Sewers of Gold (a.k.a. The Great Riviera Bank Robbery) (a.k.a. Dirty Money) [DVD] (1979)

Originally saw this film in the early 80's on TV under the title 'Dirty Money''Dirty Money' is one of the greatest heist films of all time and also probably one of the least known.Starring a much younger Ian McShane before his 'Deadwood' days ably assisted by Warren Clarke, Christopher Malcolm and Stephen Grief this film details the events which took place in France in 1976.Following description taken from video release on Precision from 1981'Strongly committed to the ideals of a French right wing alliance with links in high places all over the world, Bert (IAN MCSHANE) conceives of a brilliant plan to obtain finances to buy arms in the cause of an eventual political take-over.The scene is Nice, playground of the rich and indolent. Over a long weekend the vault of a particular bank will be stuffed with francs. And Bert knows a way in.....through a labyrinthine sewer system, a map of which he has obtained from a contact in the town hall.With colleagues from former fighting days in Indo-China and Algeria, Jean (WARREN CLARKE) and Serge (CHRISTOPHER MALCOLM), Bert reluctantly has to recruit a band of professional criminals to assist in the robbery. The dangerous elements of crime and passionate politics make for uneasy bedfellows..........The criminals look on the job as merely a passport to money and the good life; they cannot understand Bert's ideological approach summed up as 'without arms....without hatred.....without violence'.As the job is planned with meticulous and flawless detail, the personality clashes between the two factions become more and more defined.But the heist goes perfectly and Bert finds more money than he ever dreamed of. There's fifteen million dollars: the biggest bank job in the world.Though the police are completely baffled at first, the criminal members of the robbery team are soon throwing their money around with reckless abandon. As they are caught one by one, Bert manages to avoid capture but in the end he, too, is cornered.Even so, he might still be able to offer the police a deal'.A great, great film!!

One of those films that gets quietly forgotten, and then you come across it again and enjoy it just as much as you did forty years ago. There are so many films that, although they're not Hollywood blockbusters, have elements, and a feel that today's film industry just couldn't deliver, for a multitude of reasons.Sewers of Gold is based on a true story of a heist which took place in Nice in 1976 - that year of the blazing hot summer - remember? A heist in Nice - what could be more attractive? And all shot on location on the Riviera. The film itself differs somewhat from the actual robbery story, but centres very much on the efforts of the team and the mechanics of the job of breaking into the bank through the tunnels and sewers below ground.Ian McShane plays the charismatic lead role, and as in all his films, does a great job - with that excellent voice of his used for narration throughout the story. And unlike so many modern films which are over-excitable and over-dramatic, the pace of this film, as was the case back in the 70s, is nice and steady - much more realistic. That is until the end, with a superb, very realistic getaway on a motorcycle. And, if like me you like motorcycles, especially being ridden on the Riviera - this is a Kawasaki Z1000 wth a terrific sounding exhaust note, tearing away through the streets and away onto the Autoroute. And if you look closely, Ian McShane himself is perched on the back - no helmet - as it howls away into the distance - in the Riviera sunshine. Perfect.

What can I say, this was one of the last films I watched with my father, before he died a year later.I was eleven at the time, that the BBC broadcast this. I know that it was on a school night, when we watched it, as my father helped me with my maths homework before we sat down to watch this, on our portable black and white telly. Back then could not afford colour telly licence, let alone a colour telly. The memories this film holds for me are treasured childhood ones, as do a lot of old films that I was lucky enough to see, with my family.I love this film, although I could of sworn that someone drowns near the end, or am I thinking of a totally different film?It is a film that should be in everyone's collection and although, the year it was made was 1979 it is a film that still holds true. Ian Mcshane a brilliant actor, who is well known for his antique dealer role as LoveJoy in the early 80's brings to life the main character in this short but well done film.I give it a thumbs up, so please buy it, it will won't disappoint.

Well, what do you expect from a film from 1979? In this reviewer's opinion, a darned sight more than we got. It was good to see a young Ian McShane who, even then, radiated the smoldering charisma that has carried him through the years. However, given that the plot is based on burrowing from a sewer into a bank vault, there was no need to take up three quarters of the film with a shovel by shovel account of the tunneling. take this away and you're left with a spoor shell of a film with lightweight characters and even lighter weight plot

Having seen and enjoyed the film many years ago I recently tried to find the DVD online - not an easy task as the film had three working titles. However, I tracked it down on Amazon and with One Click ordering everything was simple and fast as usual - and all at a great price. Looking forward to watching this great film once again.

Excellent. First time for over 20 years. Will watch it again next week.

Great movie. Great characters. A very entertaining watch.

i saw this on tv years ago when i was at school missed the end always like a good heist film love the ending especially when he escapes and charges of on motorbike good viewing

Even though the DVD does not show any physical scratches or damage, the video menu took several minutes to load. When playing the movie it is clearly damaged as the video interrupts constantly, the image is hardy visible through the many bit errors.