TV plays. He was a young actor who represented the up and coming crop of actors such as Finney, Bates, Lynch and Courteny. Although the film is an excellent record of 60's Newcastle, several scenes were shot in Rugby, where I lived. It was interesting to see how the Rugby scenes were edited into the Newcastle settings. I have a copy on tape.

enjoyable thriller but lack of similitude

[malcolmgsw · 7/10 · 22 March 2008]

This has just been released on DVD by Optimum in a very clear print.I first saw it on its original release at the ABC Golders Green on 28th May 1961,sitting in the circle for which i paid the price of 4/-(20p).My view at the time was that it was an excellent thriller.I still find it to be very entertaining but i do have a couple of complaints.Despite being set in Newcastle there is not one character or even bit part player who has a Geordie accent.We have all sorts of other "foreign" accents from Michael Craigs Rada accent,to Kenneth Griffiths welsh and Francoise Orevost and her french accent.What on earth was she doing in this film,she was not a big name in this country the only answer was that she must have been a close friend of the producer!The film is fine till it gets to the last 20 minutes.Quite frankly it is so implausible that it ruins what has gone before.I felt that the writers had just run out of ideas how to end this film.Also it has to be said that Michael Craig is good as a light comedian but a serious actor he ain't.

Tepid thriller.

[lorenellroy · 28 December 2001]

There has never,in my view been a blander,more anodyne leading man in British cinema than Michael Craig,and his faintly ludicrous performance as a "hard man"drags this movie down into the depths. It is about a botched payroll robbery during which an unplanned fatality occurs.The widow of the deceased sets out to track down the culprits The always watchable Billie Whitelaw and Kenneth Griffith contribute effective performances,as does William Lucas, but they are fighting a losing battle against a woeful script and a miscast lead duo in Craig and Francois Prevost The British cinema then was too middle class and genteel to do this kind of thing well and it is little more than a period curiosity for today,s audiences

British 'Armored Car Robbery' With Revenge Plot

[TheFearmakers · 7/10 · 24 March 2021]

Early example of girl power encroaching a manly action flick, or more like widow power in that Billie Whitelaw only initially seems the docile suburban wife/mother, married to the literally driven creator of an armored vehicle...

Whose invention thwarts a gang's plan to rob a factory safe, now mobile... but the equally driven and dangerous Michael Craig (contrasting to the heroic MYSTERIOUS ISLAND role) is hell-bent on the blag going down...

And like the likely inspiration of Richard Fleischer's American Film Noir ARMORED CAR ROBBERY, there are four eclectic crooks, and one of their wives is having an affair with the viciously heartless leader...

Making for a racy romance between Craig and Françoise Prévost, married to inside man William Lucas, who, having stolen the vehicle's plans for the job to happen in the first place, is locked-down at home while progressively coming unglued and rightfully paranoid, one of the plan's two guilt-ridden weaklings along with nebbish bandit Kenneth Griffith: unlike the frantic/paranoid Lucas... the audience's barometer of fear/suspense... Griffith doesn't entirely belong...

Leaving the best for last in wild card Tom Bell, starting a career of edgy, argumentative young thugs and, like in another British heist thriller, A PRIZE OF ARMS, he even blindly rebels against the smarter, much stronger criminal boss...

Their tension setting the unpredictable mood far more capably than widow Whitelaw, whose vengeful trail is intriguing yet sometimes contrived, laughably convenient... Morphing the sparse Noir-suited title of PAYROLL into I PROMISED TO PAY, sounding more Harlequin than Hardboiled.

Payroll

[CinemaSerf · 7/10 · 7 November 2022]

Michael Craig is surprisingly effective in this British crime drama. He leads a nasty gang of hoodlums bent own robbing the poorly guarded payroll of a factory. Poorly guarded, that is, until - much to the gang's chagrin - they upgrade the protection to an armoured van. Determined to proceed, though, and after a nervous series of roadwork setbacks, they hit the van, steal the loot and the driver is killed. The widow - "Katie" (a solid performance from Françoise Prévost) is not for giving up, and agreeing with the police that the criminals must have had a man on the inside, she begins an investigation of her own. Meantime, the fatality and the need to keep the loot hidden until the dust settles is causing friction amongst the robbers and with the police closing in and the nerves shredding they begin to turn in on themselves. Sidney Hayers delivers a quickly and tautly paced film for us here, with a strong supporting cast including Billie Whitelaw, the always reliable Kenneth Griffith and Tom Bell all contributing to the general sense of encroaching peril as the truth is sought by the bloodhound "Insp. Carberry" (Andrew Faulds). It does take a bit too long getting going, but once in it's stride this is quite an enthralling watch that culminates predictably, but well.

Excellent crime film

[gcrespo · 9/10 · 17 March 2005]

Something about this film always stayed in my memory, I saw it in the theater when I was oh, 7 years old and the music, the grittiness and the infighting of the gang were some of the items that jumped out at me. Liked the black and white film and remembered the 4 main character names over the years...it was one of the films I've had the hardest time trying to get and I finally got it and added it to my library. No one gets the money, no one really wins anything, even the character Jackie Parker doesn't get any real revenge, sure she gets even with Johnny but it doens't bring back her husband...never get tired of this film and I would like to see others of the same style made around the time.

Typically taut British heist movie!

[paulietheboy · 9/10 · 29 September 2004]

When thieves fall out... somewhat formulaic story admittedly but very well done. Beautifully evocative b&w shots of early 60's Britain - sometimes think things really were b&w in those days. I think Craig is an excellent choice as the brooding Mellors and that Prevost was a much undervalued actress - very cool as the femme fatale.

Some of the "hi tech" stuff which looks so funny now was probably really cutting edge then. Check out the photocopier and the tape player.

This film really does go through some of the clichés but is none the worse off for doing so. It also showcases the overlooked talents of the leads as well as introducing us to Tom Bell, who went on to have a fine career and is best known for being the wry cynical sidekick to Helen Mirren in the excellent Prime Suspect.

Great music too!

"Everything's risky"

[richardchatten · 8/10 · 15 October 2022]

A brutal and nihilistic British gangster movie depicting a wages heist (SLIGHT SPOILER COMING:) that naturally goes horribly wrong.

Filmed on location on the mean streets of Newcastle with a snazzy jazz score by Reg Owen, a cast of familiar faces includes Michael Craig, Kenneth Griffith and Tom Bell.

No prizes for guessing that it all ends in tears but the reactions of the two wives is remarkable: a nice little homebody is transformed into an avenging angel in white, while another character's high maintenance French wife has an extraordinary scene where she completely loses it and loudly goes berserk reverting to her native tongue as she shrieks in despair.

Uninspiring and disappointing.

[alexanderdavies-99382 · 5/10 · 11 April 2018]

I had quite high hopes for this British crime film. "Payroll" has promise without being exactly unpredictable or creative in the plot department. Unfortunately, I found this film to be mainly tedious and uneventful. A poor narrative doesn't exactly help. A good cast has gone to waste. Billie Whitelaw - a fine actress - has next to nothing to do throughout the whole story. She swears vengeance against the gang in question but spends most of her time in twiddling her thumbs! The opening 20 minutes is pretty good. After the robbery scene though, it is downhill all the way. The film just seems to plod along aimlessly. The running time of 105 minutes is far too long and should have been about 15 minutes shorter. The bloke who played the investigating police officer is absolutely hopeless! He has no screen presence, no charisma and is so wooden you could knock nails into him. Where was John Gregson when he was needed?? He would have made something of the same role. "Payroll" is supposed to be set in Newcastle. However, there is no one who can put on a reasonably convincing Geordie accent. Definitely not worth seeing again.

A Jazzed Up Adrenaline Fuelled Heist Flick... and much more...

[P3n-E-W1s3 · 9/10 · 3 April 2018]

This is a many-layered story and it's this which keeps it riveting for the audience. Johnny Mellors (Craig) is a career criminal. He likes to have all the facts before hitting his mark. The biggest mark of his career is the payroll of a large factory, over one-hundred-thousand pounds. Unfortunately, on the day of the hit a couple of motorcycle police ride up just as they are about to put their plan into action. Then to make matters worse, their inside man, Dennis Pearson (Lucas), informs them of the companies decision to employ an armoured car for the wage run. Unable to turn down such a big score Mellors and his men start to stake out the armoured car...

This is only the beginning, some writers and directors would make a movie just about the heist. Though, what Baxt and Hayers give the viewers is the aftermath of the heist itself. So we have the police, chasing after the criminals, though evidence and clues are running thin. A wife, hellbent on revenge. Another wife, cunningly trying to get the better of every man in her life, who she pities, hates, and doesn't trust,.. just to get the money. A man who cannot handle guilt and mentally breaks down. All of these characters are well rounded and written.

The good thing is that the actors are brilliant in their roles and bring them to life. Craig is believable as the leader of the gang. This guy is methodical and cool. Though if you get on the wrong side of him he will break you in two... without blinking. Whitelaw is one of the strongest in the cast. When she sets out on her mission of revenge the look on her face says it all. This woman is a juggernaut with a one-track mind and will not stop until she has her revenge. Francoise Prevost has an air of a clever and cunning woman. Always thinking, always planning, who will do anything to better her life... but can she be more wily or slick as Mellors? And, William Lucas does scared, anxious, and frightened magnificently.

But there's still more. Director, Hayers, is great in his field. There are plenty of interesting camera shots, angles, and iconic photography. All of which add power to the film. To be honest, this is a masterpiece in modern film noir, though it's old now as it was filmed in 1961 - it is still a great watch.

Now, I'm not a great jazz fan but the soundtrack to the movie is outstanding and used to it's fullest potential. It has the power to pull the viewer in and make them feel the excitement and tension of a scene. I was surprised by how much I liked this element of the movie.

I would recommend this to everyone.

An outstanding British heist movie

[MOscarbradley · 8/10 · 21 June 2018]

Shot largely on location in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, Sidney Hayers' "Payroll" is a remarkably good British heist movie dealing, not just with a robbery, but with dishonour amongst thieves. It's not quite "The Asphalt Jungle" or "Rififi" but it's an outstanding example of its kind with a first-rate script by George Baxt, excellent cinematography from Ernest Steward and sterling direction from Hayers. It's also got a great cast that includes Michael Craig, Tom Bell, Billie Whitelaw (superb), Kenneth Griffith and the French actress Francoise Prevost while the robbery itself is brilliantly handled, if only by the film-makers and not the robbers. Something of a small genre classic.

The most authentic pub fight I 've ever seen.....

[ianlouisiana · 8/10 · 28 March 2018]

...coupled with splendid performances from Mr K.Grifith and Mr T.Bell take attention away from an appallingly miscast lead and the somewhat clichéd storyline. This is 1961.The head villain has a Hillman Minx. He is posh. But ruthless mind you. He plans a Wages Robbery(the crime du jour in 1961)but it all goes pear - shaped when a guard is shot and all the robbers face being hanged,that being the penalty for "murder in the furtherance of theft" at that time. The gang falls out,unsurprisingly. Mr K.Griffith dies miserably in a dark alley.(ditto). Just previously he has been thrown out of a pub after being involved in a brawl that is brilliantly realistic in that it is brief and all the offenders are ejected rather brutally by the regulars. That's how it was in 1961 - nobody is shot or glassed,no acid is thrown,just a few dozen punches. The femme fatale(French,bien sur)double crosses the gang leader and is in turn double - crossed. When the police rather belatedly arrive they are wearing trench macs and Homburgs.Surely time was about to be called on such attire. Vastly - experienced director Mr S Hayers does miracles with such potentially slim pickings. When people started to get paid by cheque the whole Wages Blag industry was re - invented as Having One Across The Pavement and cash deliveries to banks became the target. Eventually the Old Bill got fed up and started shooting a few Faces and low - risk crimes like drugs began to proliferate. "Payroll" is a film that - in effect - records the beginning of the end for little Firms who would do "one big job" and the beginning of the Big Firms who were run by men with plans. Personally I suspect all the gang shown in this film would be quickly shown the door by dear old Reg and Ron.