Roger Moore Movie:

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Editorial Review:
The League of Gentlemen is a sardonic crime drama in which Jack Hawkins plays an embittered retired army officer who recruits seven fellow ex-soldiers to carry out a bank raid with military precision. The film presents an England between post-war austerity and the more liberated 1960s where traditional moral certainties were rapidly being discarded; a London where ex-officers left on the scrapheap at war's end could justify turning their military experience to armed robbery. Unfortunately the tale is neither particularly amusing or thrilling, with an overlong central detour via an army camp prefacing the exciting heist and a largely anti-climactic ending. Nevertheless Hawkins effectively subverts his heroic officer type from The Cruel Sea (1953) and The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), and there’s excellent support from a great cast including Nigel Patrick, Richard Attenborough and Roger Livesey.

Bryan Forbes not only wrote the cynical screenplay but co-starred with wife Nanette Newman in her first significant screen role. More influential than truly classic, The League of Gentlemen has lent its name to a modern BBC comedy and an "Extraordinary" comic strip-turned-movie, and proved the template for heist films ever since, including both versions of The Italian Job (1969 and 2003). --Gary S. Dalkin

The League of Gentlemen [Region 2] Reviews:
Template For Just About All Caper Films To Follow
2007-08-21 - Basil Dearden's seldom seen 1960 heist film The League of Gentlemen has provided the template for almost every significant heist film which has followed it from Oceans 11 to the Italian Job and others.

The film follows the exploits of Hyde (Jack Hawkins) an ex British military officer who has been forced into mandatory retirement as he plans and executes a major British bank robbery. Gathering around him a group of exmilitary experts he puts together a methodical robbery plan that he feels is gauranteed not to fail. The excellent ensemble cast includes Nigel Patrick (Race), Roger Livesey (Mycroft) and Richard Attenborough (Lexy).

The film starts rather slowly as the plan is hatched but then moves into overdrive as the actual planning of the robbery is organized. This is droll British comedy and takes some patience to get into but careful viewers will be rewarded. The film is a satire of British life as it moved from the rather rigid 1950's into the more freewheeling 1960's.

The comedy works because of the mood Dearden creates. Look for an especially funny arms depot robbery in the center of the film that successfully skewers British army life at the time. There is also a moral message that crime doesn't pay but I won't give away the details of how the robbery goes astray.

All in all a pleasurable viewing experience if one takes his time watching it. The film is only available on video from Homevision in Region 1 but there are no problems to speak of with the tape. The print is slightly faded but is not difficult to watch. The dialogue is crisp and clear even though slightly complex. This is a film to see if given the chance and if it can be found.

Highly recommended.

A first-rate movie, witty and cynical, about a disgruntled, forcibly retired Army colonel and what he does about it.
2007-02-12 - "Think of it as a full-scale military operation," says involuntarily retired Colonel Hyde (Jack Hawkins) to cashiered ex-major Race (Nigel Patrick). "What chance has a bunch of ordinary civilians have against a trained, armed and disciplined military group?" Hyde did not for one moment like being forced into retirement after 25 years in the British army. He spent the last few days of active duty doing some research among personnel files. Now, Hyde plans to get a bit of his own back...and Race, along with six other former officers, are going to be the means.

The League of Gentlemen is a cynical, stylish, witty film about a bank heist carried out with the precision of a Swiss watch, all thanks to Hyde's meticulous research. Among the seven men he recruits are Race, charming, shrewd, imperturbable and a reliable second-in-command...even if he does tend to call people "old darling." Race was forced to resign his commission because of a bit of black marketeering. Mycroft (Roger Livesey) was a superb quartermaster who was discovered in a bit of gross indecency in a public place. Lexy (Richard Attenborough), a talented and crooked mechanic and whiz with radios, was found to be selling secrets to the Russians. Porthill (Bryan Forbes) is always resourceful and is now a gigolo, but was discovered to be shooting prisoners in Cyprus. The others all had problems with being weak, or being discovered as one of those whose love dare not be spoken of, or of being responsible for the deaths of men under them. But, as Hyde points out, they were all superbly trained officers and they all need money.

Hyde brings them together with an anonymous invitation to lunch in the Maple Room of the elegant Cafe Royal. Included in the envelope is a copy of a book, The Golden Fleece, and half a five-pound note. After a fine lunch with a decent wine, brandy, cigars and the other half of the fiver, Hyde gets down to business. The mission? They will rob a very big and well-protected bank in the heart of central London, make off with at least 100,000 British pounds each and then live happily ever after. It will be called Operation Golden Fleece. With just a little reliance on greed, self-interest and perhaps a hint of coercion, he recruits them. Before long we're deep into training and organizing, setting up communications and stealing transport. In an amusing, tense sequence almost good enough to be a movie itself, they also bluff their way into an Army base and steal a substantial amount of arms. Do they actually pull off this complex heist that calls for split-second timing, nerves as cold as ice and flawless teamwork. Well, of course, and we get to watch it happen. Do they get away to lead a life of leisure? You'll need to see the movie. Be prepared for a very funny appearance by a twit of an old comrade of Hyde's, Bunny Warren (Robert Coote), and a twist which is handled with a stylish dollop of jaunty ruefulness.

Jack Hawkins, with that rough voice and no-nonsense face, does a fine job as Hyde, a man who can see the amusement in having few illusions. There is quite a collection of first-rate British actors in the men around Hawkins and they all are excellent. Bryan Forbes also wrote the screenplay. He was a clever actor who wrote and directed some fine movies, among them The L-Shaped Room, Seance on a Wet Afternoon and King Rat.

The League of Gentlemen is a wry, pleasantly cynical film which, after we get to meet the men Hyde recruits, builds up a nice momentum with action and irony. The Region 2 DVD and the American VHS tape both look just fine.

The thinking person's 'Ocean's Eleven'
2002-01-01 - An underappreciated British classic full of wit and irony. A cadre of ex-servicemen seek to escape their dreary, pinched lives in postwar Britain by reuniting for one last 'mission'.

A classic!
2000-11-01 - Funny, sharp witted, well-made. A clear influence on THE DIRTY DOZEN. Nigel Patrick is a stand-out. Roger Livesy steals the film with his imitation of a General. British life is well-observed; "Bunny" is a high-light. Don't miss this!

Brilliant 60's movie about a well planned bank robbery
1999-05-27 - Great acting throughout, fantastic lighting and overall quality. This movie will keep you in suspense until the end credits.