Get Carter (1971)
Director: Mike Hodges
Stars: Michael Caine, Ian Hendry, John Osborne and Britt Ekland
I’m not going to spend too much time on this title, but let me just say, this is my kind of movie. In the tradition of revenge stories and even the Greek tragedy (whose name escapes me right now) in which the travelling bad-ass comes to town and pits the town’s two gangs against each other until the gangs are destroyed, (as remade with Kurosawa’s Yojimbo and Bruce Willis’ starring Last Man Standing) Get Carter stands out as a chilly and remorseless portrayal of a gangster out for revenge. The tone of this film certainly fits the old saying, “Revenge is a dish best served cold.”
Jack Carter is portrayed by Michael Caine, as I’m sure you’ve never seen him. The always informative Robert Osbourne on TCM explained that Caine hadn’t had a hit in a while when he chose Get Carter as his next project. It certainly is a deviation from Battle of Britain, Alfie and other such fare he’d done in the past. Let me explain that Carter is a terrible human being: but he’s worth watching throughout the film because he is at least committed to something – getting the bastards that got his brother.
I am impressed how the director, Mike Hodges, challenges us with the awful violence in the film. To provide just one example, Carter beats one of the responsible parties senseless on the steps of a ten-story parking garage: then, without warning or a cute little one-liner, Carter throws him over the side! It’s as if Hodges is saying to us, “This is about a London gangster taking the train up to Newcastle to annihilate his brother’s killers… What did you think you were going to see, Carter tickle the bad guys to death?” Mr. Hodges also challenges our expectations of revenge oriented stories with this film’s finale – sorry, you’ll have to see the movie to follow my meaning.
I guess I’m always a little impressed when I’ve gotten used to seeing an actor portray the good guys, but then pull a total reversal and play the hard boiled tough guy: examples include Tom Cruise in Collateral, Mel Gibson in Payback and Tom Hanks in Road to Perdition, all of which are well worth your time. As long as I’m using this entry to suggest other titles, don’t miss another of Mike Hodges films, Croupier (starring a young Clive Owen), which is a real philosophical picture if you’re in the mood for a brain tease.
Final Note: I know I put Britt Ekland, gorgeous Swedish actress and ex-wife to Peter Sellers, as a co-star of this film but please don’t view the film for her involvement alone because she’s only in two scenes! Very, very unfair, I know.