Many critics in 1971 felt that Richard Burton was the wrong actor to play Cockney gangster Vic Dakin, and that his performance and accent were over the top.
The critical and financial failure of this film ended Richard Burton's viability as a box office star.
According to an article in the 6 December 1970 edition of the New York Times, Richard Burton gave up his "celebrated $1,000,000" fee for a percentage of the film's profits. This turned out to be a mistake.