The Fordyce Saga

Cash on Demand (Quentin Lawrence, 1961)

Hammer Films wasn't always synonymous with horror back in the day. Multiple film genres were also produced alongside the splattering of Kensington gore, such as prehistoric adventures, science fiction and war films; its biggest box office success was On the Buses (1971), a film spin-off to the popular television sitcom. 

Quentin Lawrence's Cash on Demand (1961) happens to be the studio's most underrated gem. A lean and tense Brit noir set in a small bank in the south-west of England. Adapted from Jacques Gilles' play The Gold Inside (1960), this heist thriller circumvents its obvious low budget and restricted location with great effect by focusing in riveting character studies for its two main characters, along with some creative plot twists along the way.

The film's major selling point is its two powerhouse performance from Peter Cushing as the dictatorial bank manager, Fordyce; along with André Morrell's devilish crook Col. Gore Hepburn. Both actors had worked together prior to this film, notably in Nineteen Eighty-Four (1954) and The Hound of the Baskervilles (1958). Their familiarity would probably explain the sublime chemistry between the pair since they constantly act and react like Newton's third law of physics. This results in a palpable atmosphere so intense that it leaves a lingering impression long after the film is over. Morrell's duplicitous manner and threats which turns Cushing's cold authoritarian into an emotional wreck makes for a very compelling psychological battle. A prime example of this is Morrell's utterly chilling threat to Cushing early on in the film:

"There are two men at your house. At this moment, your wife has an electrode attached to each side of her head. If you fail to co-operate with us in any way whatever, they will pass a charge through the circuit. It is extremely painful and I'm afraid the effects of it are permanent. She would never recover her wits."

Worth mentioning that Cash on Demand takes obvious inspiration from Charles Dickens' novella A Christmas Carol. Fordyce obviously being Ebenezer Scrooge, while Col. Hepburn would more than likely be the Ghost of Christmas Present. Its Christmas setting is another dead giveaway. Ultimately the viewer is treated to Fordyce being brought to crucial turning point in his life that would forever change him.

Considering it represents a quintessentially British style of heist film; one that's a far cry from the violent, gun-totting crooks you would picture from American crime thrillers, Cash on Demand was first distributed in the U.S. by Columbia Pictures and was not released in Britain until 1963 - two whole years later. Being on the backburner for so long did the film no favours. A huge shame. Still, it's now regarded as something of a long lost classic, where it's championed by the likes of Hammer expert and film historian Jonathan Rigby as one of the legendary studio's best films. Thoroughly agree with his sentiment.