At our house we're big fans of Dick Francis novels. "Dead Cert" was this champion jockey's first thriller. I bought this DVD a couple of years ago and we had great expectations. We were hugely disappointed in the way the story was adapted. I am re-reading the novel so I thought it would be fun to try the movie again. Well, it has not improved with age. The only saving grace is you get some idea (or at least Tony Richardson's idea) of what a British racetrack is like. The characters in the movie share some of the same names as the characters in the novel but hardly any of the same traits. There isn't a soul in this movie you would want to know personally (I am talking about the characters not the actors), except perhaps the horses.