Odd Man Out Review- By Michael J. Carlisle

 Title: Odd Man Out
Year: 1947
Director: Carol Reed
Country: UK
Language: English

Born December 30, 1906 Sir Carol Reed was an English film director who made one of the greatest UK films of all time; The Third Man starring Joseph Cotton and Orson Welles. In 1953, he became only the second British film director to be knighted for his craft, the first being Alexander Korda; the producer of some of Reed's most admired films. In 1968 he won an Academy Award for Best Picture with his admittedly dated musical Oliver! Decades before that event however, he directed James Mason in the actor's self proclaimed greatest performance in Odd Man Out

A wounded Irish nationalist leader named Johnny (James Mason) attempts to evade police following a failed robbery. Action and fleeting takes place in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Odd Man Out was the first British film to win the BAFTA award for "Best British Film" after the event was established in 1948. It is commonly claimed to be a masterpiece and earns this title by capturing a deceptive, tilting world in which man is a stranger even in his hometown. Working with the Australian-born, German-trained cinematographer Robert Krasker, Reed's picture visuals perfectly describe the pessimistic post-war attitude of Western Europe. Undeniably noir, Reed’s urban nightscapes does dare to show some compassion and humanity in the form of some remarkable individuals, but nonetheless his atmosphere is full of dread, doubt and doom.

Helpless, gradually immobilized, the dying Johnny takes on a fantastic, morbid glamour. He’s both pitied and coveted; a prized object and a cursed thing that no one wants. Odd Man contains both the realism of David Lean's Brief Encounter and the visionary excess of a Powell and Pressburger picture. The film begins with a more neo-realist tone but becomes increasingly stylized as it progresses. This transition doesn't harm the plot too much, but the nearly 2hr run time eventually feels excessive and tedious. Reed's picture is compelling, Mason's character is complex and well developed, and the score is remarkable but I still feel a half hour or so should have been cut.

While ultimately powerful, I felt that the ending could have been greater if it borrowed from John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. It is unfortunate however,  that the violent ending had to be toned down after receiving negative criticism from test audiences. I would agree with Mason that this is his best performance of his career, I'm quite surprised by the English actor's range. Reed has certainly made a memorable film for the ages. Praise it! 4.5/5