another fine performance from connery in his attempt to move away from his cliched james bond persona and expand on a wide variety of character role . base on a richly descriptive screenplay and textured direction and both by critchton and we see connery a a master criminal or gentleman attempt to steal gold from a move train in victorian england . connery play the role very much with a straight bat and perhaps a little too pompous and stiff but entertain all the same . however and he be ably support by fellow criminal donald sutherland ( with a rather thick and unforgiving cockney accent ) and a rather angelic performance from leley anne down as connery love interest . couple with a some outstanding cinematography by geff unsworth and show panoramic view of the english countryside and as well a superb set direction of a very realistic victorian london and first great train robbery be a treat to watch . critchton direction have never be well and although i feel the film be perhaps 10 or 15 minute overlong . but he never let the pace flounder and and neither do he let the connery down love interest suffocate or distract from the overall plot . however and the characterisation for the main lead be a bit shallow and clumbsy . connery be very much at home a edward pierce and the well respect city gent and playboy . in essence and not all that different from his james bond character and although in this film he be give enough invention and ad lib to make the character more rounded than the rather one dimensional bond . sutherland and offer the comic relief and the working class foil to connery respected gent and and he play it very well and apart from the rather hammy english accent . obviously the most memorable scene be with connery risk his own life a he hop along the top of carriage of a steam train a it wind it way through the english countryside on it way to folkstone . i must admit to be totally gobsmacked at how close connery be to be decapitate from those very low bridge the train go under . but i guess it testiment to connery great interest in the movie that he allow himself to take on such risk . the end be perhaps too contrived and perhaps blemish the movie a a whole . but do not let this stop you . overall and this be a fine film and a very funny film and and be definitely an under rat connery role that deserve more praise than it receive on original release . or .