Squizzy Taylor

(1982)

Squizzy Taylor is a 1982 crime bio-pic about Melbourne gangster Les 'Squizzy' Taylor (played by dance man David Atkins, again proving my theory that anyone could star in an Australian film in the 1980s), a notorious underground figure who rose from petty thief to running prostitutes to the top of the tree in the criminal underworld. He did this by managing to have great influence over the police investigating his crimes, rigging juries in his trials and by writing his own stories about his criminal experiences and using a local writer as a stooge to put these chronicles in the local 'The Sun' newspaper. He also intimated his rivals through frequent drive-by shootings. And he managed to be a very intimidating man despite being an incredibly short (about 5 foot 2).

The film plays fast and loose with the facts (when do bio-pics not?) and seems to go to his highlights without any real explanation as to how he rose so quickly to the top of the tree, especially how he become the head of a gang so quickly.

Where the film is at it's best is when it is showing the Squizzy as the man who likes the attention he is getting. He commands the courtroom when he's up. There's a bizarre scene where he's starring in his own movie (as a jockey... hahahaha).  And the period attention to 1920s Melbourne is astonishing, as the makers don't shy away from complex location shooting (I'm not sure how accurate it is).

Overall, I do think the film suffers because of its lead, who really isn't convincing when he has to do the tough stuff, and there are times I swear the film is going to break into song. And the film doesn't miss an opportunity to throw in a dance scene, including over the final credits. This isn't a fully successful film, but it has its moments.

I wonder how Underbelly will portray Squizzy Taylor and the period setting (interiors look good in the previews, exteriors though...).

Kim Lewis film clips. The collages are below: