Villain (1971) - Richard Burton, Ian McShane, Nigel Davenport, Donald Sinden

Michael Tuchner’s Villain is a brutal British noir that expertly captures the souring of 1960s optimism. It follows the exploits of Kray-like gangster Vic Dakin (Richard Burton). He lives with his mum but specialises in protection racketeering for local London businesses. With information of a potentially easy robbery of a factory’s payment van, Vic and his gang join forces with another old firm for the job. But Vic is growing increasingly volatile, due to both his possessive affair with Wolfe (Ian McShane) and his increasing penchant for violence. Being caught by Detective Matthews (Nigel Davenport) seems more and more on the cards.