Brighton Rock

If Richard Attenborough hadn't been careful in his choice of roles he might very well have been typecast as a stone cold killer the rest of his career. It was the same problem that Richard Widmark had after Kiss Of Death. In Brighton Rock, Attenborough is absolutely riveting and charismatic as gang leader Pinkie Brown.

In the British seaside resort town of Brighton, Attenborough and his cronies run a protection racket and are being muscled by another gang who wants to take over their territory. In America this would call for a public machine gun blasting, but in the United Kingdom they do things in a bit more subtle way. After a prolonged chase through Brighton, Attenborough nails one of the other gang members Alan Wheatley in a fun house tunnel ride where there's even question that Wheatley might have slipped and fallen on his own.

But there are questions and Hermione Baddely is raising them, having been with Wheatley before he died and knowing how scared he was. There's also a witness after the fact who could destroy his alibi, a young and very innocent waitress played by Carol Marsh.

The reason Brighton Rock works so well is the terrifying portrait of Attenborough as a killer. Attenborough has to be a charismatic figure or the older members of his group would not be looking to him as the leader. They fear him too, but eventually the fear takes over the sway he has on the group.

Carol Marsh is good in her part. She's such an innocent, a Trilby like creature who Attenborough works like a Svengali over and gets her actually to marry him, just so she can't give evidence against him in Wheatley's murder. But when a couple more deaths occur, Marsh is frightened, but still entranced with Attenborough.

The final climax on the Brighton pier is as terrifying as any noir film you might see in America at that time. It even eclipses Wheatley's demise earlier which is also a highlight. Brighton Rock holds very well after 62 years and compares very well with some of the best American noir films of the time.

Brighton Rock is directed by John Boulting and written by Graham Greene (also 1938 novel) and Terence Rattigan. Produced by Roy Boulting, it stars Richard Attenborough, Carol Marsh, William Hartnell, Hermione Baddeley, Harcourt Williams and Wylie Watson. Music is scored by Hans May and cinematography is by Harry Waxman. Plot finds Attenborough as small time Brighton hoodlum Pinkie Brown, whose attempts to cover up a murder sees events spiral out of control for himself and those closest to him.

1947 was a good year for tough, gritty British drama, in fact it was a key year in the progression of British cinema. It was the year that would see the release of They Made Me A Fugitive, It Always Rains On Sunday, Odd Man Out and Brighton Rock. The latter film, arguably the one that looks the most dated, is the one that shocked the most upon its release. Refreshing, then, to find that in spite of the aged edges of the narrative frame, it still today has a power, a bleakness, that justifies the classic status afforded it. Part seedy seaside noir, part character driven observation on Catholic guilt and torment, Brighton Rock overcomes some slight old time technical flaws to thrive on thematic potency and a tense narrative.

Many authors find their respective work losing impetus during the translation to the big screen, Graham Greene is one who hasn't had to suffer in that department. Key issue for those adapting his work is to understand the characterisations at work, thankfully the Boulting brothers grasp that Pinkie Brown, surely one of Greene's greatest creations, has a complexity that needs him front and centre of the brewing maelstrom. The plot then tumbles out around him, as the seedy underbelly of Brighton's everyday life is exposed. The casting of Attenborough as Pinkie was a masterstroke, fresh faced and wide eyed, Attenborough plays it as coiled spring like, his psychosis troubling and ready to explode at any given moment. His cold hearted relationship with the homely, desperate for love, Rose (Marsh), is utterly disturbing, and it's that relationship that underpins the story.

Story is set amongst two sides of Brighton, one side is sunny, full of lights, fun-fairs and candy floss, the other features grimy boarding houses, penny café's and loud back street beer houses. The neat trick the Boulting's pull is that we know the sunny side is merely a facade to darker forces, much of the badness is played out to the backdrop of seaside frivolity and relaxation. With the iconic pier serving as a dual witness to both the good and bad side of Brighton's current denizens. Aided by Waxman's oppressive photography, J Boulting paints in claustrophobic strokes, perfectly enveloping the lead protagonists in a number of restrictive set-ups, where the surroundings deftly match the mood of the individual. It's going to end bad, it has too, the atmosphere tells us that, but the makers are reveling in tightening the noose one turn at a time, and that's a sure fire bonus for film noir lovers.

Film is well cast across the board, with Hartnell most notable as Pinkie gang member, Dallow, while Baddeley as Pinkie's bold and brassy adversary, Ida Arnold, is suitably annoying. Memorable characters, one and all, each one serving to add fuel to Attenborough's malevolent fire. How great it is to also take away a number of memorable scenes from the movie. From the pulse raising chase at the beginning; to the weird and haunting brutality of a ghost train sequence, and to the cruel finale that drips with cynicism, it's a film that refuses to leave the conscious after the credits have rolled. The ending may have been toned down from that of the novel, but what remains still bites hard, as does, in truth, the whole film. 9/10

A sublime performance by Richard Attenborough as Pinkie Brown is the cherry on the cake in this fantastic adaptation of Graham Green's novel. Attenborough's chilling performance is in my opinion his best ever. Hermione Baddeley plays Ida Arnold exceptionally but sadly does not receive the recognition she deserves as she is out shone by Attenborough. The film is a disturbing insight into the Brighton's gangs that nobody wants to talk about. The film has that subtle edge that only black and white movies can and there is a classic twist at the end. This is a must for anybody who loves black and white movies and will have you on the edge of your seat. If you haven't seen this movie then make a point to do so you won't be disappointed.

During the inter-war years the Sussex resort of Brighton became notorious for the activities of criminal gangs, and this side of Brighton life was dramatised in Graham Greene's 1938 novel, Brighton Rock. (The title refers to a type of confectionery traditionally sold in British seaside resorts). The book was made into a film in 1947 by which time, according to the introductory captions, gangsterism had entirely ceased and the town was once again a tranquil, law-abiding community. In actual fact this was far from true- wartime black marketeering had, if anything, given a boost to criminal activity, both in Brighton and elsewhere- but this disclaimer, however fictitious, was necessary of the film-makers were to secure the support of the town's Corporation for location filming.

The main character is Pinkie Brown, the youthful leader of a gang of thugs whose principal activity is protection racketeering. Early in the film, Pinkie murders Fred Hale, a journalist who has been investigating his gang's activities, by pushing him off the town's Palace Pier. Although the police regard the death as an accident, Pinkie tries to cover his tracks by creating a false alibi for himself, which leads to the commission of further crimes and to Pinkie's marriage to Rose, a young waitress who he believes might be in possession of evidence which could send him to the gallows. Pinkie is not in love with Rose, but marries her because at the time the film was made there was a rule of English law that a wife could not give evidence against her husband.

Greene himself wrote the screenplay for the film adaptation, together with Terence Rattigan, but he changed the ending, which is perhaps not the most successful part of the original novel. He kept the novel's concern with Roman Catholicism, but changed its emphasis. In the book Pinkie is a convinced Catholic believer who somehow manages to reconcile his religious faith with his criminal lifestyle. In the film he never mentions religion until he catches sight of a rosary in Rose's handbag, the implication being that he is only pretending to be a fellow-Catholic in order to impress her. The film places a much greater emphasis on Rose's spiritual development, including a final twist which is not in the novel but which nevertheless makes for a more satisfying ending.

The film is not flawless, and there are a couple of plot-holes. Would a national newspaper really have used one of their leading investigative reporters as their seaside "mystery man", even sending him to a town where his journalism had made him enemies? Would an innocent young girl like Rose really have fallen for someone as charmless as Pinkie, who makes little attempt to hide his contempt for her? (A girl with the looks of Carol Marsh would hardly lack for male admirers). And yet this is one of the greatest British crime films of the period, perhaps of all time.

Although "Brighton Rock" was made in black-and-white, it was not, unlike some British crime films from the period, made in direct imitation of the dark, moody American film noir style. There is a clear distinction between the public and private realms. Those scenes set outdoors, or in public places, are light and cheerful, reflecting the atmosphere of a warm summer's day by the seaside. (The film is set in early June, perhaps at Whitsun which was still an official Bank Holiday in the thirties). By contrast, Pinkie and his gang live in a drab, seedy lodging house of the type familiar from many British "kitchen sink" dramas. Crime has clearly not paid for the gang; it is notable that one of the victims of their protection rackets lives in more style than they do.

The acting in the film is of a uniformly high standard. There are good contributions from the likes of Carol Marsh and Harcourt Williams as the corrupt lawyer Prewitt, but the two which really stand out are from Hermione Baddeley as Ida Arnold and Richard Attenborough as Pinkie. Ida, the one person who believes that Fred's death was suspicious, is at first sight not a particularly attractive character. She is an ageing showgirl, loud, coarse and brassy. She does, however, have a strong sense of right and wrong, and is determined to secure justice for Fred, who was neither her lover nor a close friend, merely a casual acquaintance. It is her investigations which eventually persuade the police to take action. ("Brighton Rock" takes an unusually critical view of the police, who are portrayed as too complacent; other British films of the period, notably "The Blue Lamp", show them in a much more idealised light).

Attenborough's Pinkie is one of the greatest representations of pure evil in the history of the cinema. Young in years, but old in sin, his smooth, boyish face never betrays any emotion but hatred, resentment and self-pity. He has no feelings for anyone but himself, not for Rose, whom he despises, nor for his fellow gang members, one of whom he murders for alleged cowardice. Like Macbeth, he discovers that his first murder can never be the "be-all and the end-all", and is forced, in desperation, to commit further crimes as his attempts to cover his tracks misfire and his criminal empire starts to crumble.

This is a short film, but one packed with action, and director John Boulting paces it superbly to create both a sense of mounting tension and a sense of an inevitable nemesis hanging over its vicious anti-hero. The cinema rarely comes closer to pure tragedy than this. In my view this is perhaps the greatest ever British gangster film, greater even than "Get Carter", which is high praise indeed. 9/10

A two bit villain gets ideas above his station, more godson than godfather, an irritation, a vile and vicious type, although it's all gusto, teenage hype, his small mob predates the weak, provokes the fight. He's made some schoolboy errors he will regret, dug a hole and now he issues lots of threats, between a hard place and a rock, he needs to find a way to block, so he's not captured in the ever closing net. He takes advantage of the innocence of Rose, as she accepts the sham marriage that he's proposed, but Ida Arnold's on the case, she's got her sights on this scarred face, like a bloodhound on the scent, she will expose.