zardoz-13 Richard Burton plays a sadistic, notorious, homosexual, British crime boss in Michael Tuchner directorial debut "Villain" with Ian McShane, Nigel Davenport, Jose Ackland, and Donald Sinden. Loosely based on the life of Ronnie Kray, this grim, sometimes violent, but often dreary thriller is ostensibly based on James Barlow's novel "The Burden of Proof." The highlight of this atmospheric gangster saga is a robbery bid in broad daylight as Vic Dakin (Richard Burton) and his cronies grab sixty to seventy thousand pounds from an armored car. Dakin is a devoted son to his elderly mother (Cathleen Nesbitt) and lavishes attention on her when he isn't beating up his adversaries. Inspector Bob Matthews (Nigel Davenport of "Play Dirty") struggles to find enough evidence to arrest this elusive killer. Altogether unsavory but moments of violence that capture the era, "Villain" qualifies as a letdown and is nowhere as entertaining as Michael Caine's "Get Carter."

Wizard-8 The Leonard Maltin movie guide described this movie as being "nasty" and "stomach-churning". Actually, by today's standards, the level of violence on display here you could probably easily get away with on prime time network television. Anyway, the tame by today's standards violence wasn't an issue with me. The main problem is with the script. The movie starts off fairly well, but quickly becomes very slow and talky, and the dialogue isn't particularly colorful or interesting to grab the viewer. (This problem can be found with a lot of other British movies this age or older.) As for Richard Burton, while his performance here is not one of his worst, it's also not one of his better ones. One problem for him might have been the fact that his character's appearances are somewhat less in number than you might think. This is not an awful movie, but for the most part it's kind of bland and forgettable. If you want to see an early 1970s British crime drama, I would suggest you watch the 1971 Michael Caine movie "Get Carter" instead.

kapelusznik18 ***SPOILERS*** Richard Burton burnt out on booze and after staring in some half dozen films, mostly flops, with his wife Elizabeth Taylor tried to and did make a comeback in what was his break-out movie "Villain" that put him back on the map or in demand. Burton playing against type as the mama's boy bi-sexual mob boss Vic Dakin who's major love interest in the film besides his bed ridden mother, Cathleen Nesbitt,is boyish looking fellow mobster and full time pimp Wolfe "Wolfie" Lissner, Ian McShane. In an amazing acting job Burton pulls it-not his pants- off in his both vicious as well as sensitive portrayal as the London gangster making you almost forget all the previous movies that he was in as the guy who gets the pretty girl not only throughout the film but as well as in the end of it, when he spots someone better looking, too.Brutal and sadistic Burton as Vic Dakin always gets his way in the operations of the East End mob that he controls but the next job he's involved in he has to take orders from his former associate Frank Fietcher, T.P McKenna, whom he had since had a falling out with. Added to all that Fietcher insists that his brother in law the weak willed and ulcer ridden Edgar Louis, Joss Akland, to take part in the gang's latest job the payroll robbery of an East London plastic company. What really gets Vic's goat is that his male lover "Wolfie" is making eyes as well as jumping into bed with the beautiful party girl Venetia, Fiona Lewis, whom he wants to get rid of.***SPOILERS**** After robbing the company payroll of some 70,000 pound sterling the money is entrusted with Edgar Louis who together with Louis himself in gone missing. This has Vic blow a fit in feeling that he was screwed by both Louis and his brother in law Fietcher out of his share of the loot. After kidnapping Louis out of his hospital bed Vic has him track down where he hid the money only to come up empty with an outraged Vic blasting him -in his ulcers-to death. It's then that a trap in sprung on Vic not only by the London police but dozen of eye witnesses who caught him red handed committing Louis's murder. It was too late to save Louis' life whom because of his serious and getting worse by the hour ulcer condition didn't have that long to live anyway. But by catching him in the act it put the crazed psycho killer Vic Dakin behind bars and away from society for the rest of his natural life.

Prismark10 Villain is written by Dick Clement and Ian Le Frenais best known for comedies. This is a hard boiled gangster film loosely based on Ronnie Kray. Richard Burton (Vic Dakin) plays the cockney accented, mother loving, razor wielding gangster with a fondness for rough sex with on and off boyfriend Ian McShane (Wolfie Lissner.)Lissner is a ladies man who will do whatever to survive but cannot escape Dakin or his goons. He is a womaniser, a pimp, sells poppers in clubs and tries to avoids Dakin's sexual urges.Dakin becomes a wanted man after a violently staged wage snatch job as Nigel Davenport's (Bob Matthews) wry detective doggedly pursues him and his gang. Matthews even stands up to the bent politician who does Dakin's bidding.This is a rough, seedy film with plenty of 1970s location shooting in and around London. It stays just on the right side of ham. Burton looks lean and mean, he certainly has not turned up for a payday.McShane shows he had lots of early talent in his role as Lissner. Davenport and Colin Welland almost steal the film as the smart coppers who just want to catch villains but engage in a lot of dry wit as well. It is also a roll call of 1970s British/Irish actors who played heavies in movies.