Villain

Director: Michael Tuchner Michael Tuchner

Overview

This melodramatic crime drama tells the story of homosexual gang leader Vic Dakin (Richard Burton), who likes a bit of rough sex with his petty criminal pal Wolfe (Ian McShane). Aside from payroll robberies, his gang is not above blackmailing sexually deviant members of Parliament. A Scotland Yard Police Inspector, played by Nigel Davenport, has been after his gang for years and does everything in his power to close it down. When one of the gang members, Frank (Joss Ackland), winds up hospitalized for an ulcer and looks likely to spill the beans to the police, some complicated shenanigans take place.

Product Details

Release Date:	09/11/2012
UPC:	0883316640043
Original Release:	1971
Rating:	R
Source:	Warner Archives
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[monaural]
Language:	English
Time:	1:38:00
Sales rank:	31,729

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Richard Burton	Vic Dakin
Ian McShane	Wolfe Lissner
Nigel Davenport	Bob Matthews
Donald Sinden	Gerald Draycott
Fiona Lewis	Venetia
T.P. McKenna	Frank Fletcher
Joss Ackland	Edgar Lowis
Cathleen Nesbitt	Mrs. Dakin
Elizabeth Knight	Patti
Colin Welland	Tom Binney
Tony Selby	Duncan
John Hallam	Terry
Del Henney	Webb
Ben Howard	Henry
James Cossins	Brown
Anthony Sagar	Danny
Clive Francis	Vivian
Stephen Sheppard	Benny Thompson
Brook Williams	Kenneth
Wendy Hutchinson	Mrs. Lowis
Michael Robbins	Barzun
Sheila White	Veronica
Cheryl Hall	Judy
Shirley Cain	Mrs. Matthews
Lindy Miller	Gilly
Godfrey James	Car Lot Manager
Bonita Thomas	Strip Dancer
Leslie Schofield	Detective Constable
Bonnie Lythgoe	Strip Dancer
Jonathan Hodge	Composer

Technical Credits

Dick Clement

Ian La Frenais

Al Lettieri

Jay Kanter	Producer
Elliott Kastner	Executive Producer
Alan Ladd Jr.	Producer
Michael Tuchner	Director
Dick Clement	Screenwriter
Ian La Frenais	Screenwriter
Al Lettieri	Screenwriter

Editorial Reviews

Villain is a grim but effective piece of work that nicely represents the 1970's take on the "cops & crooks" genre. The script is laced with wit and acid cynicism, portraying a world where morality is relative for everyone, heroes included. Richard Burton anchors the story with a carefully controlled lead performance, creating a crime boss who shifts from emotionally needy to sociopathically brutal in the blink of an eye. His performance is impressive because he avoids flashy melodramatics, making the shift of moods an internal process that makes the character terrifyingly unpredictable. Equally important are the support performances by Ian McShane and Nigel Davenport: McShane's hustler offers just the right mix of easy charm and unsentimental survival instinct while Davenport's cop measures up to the menace of Burton's performance by offsetting it with his own calm, cool presence and a sarcastic, ego-deflating sense of humor. Also worthy of note are fine character turns by Joss Ackland as a perpetually troubled criminal collaborator and Gerald Sinden as an amusingly sleazy politician addicted to call girls. Finally, Michael Tuchner's direction gives the film a very masculine sense of style, particularly in a few hard-hitting scenes of violence: the best is a payroll heist that erupts into brutal hand-to-hand brawling. In short, Villain is a solid addition to the canon of British crime films and worth a look to anyone who liked Get Carter or The Long Good Friday.

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