Offbeat

This 1961 b/w crime thriller is a nifty little affair despite its relatively short running time. A story of betrayal and then some, it is as tense as it is entertaining.

William Sylvester is Layton, an M15 undercover agent out to bring a criminal gang behind bars. Assigned by Scotland Yard, Layton equips himself with the name and the background history of ‘Steve Ross’ – a former heavyweight crook presumed vanished. First off, Layton aka Ross robs a bank (with the knowledge of the Yard) in order to up his criminal credentials. After the robbery the plan is to infiltrate said gang and participate in their next plan of action – in this case the robbery of a well-to-do jewellery shop – and alert the police at the moment the thieves plan to escape with the stolen gems.

Layton has no problems in gaining the trust of the gang after the initially suspicious leader of the pack did a few check-ups on his criminal record. Just as well he picked the vanished Ross to be his criminal alter ego. Meanwhile, Scotland Yard Inspector Adams (Victor Brooks) makes no secret of the fact that he dislikes Layton and also distrusts him, for he is of the opinion that “either you work for the law or against it!”

As it soon emerges, Inspector Adams isn’t that far off with his remark, for Layton’s plan is indeed to double-cross both parties: sure enough he will take part at the planned robbery, but has no intention of alerting the police or handing in his share of the stolen goods. Far from it, he plans to flee abroad together with his love interest, Ruth Lombard (Mai Zetterling). Mind you, even Ruth has her doubts as to the outcome of the plan and Layton’s real motives.

Realising that the jewellery shop is about as easy to access as Fort Knox, the gang come up with an audacious plan: pretending to be road workers, they dig deep and deeper until a tunnel leads them into the shops safe chamber while one of the thieves keeps watch on the street by putting a tent around the apparent ‘big hole’ in the road. He even is so bold to offer an inquiring bobby a cup of tea, bemoaning the looming amount of work to fix the hazardous hole – all the while his colleagues dig and rob away as if there’s no tomorrow. The robbery worked and all looks like it’s going to be smooth sailing for Layton… but then, completely unexpected and out of nowhere, the real Steve Ross turns up… and his first move is to have a word with the crime boss…

The film is pacey and keeps your interest; in particular the scene during which the gang attempt to rob the jewellery store is cleverly constructed and gripping. Mai Zetterling has not exactly a wide acting range to work with though William Sylvester has fun with his dual part.

OFFBEAT is part of the ‘British Film Collection’ and the DVD offers Image Gallery as well as Original Synopsis in PDF format as bonus.