Villain – 1971 | 98 mins | Thriller, Drama | Colour

Plot Synopsis

Scripted by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais, Villain is taken from James Barlow’s novel The Burden of Proof. A grim underworld drama in the same seedy style as Get Carter. Richard Burton employs a mean sneer as East End gangster Vic Dakin, the villain of the title: a character obviously based on Ronnie Kray. Dakin is a sadistic, razor-wielding, mother-fixated bank robber whose boyfriend Wolf (Ian McShane) is a pimp catering for establishment peccadilloes such as those of crooked MP Gerald Draycott (Donald Sinden). Police Inspector Bob Matthews (Nigel Davenport) of Scotland Yard is on the case and determined to put the gang behind bars.