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Thinking she will do just as well, Fingers demands £25,000 ransom for her safe return. To his surprise, Gordon gleefully refuses. The philanderer has been carrying on an affair with his secretary and would like nothing better than to be rid of his dowdy wife. Fingers desperately lowers his price over
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gave the film 3/5 stars, writing: "This picture never lives up to its billing, largely owing to the cack-handed direction of Mario Zampi. Terry-Thomas gives a priceless performance as the wheeler-dealer unconcerned whether he sees abducted wife Brenda de Banzie ever again, but George Cole, Sid James
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By coincidence, the next day, the newspapers report a gruesome murder, just like the one
Fingers had threatened. Gordon jumps to the wrong conclusion, and Lucy makes him pay some more for his mistake. She has Sid and Fingers impersonate policemen investigating her disappearance. Fingers extorts most
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and his distrust of banks, she figures out where he has hidden much of his money. She leads the gangsters in stealing the cash and, for good measure, the furs and jewellery Gordon had lavished on his mistress, taking half of the proceeds for her share. On leaving Gordon's house through the bedroom
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Desperate, he decides to flee the country. Fingers's ex-stripper girlfriend offers to provide a forged passport. He agrees to meet her later, after visiting his mother. Lucy guesses that he is going there to pick up a final stash of money. The gang shows up and finds him with a suitcase. When the
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The members of a gang, especially Sid, grow impatient as their incompetent leader, Fingers, botches the robbery of a fur store, the latest in a series of disasters. Fingers then comes up with the idea of robbing businessman
William Gordon. Gordon bluffs them into believing the police are on their
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When Lucy learns of this, her love for her husband is extinguished. She decides to get revenge and soon takes charge of the gang (her wartime training in unarmed combat coming in handy). Knowing of Gordon's tax dispute with the
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police come to question Gordon further, Fingers takes the suitcase (containing £50,000) and leaves, Gordon being too afraid to raise a fuss. Then Lucy walks in on her now-penniless husband.
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Fingers and his gang decide to keep all of this last windfall and not split it with Lucy, but as they drive away, the suitcase pops open unnoticed and the money is scattered on the road.
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window a lit cigarette is left, which unintentionally burns the house down. Gordon returns and, thinking his money is burning, repeatedly jumps into the burning building.
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way. Fingers refuses to give up, plotting to kidnap Gordon's daughter. However, he errs yet again and ends up with Gordon's meek wife Lucy instead.
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wrote: "This crime-comedy extravaganza is disappointingly lacking in pace and spontaneous humour. The bungling gangsters are a pale reflection of
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A bunch of inept crooks kidnap the wife of a shady businessman, only for him to decide he doesn’t want her back.
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rated the film as "average", writing: "Crazy comedy not always paced as well as riotous car chase at the end."
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547:"Too Many Crooks (1958) - Mario Zampi - Synopsis, Characteristics, Moods, Themes and Related - AllMovie"
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inspector shows up soon after, Gordon loses his temper and raises suspicions of murder.
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of the rest of Gordon's ready cash in exchange for letting the matter drop. When a real
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and over again, finally offering to give her back for a mere £200, but is turned down.
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described the film as "a good, crazy, brisk farce comedy."
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This article is about the 1959 film. For other uses, see
473:and the gang overdo the "cor blimey" criminality."
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723:https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/too_many_crooks
669:British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959
646:(7th ed.). London: Paladin. p. 1040.
484:British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959
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948:Films about kidnapping in the United Kingdom
423:as policeman at traffic lights (uncredited)
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526:British Film Institute Collections Search
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732:then-and-now location photographs at
721:Too Many Crooks on Rotten Tomatoes -
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983:English-language crime comedy films
978:English-language black comedy films
381:Vilma Ann Leslie as Girl Journalist
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315:as William Delaney Gordon – "Bill"
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503:, a 1986 film with a similar plot
21:Too Many Crooks (disambiguation)
16:1959 British film by Mario Zampi
366:Rosalie Ashley as Angela Gordon
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973:Films scored by Stanley Black
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577:(300): 36. 1 January 1959.
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938:British black comedy films
933:British crime comedy films
642:Halliwell, Leslie (1989).
615:Radio Times Guide to Films
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923:1959 black comedy films
667:Quinlan, David (1984).
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644:Halliwell's Film Guide
411:as beggar (uncredited)
183:8 March 1959
168:Rank Film Distributors
621:. 2017. p. 948.
585:– via ProQuest.
417:as tramp (uncredited)
831:Laughter in Paradise
76:Christiane Rochefort
968:1950s British films
603:. 11 November 2021.
399:as Inspector Jensen
823:Shadow of the Past
815:Come Dance with Me
769:Films directed by
706:TCM Movie Database
673:B.T. Batsford Ltd.
601:The New York Times
455:The New York Times
434:Critical reception
387:as Gordon's mother
231:is a 1959 British
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895:Five Golden Hours
565:"Too Many Crooks"
522:"Too Many Crooks"
378:as fire policeman
233:black comedy film
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67:Jean Nery (story)
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855:Happy Ever After
799:The Phantom Shot
783:13 Men and a Gun
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391:Tutte Lemkow
363:as solicitor
345:as Charmaine
337:Sidney James
313:Terry-Thomas
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253:Sidney James
241:Terry-Thomas
235:directed by
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200:Running time
176:Release date
115:Sidney James
100:Terry-Thomas
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771:Mario Zampi
734:ReelStreets
531:23 February
468:Radio Times
421:Howard Pays
397:John Stuart
385:Edie Martin
376:Terry Scott
333:as Snowdrop
319:George Cole
245:George Cole
237:Mario Zampi
105:George Cole
88:Mario Zampi
85:Produced by
55:Mario Zampi
51:Directed by
918:1959 films
912:Categories
887:Bottoms Up
839:Top Secret
671:. London:
653:0586088946
583:1305820659
508:References
405:as Whisper
321:as Fingers
204:87 minutes
187:1959-03-08
61:Written by
403:Joe Melia
191: (UK)
144:Edited by
579:ProQuest
551:AllMovie
493:See also
415:Sam Kydd
351:as Beryl
343:Vera Day
261:Vera Day
217:Language
154:Music by
125:Vera Day
93:Starring
704:at the
220:English
209:Country
185: (
898:(1961)
890:(1960)
882:(1959)
874:(1957)
866:(1956)
858:(1954)
850:(1953)
842:(1952)
834:(1951)
826:(1950)
818:(1950)
810:(1948)
802:(1947)
794:(1940)
786:(1938)
679:
650:
625:
581:
339:as Sid
717:IMDb
677:ISBN
648:ISBN
623:ISBN
533:2024
466:The
307:Cast
270:Plot
259:and
170:(UK)
715:at
482:In
452:In
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189:)
23:.
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