A great film !

I love this film and hang tenaciously onto my VHS copy, taped off BBC2 in the mid nineties. That Saturday afternoon showing is the only time I've noticed the film showing on British TV, which is a shame. I only set the recorder at the last minute just before setting off for London to watch Oldham get an undeserved 1-1 at Highbury (those were the days !). Arriving home late that night I decided to have a quick look at the first 10 minutes of "Where's Jack" in case it was worth watching...in the end I watched it all. Tommy Steele, cast against type, does a good job in the central role of burglar-highwayman Jack Sheppard despite the film character being somewhat more respectable than his historical counterpart. Stanley Baker adds his usual class and gravitas to the film in his role as sinister thief-taker Jonathan Wild whilst the supporting cast is, on the whole, very good (although I agree with the reviewer about Fiona Lewis's accent !). I particularly rated the performances of Dudley Foster as Blueskin, Noel Purcell as his mute strongman pal and Leon Lissek as Wild's particularly repulsive henchman! There's also a nice early role for Michael Elphick (as Hogarth) and a blink-and-you'll-miss-it appearance from Rona Newton-John, sister of Olivia. I thought it was well-written (with an excellent ending, in terms of plot and acting performances) and overall the film was a very brave attempt to bring the Beggars Opera to the silver screen. The period detail looked good to me...even the extras seemed to have been selected carefully to fit into the period, and the whole effect is very pleasing indeed. I'd love to see the film treated with respect and released on DVD...My tape version doesn't run for 2 hours so I'm also wondering if it was cut for TV (it was shown in the afternoon, despite some moderately adult themes). If you get the chance, please give it a look !

AndyG