Forget the plot preposterousness other critics have noted - the heist scenario depicted here would probably have been more than feasible given the level of security available in1961 when this film was made and set - revel instead in the glory of the best straight line ever delivered: when Peter de Savory invites Eric Winlatter to the 144 Club it must be obvious to everyone except the two actors that the punchline should be: "It's gross!" The film features the underrated Arnold Diamond - literally a treasure of the acting community with roles including a paedophile (Maniac, 1962) and a stooge in numerous Morecambe and Wise shows. However - this film's delightfulness is mostly obtained from its wonderful location work - anyone who's been to Gatwick Airport in the last 20 years will know it's essentially a nazi marshalling yard where "customers" are herded like cattle and 15 minutes in a short stay car park costs £7. Witness here when Gatwick had not long been developed from a race course into what would become the UK's second largest airport. This film was made when you could exit the A23 just south of Horley in your Jag Mk 10 onto the tarmac alongside your awaiting prop driven airliner; have your driver open the door to let your mink coated babe alight while you cemented yet another lucrative deal with a shady middle Eastern diplomat and leave the country with a suitcase full of £10 notes; and where passport control was a very civil civil servant in a peaked cap saying: "Yes sir - that all appears to be in order - enjoy your trip" after a cursory glance at your ten year old passport. All told - this should have won the Oscar for best picture of 1961 - with Breakfast At Tiffanys a very close second.
Review of The Great Armored Car Swindle
