Depressing, authentic-looking account of the real-life kidnapping of wealthy heiress by a desperate ex-serviceman whose attempts to collect a relatively modest ransom unravels at every juncture placing the abducted girl at risk. We know how it ends, but not necessarily the brutal build-up which is depicted in violent, unflinching detail.
The mundanity of the kidnapper's bland home life paints a rather bleak existence in which he's compelled to commit more crimes to support his modest lifestyle, unwilling to accept the employment opportunities he's afforded, regarding them as undignified for a person with his service record. As he becomes more detached from reality, he manages to convince himself that the victims of his heinous crimes have only themselves to blame.
Sumpter plays the pathetic narcissist with selfish realism, an insecure criminal with a hair-trigger temper motivated by money; patient and pedantic in his preparation, but unable to execute his crimes efficiently, leading to multiple reckless and unnecessary murders.
There's been some speculative decisions made regarding the fate of the abductee at the film's anti-climax with the aftermath largely explained via on-screen text, but the emphasis is on the depravity of the crimes, moreover than their restitution.
Whilst the subdued, no-frills approach is gripping, the film's proximity to the actual events made it a contemporaneous commercial failure. Time has afforded it more favourable attention, now appreciated for its unglamorous portrayal of some of the most callous crimes committed in England in modern times. Understated and well worth a look.
