''Loot'' is a 1970 British

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by

Silvio Narizzano Silvio Narizzano (8 February 192726 July 2011) was a Canadian film and television director who worked primarily in the United Kingdom. His directorial credits included the critically acclaimed films '' Georgy Girl'' (1966) and ''Loot'' (1970), w ...

. It is based on the play of the same name by Joe Orton and stars Richard Attenborough, Lee Remick, Hywel Bennett,

Milo O'Shea Milo Donal O'Shea (2 June 1926 – 2 April 2013) was an Irish actor. He was twice nominated for the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Play for his performances in '' Staircase'' (1968) and '' Mass Appeal'' (1982). Early life O'Shea was born and ...

and

Roy Holder Roy Trevor Holder (15 June 1946 – 9 November 2021) was an English film and television actor who appeared in various programmes including '' Ace of Wands'', '' Z-Cars'', '' Spearhead'', the '' Doctor Who'' serial '' The Caves of Androzani''. Hi ...

. It was entered into the

1971 Cannes Film Festival The 24th Cannes Film Festival was held from 12 to 27 May 1971. The Palme d'Or went to ''The Go-Between'' by Joseph Losey. The festival opened with ''Gimme Shelter'', a documentary about English rock band The Rolling Stones directed by David Mays ...

Plot

The setting is a seaside hotel owned by a Mr. McLeavy in the 1960s in England. The owner’s son, Hal (

), and Hal's boyfriend, Dennis ( Hywel Bennett), rob a bank located next to the funeral parlour where Dennis works. They hide the money in the coffin of Hal’s mother, who has just died and whose body has been returned to the hotel prior to its final burial. Inspector Truscott ( Richard Attenborough) investigates the bank robbery and immediately suspects Hal and Dennis. Meanwhile, Mr. McLeavy (

) is being aggressively courted by Fay McMahon ( Lee Remick), the nurse who cared for Hal’s ailing mother in her last weeks of life. Fay is having an affair with Dennis, but she has no real interest in him until he tells her he has come into money. Inspector Truscott also has a particular interest in Nurse McMahon, he is sure she murdered several of her former husbands, and also thinks she poisoned Hal's mother. Truscott's investigations, and Dennis and Hal’s ongoing measures to get away with the proceeds of the bank robbery, make up the action in ''Loot''.

Cast

* Richard Attenborough as Inspector Truscott * Lee Remick as Nurse Fay McMahon * Hywel Bennett as Dennis *

as Mr. McLeavy *

as Hal *

Dick Emery Richard Gilbert Emery (19 February 19152 January 1983) was an English comedian and actor. His broadcasting career began on radio in the 1950s, and his self-titled television series ran from 1963 to 1981. Life and career Richard Gilbert Emery was ...

as Mr. Bateman * Joe Lynch as Father O'Shaughnessy *

John Cater John Edward Cater (17 January 1932 – 21 March 2009) was an English actor. His television credits include: ''Danger Man''; ''Z-Cars''; '' The Avengers''; '' The Baron''; ''Doctor Who'' (in the serial '' The War Machines''); '' Follyfoot''; ' ...

as Meadows *

Aubrey Woods Aubrey Harold Woods (9 April 1928 – 7 May 2013) was an English actor. Biography and career Woods was born on 9 April 1928 in Edmonton, Middlesex and grew up in nearby Palmers Green. He was educated at the Latymer School. His first film ...

as Undertaker * Enid Lowe as W.V.A. Leader *

Harold Innocent Harold Sidney Innocent (18 April 1933 – 12 September 1993) was an English actor who appeared in many film and television roles. After attending Broad Street Secondary Modern School in Coventry, Innocent worked for a short time as an office c ...

as Bank Manager * Kevin Brennan as Vicar * Andonia Katsaros as Policewoman * Jean Marlow as Mrs. McLeavy *

Robert Raglan Robert Raglan (7 April 1909 – 18 July 1985) was a British actor best known for his semi-regular role in ''Dad's Army'' as Colonel Pritchard. He also starred in a number of other television series and films such as ''Fabian of the Yard'' (1954 ...

as Doctor * Hal Galili as Pallbearer * Douglas Ridley as Pallbearer * Stephen Yardley as Pallbearer * Edwin Finn as Pallbearer

Reception

In ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...

'' in 2017, Tim Robey wrote "it retains something of the spirit of 1960s caper movies, such as ''

Gambit A gambit (from Italian , the act of tripping someone with the leg to make them fall) is a chess opening in which a player sacrifices with the aim of achieving a subsequent advantage. The word '' gambit'' is also sometimes used to describe sim ...

'' (1966) and ''

The Italian Job ''The Italian Job'' is a 1969 British comedy caper film, written by Troy Kennedy Martin, produced by Michael Deeley, directed by Peter Collinson, and starring Michael Caine. The film's plot centres around Cockney criminal Charlie Croker, r ...

'' (1969). The queer sensibility of the play – censored for blasphemy and gay references in its time – is tentatively rather than fully explored – '' Georgy Girl'' director Silvio Narizzano opted to play it all for broad, primary-coloured farce." According to the screenwriters seeking to turn the play into a film (Ray Galton and Alan Simpson), in 2012 Orton's agent Peggy Ramsay was complimentary, "... even she couldn't tell where he'd finished and where we started. But it's not a great film, unfortunately". Part of this was because, to the writers' regret, Narizzano directed the actors to perform "in an over-the-top style, and it doesn't work".

References

External links

* * {{Galton and Simpson 1970 films 1970 comedy films 1970s crime comedy films 1970s heist films 1970 LGBT-related films British crime comedy films British films based on plays British heist films British LGBT-related films Films directed by Silvio Narizzano Films set in Brighton Funeral homes in fiction Films shot in East Sussex 1970s English-language films 1970s British films