Martin Bradley "The Challenge" (or if you prefer "It Takes a Thief"), may not be "Rififi" or "The Killing" but this John Gilling directed crime movie isn't nearly as bad as people would have you believe. In fact, it's a consistently fast-moving, surprisingly tough picture with a decent cast that includes Anthony Quale and Carl Mohner as crooks under the thumb of unlikely crime boss Jayne Mansfield. Yes, that's right - Jayne Mansfield, who isn't just miscast here but is perfectly dreadful and was probably the main reason the movie bombed, (was casting her really such a good idea in the first place?). Still, she turns almost every line she utters into a howler and is just one of the reasons the movie is so damned entertaining. Nice black and white photography, too, by Gordon Dines and a good use of locations.

naseby Strange Brit film-noir, in the sense Jayne Mansfield is playing a gang leader (and not even the moll). Anthony Quayle, playing out of character, (Jim) (if you 'don't' include 'Ice Cold in Alex, where he makes good anyway/let off). Simply said, Mansfield's 'Billie' character, sets up her then lover (Quayle) into taking part in a robbery. Carl Mohne as 'Kristy' her 'real'(?) lover, 'makes a phone call to the police to land Jim in it, but it looks like it still had Billie's blessing to land Quayle in it too??? Although the strange thing is, she's left Jim to hide the money without anyone knowing, (including her, where he stashed it). Kristy, thinking she DOES know, is hanging around. Meanwhile, Jim takes the rap because of the 'phone call, does his stretch and is released. However, all in the meantime Billie and the gang, have done numerous robberies whilst Jim was inside. This I don't really get, as Mansfield/Billie didn't know/locate the money from the first robbery with Jim, carries on robbing in the meantime. It's not as if she had Jim's money and was going to use it to finance jobs. On Jim's release, Mansfield and the gang want the money from the first job, Jim of course rebels/refuses for taking the rap - it's not long before the gang decide or rather Kristy does, to kidnap Jim's son, Joey (typical 60's name) in return in trying to get him to blab.Mansfield though is not warmed to the idea of harming or even taking Joey, as Kristy is a psychopath. This is where the film adds a bit more tension in the overall plot of finding Joey, who's in the hands of one of the gang, who's happy to kill joey if Jim isn't forthcoming wit the loot.Edward Judd plays a good role as the Inspector after both Mansfield's gang and all the loot from all the robberies as well as trying to wrest Joey from Kristy's minions.Predictable kind of turns with cops and robbers etc., with some fair action/fighting and tension. It has to be said Quayle played a great role and very well. Mansfield, on the other hand also predictably still plays a dumb blonde role too much like Marilyn Monroe, spoiling it, though for me and the film. She does a good about-face with Mohne's character realising he's a dangerous psycho though. One thing, there's a plot part of the loot being buried and then found to have later, explosives covering it - Jim goes to find it surprised of course, but what's more surprising is the fact the explosives are left out in the open/unguarded!!!

malcolmgsw When you watch a British crime film from the 1950s you expect that the gang boss will be played by Herbert Lom,or Martin Benson or maybe Eric Pohlman,but Jayne Mansfield!\whereas Joan Crawford is a tigress when she is a gang boss,Eg Johnny Notorious,Mansfield is a pussycat.She has all the toughness of a rotten tomato.Once the going gets tough she gets going and Carl Mohne takes over.The best she can do is simper in a variety of wigs and a different outfit for every scene.She simpers a song in a sort of Monroe imitation.She is in short dreadful.Quayle plays against type as her crook lover who went to prison but kept the loot.If you were to take Monroe out of this film you would have a good film.Nevertheless when Mansfield is off the screen the film is quite entertaining.

MartinHafer The setup for "It Takes A Thief" really doesn't make a lot of sense--and that is a huge problem. It begins with Jim (Anthony Quayle) falling for Billy (Jayne Mansfield). He doesn't realize that Billy is a cold and calculating sort--and she is setting him up. She convinces him to join in on a heist and he agrees. Now here is the part that makes no sense at all--Jim is responsible for hiding the money and then someone in the gang lets the cops know he was in on the crime and he's sent to prison. Why turn Jim in to the police? Jim would either return the money to the authorities OR he'd sit on it until after he's out of prison--and that could be years. It simply makes little sense. And for some time you aren't sure if Billy did this or perhaps Kristy--the brooding gang member who appears to have an extremely close relationship with Billy.Regardless, several years pass and Jim has now done his time--and the money is still hidden. He has no intention of returning to his life of crime--even though the old gang is pressuring him to do so because they want the loot. When he refuses to cooperate with them, the gang turns up the pressure by kidnapping Jim's son. At the same time, the police are keeping an eye on Jim because they, too, want the money as well. With all this pressure on him, what is he to do? Aside from a main plot idea that makes little sense, "It Takes a Thief" has several other things working against it. The big one is the odd casting of Mansfield considering the film is set in England. Plus, the pairing of the distinguished actor, Anthony Quayle with Jayne Mansfield is just plain weird. Finally, the DVD print is pretty bad--making the viewing experience less than stellar. It's really sad because apart from the weird casting strange plot about Jim being turned it, it's a very good noir sort of film. The film has a lot of tension and the scenes involving the search for the kid late in the film were awfully good.