I highly rate gifted director Ken Annakin's gritty 60s crime thriller 'The Informers' (1963), not only does it have an exceptionally fine cast of notable actors, the narrative simmers with a tangibly darker, hair-trigger element of pending danger, and full-blooded character actor Derren Nesbitt's blazingly charismatic performance as ruthless two-bit thug Bertie Hoyle on the rise is both nuanced, and fascinatingly vivid, while appearing initially likeable, his easy, matinee idol smile belies a murderous appetite for callous violence.
Rousing action, robust performances, an exciting plot, earthy dialogue and dynamic location shooting lends 'The Informers' an unsually compelling vibrancy. The dangerously duplicitous, uncompromisingly tough criminal milieu of 'The Informers'almost foreshadows the game changing, catchphrase-making masterpiece 'The Sweeney'. This tremendously exciting, flint-edged British thriller doesn't focus on the cold mechanics of the bank job itself but instead dissects the febrile aftermath, wherein the disparate characters struggle with the all-too human mental miasma of greed and debilitating distrust! While the erudite Nigel Patrick convinces as steely Chief Inspector John Edward Johnoe, Colin Blakely, Derren Nesbitt and a deliciously Machiavellian Frank Finlay stand out, and the galvanizing score by Clifton Parker is one of the splendid film's more energizing components. Not only is 'The Informers' effortlessly watchable, it amply rewards subsequent viewings.
Rousing action, robust performances, an exciting plot, earthy dialogue and dynamic location shooting lends 'The Informers' an unsually compelling vibrancy. The dangerously duplicitous, uncompromisingly tough criminal milieu of 'The Informers'almost foreshadows the game changing, catchphrase-making masterpiece 'The Sweeney'. This tremendously exciting, flint-edged British thriller doesn't focus on the cold mechanics of the bank job itself but instead dissects the febrile aftermath, wherein the disparate characters struggle with the all-too human mental miasma of greed and debilitating distrust! While the erudite Nigel Patrick convinces as steely Chief Inspector John Edward Johnoe, Colin Blakely, Derren Nesbitt and a deliciously Machiavellian Frank Finlay stand out, and the galvanizing score by Clifton Parker is one of the splendid film's more energizing components. Not only is 'The Informers' effortlessly watchable, it amply rewards subsequent viewings.