Written by / 10/19/2022 / No comments / , , , , , , , , , , ,

WILLIAM SYLVESTER DIGS INTO 'OFFBEAT' AKA 'THE DEVIL INSIDE'

William Sylvester in OFFBEAT Year: 1961 Rating: ****

There was a reason American actor William Sylvester was available for an American director who filmed and lived in England, where both he and Stanley Kubrick ala 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY literally felt right at home: And OFFBEAT/THE DEVIL INSIDE provides the usually cool/collected William Sylvester real edge and intensity: starting out in dark sunglasses while robbing a bank... then meeting with fellow cops for whom he's a resilient, somewhat roguish undercover agent.

Taking place during one heist... a tunnel job on a quiet city street... the mission's to infiltrate a syndicate of criminals yet this particular den harbors pool-playing, working-class types so crooked they're almost normal, including by-the-numbers leader Anthony Dawson and affable John Meillon, who, along with muscle-thugs Neil McCarthy and Harry Baird, pose as construction workers....

Mai Zetterling and William Sylvester in OFFBEAT

But the gang's token ingenue Mai Zetterling really stands out... she's pretty, experienced and tough despite falling too hard too fast for our anti-hero, constantly dogged by his stubborn Scotland Yard boss... 

Which, as he and we learn, could be for understandable reasons, and, directed by veteran Cliff Owen, who'd soon make his best heist thriller with A PRIZE OF ARMS, this is Sylvester's best role, juggling a kind of criminal/cop ambiguity like only Noir can.

Mai Zetterling and William Sylvester in OFFBEAT
John Meillon in OFFBEAT aka THE DEVIL INSIDE
Neil McCarthy and William Sylvester pool out in OFFBEAT
William Sylvester in OFFBEAT aka THE DEVIL INSIDE
William Sylvester in OFFBEAT
William Sylvester in 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY
An OFFBEAT William Sylvester robs a bank blind for THE DEVIL INSIDE
William Sylvester robbing the bank blind in OFFBEAT
John Meillon in OFFBEAT aka THE DEVIL INSIDE with William Sylvester
John Meillon in OFFBEAT aka THE DEVIL INSIDE with Anthony Dawson
John Meillon in OFFBEAT with William Sylvester and Mai Zetterling
John Meillon in THE DEVIL INSIDE with Anthony Dawson and William Sylvester
THE DEVIL INSIDE with William Sylvester
John Meillon in THE DEVIL INSIDE
Mai Zetterling in THE DEVIL INSIDE with William Sylvester
John Philips in THE DEVIL INSIDE with William Sylvester
John Meillon in OFFBEAT aka THE DEVIL INSIDE with Harry Baird

Share This Post :
Tags : , , , , , , , , , , ,

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.

All Time Popular

Featured Post

JUDD NELSON, DANA OLSEN AND JONNA LEE IN 'MAKING THE GRADE'

Judd Nelson in MAKING THE GRADE Year: 1984 Rating: ***1/2 A year before THE BREAKFAST CLUB made Judd Nelson a star, turning his energetic a...

WWW.CULTFILMFREAKS.COM

WWW.CULTFILMFREAKS.COM
Movie Reviews, Interviews, Articles and Pop Culture from White Heat to Blue City

RIP ACTOR KEN HUTCHISON

TOTAL HITS

Popular Trending

FOUNDED BY JAMES M. TATE

FOUNDED BY JAMES M. TATE
RANDOM QUOTE:"If you must think, for God's sake, think clearly." Richard Attenborough, The Great Escape

FILM NOIR & NEO NOIR CRIME

FAVORITES SHORTLIST

1)OTLEY 2)HELL IS A CITY 3)ROBBERY 4)THE FEARMAKERS 5)CANYON PASSAGE 6)VIOLENT SATURDAY 7)HOT CARS 8)JUNGLE STREET 9)THE CROWDED SKY 10)THE ROARING TWENTIES 11) ANATOMY OF A MURDER 12)SHARKS' TREASURE 13)SWEENEY TWO 14)RAIDERS FROM BENEATH THE SEA 15)HARDCORE 16)THE BREAK 17)WHITE HEAT 18)AL CAPONE 19)HIDDEN FEAR 20)FALLEN ANGEL 21)HOUSE OF STRANGERS 22)THE ASPHALT JUNGLE 23)ASH WEDNESDAY 24)THE SYSTEM 25)AIR PATROL 26)THE STONE KILLER 27)EASY LIVING 28)WILLIAM CONRAD'S BRAINSTORM 29)FRENZY 30)THE MAN FROM LARAMIE 1)DANA ANDREWS 2)JAMES CAGNEY 3)STANLEY BAKER 4)MARLON BRANDO 5)CHARLES BRONSON1)VIRGINIA MAYO 2)SUE LYON 3)GENE TIERNEY 4)MERRY ANDERS 5)FAYE DUNAWAY DIRECTORS 1)JACQUES TOURNEUR 2)RICHARD FLEISCHER 3)VAL GUEST 4)STANLEY KUBRICK 5)OTTO PREMINGER 6)ORSON WELLES 7)JOHN GUILLERMAN 8)JOHN LANDIS 9)JOHN CARPENTER 10)MICHAEL WINNER

BRITISH NEW WAVE CINEMA

RARITIES AND EXPLOITATION

HAMMER HORROR & THRILLER

Popular This Month

CHARLES BRONSON CINEMA

CINEMA OF DANA ANDREWS

WESTERN GENRE REVIEWS

PEAKING INTO THE SIXTIES

KICKING IN THE EIGHTIES

TALES AND REFLECTIONS

REVVING THE SEVENTIES

FOR HORROR MOVIE REVIEWS

Most Popular Last Year

RETURN TO THE HOMEPAGE