The League of Gentlemen (1960) - film review

Seven men, from very different walks of life, are surprised when they receive a book containing half of a five pound note and an invitation to a luncheon.  The only thing they have in common is that they are all ex-army officers who have fallen on hard times.  At the luncheon, they are greeted by Lieutenant-Colonel Norman Hyde, a man they have never seen before, who offers them each a one hundred thousand pound share in the spoils of a bank robbery, if they decide to join him in the venture.  Hyde, who is embittered over having been forced into early retirement, tells his new comrades that their military training will be put to good use in the scheme that he has concocted.  The plan, he assures them, is foolproof.  Nothing could possibly go wrong...

One of the greats of British comedy, The League of Gentlemen distinguishes itself with its impeccable ensemble cast which includes some of the most talented performers in British cinema at that time.  Jack Hawkins, Roger Livesey and Richard Attenborough all play on their familiar screen personae – the first an unflappable commanding officer, the second a Blimpish ditherer and the third a womanising spiv.  All give great entertainment value, but probably not as much as the sight of Nanette Newman luxuriating in her bath.  

The League of Gentlemen was the first of half a dozen films to be produced by the short lived company Allied Film Makers.  Bryan Forbes, who both scripted and appeared in the film, would subsequently go on to pursue a successful career as a director, debuting with another British classic, Whistle Down the Wind (1961).  Richard Attenborough would also achieve great acclaim when he turned to directing in the late 1960s, delivering such highly regarded works as Oh! What a Lovely War (1969), A Bridge Too Far (1977) and Gandhi (1982).

Directed by Basil Dearden, The League of Gentlemen has the feel of an Ealing comedy and calls to mind those other great British caper movies, The Lavender Hill (1951) and The Italian Job (1969).  It differs from these other crime classics in that the humour is more of the dead pan variety, making this a sophisticated parody of British life in the aftermath of post-war austerity.

© Alex Sullivan (London) 2009

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