ODD MAN OUT

This 1947 film is the start of three extremely impressive films directed by Carol Reed, the others being 'The Fallen Idol' and 'The Third Man'.  

It stars James Mason as Johnny, an IRA leader who gets badly wounded during a robbery.  Given that he killed a bank employee during the robbery (albeit somewhat unintentionally) it's clear he has to die by the end of the film, which made me fret that the journey getting there might be a bit of a downer.

But I needn't have worried, such is the excellence of everything on view.  The black-and-white cinematography is stunning.  The visual compositions are such as to suggest that had be been born a few decades earlier Reed would have been an outstanding director of silent cinema.

Equally the acting is outstanding throughout.  Mason himself doesn't have to do that much other than stagger from one hiding place to another, but the supporting cast are superb, many of them fine Irish actors.  

In particular I was very taken by Kathleen Ryan as a young woman (also named Kathleen) who loves Johnny.  There's a gripping scene between her and a priest in which she intimates that if Johnny has to die then so shall she and he tries to dissuade her.  

Throughout the action the score rises to the occasion when it needs to, especially in the closing moments, which pack an almighty emotional punch. 

Add to this a flawless screenplay in terms of the dialogue and you have an almost perfect film, my only minor reservation being that maybe we get a little too much of a couple of minor characters, a small-time criminal (Shell) and an eccentric painter (Tober).  

Nevertheless it's an outstanding picture.