The Italian Job (1969)

The Italian Job (1969) – Fresh out of jail, Charlie plans to steal four million dollars worth of gold bullion by creating a traffic jam in Italy.

Directed by Peter Collinson                             Starring Michael Caine, Noel Coward, Benny Hill,
                                                                                               Rossano Brazzi

Why I Liked It – A frothy bit of movie silliness.  Pure fun.

If you’re looking for a story that explores ideas of consequence with in-depth characterizations, and an intricate plot, don’t watch this movie! This is a Saturday morning crime caper cartoon come to life.  The premise is silly, the characters are simple and the emphasis is on the action.

And it’s brilliant, for what it is.  A comedy about a big-time con.

Caine plays Charlie Croaker, a professional criminal always on the lookout for a big score.  He pitches the idea of stealing gold bullion in broad daylight in the center of the financial capitol of Italy to the most powerful criminal in England.  The fact that the man in question (Mr. Bridger, played by Noel Coward) is in jail isn’t a problem.  Bridger runs his penitentiary and is treated like royalty.  After breaking back into the prison he’d just left to make the pitch, Croaker eventually gets the go-ahead.  That’s when the silliness really begins.

This movie is a cult favorite in the car fandom because of the original Morris Minis that are the featured cars for the robbery.  Their flight through the city sewers is a classic.  When British Motors refused to offer cars for the movie, FIAT stepped in.  Which means all the cars around the Minis are worth a look too.  Also a classic moment is Croaker’s reaction to a slight miscalculation during a test run of blowing the doors off the armored car.  I’ll let you enjoy that moment when it comes.  Also worthy of note is the scene when Charlie reclaims his car from the storage garage.  The entire scene is ad-libbed by the two actors.  And the racetrack on top of the Fiat is amazing.  It actually existed for decades prior to the movie.

The ending is unusual, in that it doesn’t resolve the action.  Again, don’t want to spoil the moment for you.  There were two issues that caused this.  First, the censors of the day didn’t want a movie that showed criminals getting away with their crime.  The second was that they hoped to make a sequel.  Sadly, while the movie has been remade, no sequel was done.

It’s silly fun.  Sometimes that’s all you need.

Rating – *** Worth A Look