The Wrong Arm of the Law

"Meet the Mastermind Who Pulls the Strings in the Underworld...and all his mobs and dolls...filling the London fog with laughter and lunacy!!!"

1963 1h 34m EN

👍

6.7

SOLID

⭐

6.7

IMDB

★6.7TMDB · 47★6.7IMDB · 2,430

CrimeComedy

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

The crooks in London know how it works. No one carries guns and no one resists the police. Then a new gang appears that go one better. They dress as police and steal from the crooks. This upsets the natural order of the police/criminal relationship and the police and the crooks join forces to catch the IPOs (Impersonating Police Officers), including an armoured car robbery in which the police must help the gangs to set a trap.

“Meet the Mastermind Who Pulls the Strings in the Underworld...and all his mobs and dolls...filling the London fog with laughter and lunacy!!!”

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Cast

Peter Sellers
Pearly Gates
Lionel Jeffries
Inspector Fred 'Nosey' Parker
Bernard Cribbins
Nervous O'Toole
Nanette Newman
Valerie
Davy Kaye
Trainer King
Bill Kerr
Jack Coombes
Ed Devereaux
Bluey May
Reg Lye
Reg Denton

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Cliff Owen
Writers: Alan Simpson, Ray Galton, John Antrobus
Languages: English
Countries: United Kingdom

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

ERA

Did you know

63 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Cliff Owen, shot by Ernest Steward. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Tristam Cones shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Peter Sellers and Lionel Jeffries and Bernard Cribbins carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Meet the Mastermind Who Pulls the Strings in the Underworld...and all his mobs and dolls...filling the London fog with laughter and lunacy!!!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0056704 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

Only 47 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Cliff Owen directs. Ernest Steward behind the camera. Tristam Cones cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United Kingdom. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

163 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Directed by Cliff Owen, shot by Ernest Steward. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Editor Tristam Cones shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
4Peter Sellers and Lionel Jeffries and Bernard Cribbins carry the top of the cast.
5Marketing tagline: "Meet the Mastermind Who Pulls the Strings in the Underworld...and all his mobs and dolls...filling the London fog with laughter and lunacy!!!".
6IMDB entry: tt0056704 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
7Only 47 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
8Classified under 10 themes, including "london, england", "robbery", "police", "bank robber".

The technical file

Cinematography: Ernest Steward
Editing: Tristam Cones
Runtime: 94 min · 1h 34m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: The Wrong Arm of the Law (1963)
IMDB rating: 6.7/10 · 2,430 votes
MPAA: Unrated

Also by

Cliff Owen

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2024-01-16
★ 7/10
Ostensibly, "Pearly Gates" (Peter Sellers) is a French couturier selling posh frocks, but we know in reality he's a crook. Imagine his chagrin when his latest crime falls foul of the police! Imagine how much worse it gets when he discovers that it wasn't the police at all, but a gang who "IPO" (Impersonate Police Officers). That's below the belt! Meantime, the rather supercilious police inspector "Parker" (Lionel Jeffries) starts to get embroiled in this too as his bosses don't much like the idea that there are fake officers out there robbing with impunity. The most unlikely of truces now ensues as both have to bury the hatchet and concoct a plan to entrap their rather shrewd, and well briefed, protagonists. The enormous sum of £500,000 is to be used as bait but what's the betting the plan goes pear-shaped? There's a good dynamic between Sellers and Jeffries here with a well paced and engagingly daft story unravelling over a quickly paced ninety minutes. Some familiar faces make up the supporting cast and the denouement - well I quite liked that! The humour is simple and uncomplicated, relying on some characterful performances and some spirited efforts on screen, and I did quite enjoy this.

Production companies