Review of The League of Gentlemen (1960) by Geraint O — 27 Dec 2007

The film opens with Jack Hawkins popping out of a street sewer in full evening dress. Having thus alighted, he adjusts his bowtie and drives away is a waiting Rolls Royce.

This wonderful beginning embodies the overall tone of the movie, which involves a group of gentlemen (in the true sense of the word) who attempt the perfect bank robbery. Hawkins is the mastermind behind the army style operation, with a team of carefully selected conspirators.

Based on a novel by John Boland, the script balances cloak and dagger, comedy and crime. The ingenious plan is approached with military precision, which, as every movie lover knows, is a recipe for disaster. Even so, you can't help crossing your fingers for Hawkins and his likeable gentlemen crew.