Brighton Rock (1947)

[Mr. Arkadin]

Brighton Rock (1947) debuts today (Tuesday) in prime time. Possibly the best British noir of the classic era with interesting spiritual ties, which would influence French director Robert Bresson (check out the closing tracking shot) and American crime films like Mean Streets (1973). If you like 'em dark, don't miss this one!

P.S. Greene fans will also enjoy The Fallen Idol (1948) also premiering directly after BR.

[Dewey1960]

BRIGHTON ROCK is a film I've wanted to see for years,
always managing to miss each and every opportunity to do so.
Its screening tonight, for me, is the film highlight of the month.
Greene's novel is among my favorites. The clip offered up on
YouTube is incredible.
[youtube][/youtube]

[klondike]

Count me in, fellas!
I checked out Brighton Rock over @ Connie & Chet's just last night (thank you, Dewey), and as it's running on a workin' man's schedule, I'll be tuning in tonight!
In the words of the hallowed Johnny Witherspoon (no relation to Reese): "Yaaaaaa-Boy !!"

[ChiO]

...would influence French director Robert Bresson....

If you like 'em dark....

Gorgeous clip.

I'm there! Thank you fellas for the tip.

[klondike]

Saw it.
Liked it.
Will be thinking about it for a little while, I do believe!
And what a relief to finally remember where I knew Pinkie's fair-haired companion thug from!
And how ironic that poor old Spicer was trying to escape to Nottingham!
Any other baby boomer recognize him???

[jdb1]

Somebody help me -- I was doing other things while trying to watch the beginning of the film, and I missed the exposition.

What was that about the "Kolley Kibber" card? What was that supposed to be, and why did Pinky want it, and why did Rose get money for it?

Didn't get to see the end, either. I didn't find the film all that noirish, frankly, at least not in the American sense. Despite the viciousness of the young and nubile Sir Richard and his cohorts, I found the film a bit too staid.

Loved Baddeley, though. I think I told you that when she was living in NYC she was a customer at my father's deli/grocery, and when she came in, he would always say "Oh, here's HER-mee-ow-nee!" which tickled her.

[Mr. Arkadin]

Somebody help me -- I was doing other things while trying to watch the beginning of the film, and I missed the exposition.

What was that about the "Kolley Kibber" card? What was that supposed to be, and why did Pinky want it, and why did Rose get money for it?

Frank (a newspaper reporter) is distributing the cards around Brighton as publicity for his paper. Whoever finds them can claim a cash reward. When he is killed by Pinkie, the gang uses the cards to provide an alibi, so that the time of death cannot be linked to them. Pinkie tries to recover the card left in the the tearoom because he is afraid whoever finds the card (Rose) will realize that the person who left it (Spicer) looks nothing like Frank.

There is quite a bit of dialogue in this film and people talk very quickly, so it's easy to miss things if you turn away for a moment.

[jdb1]

Thanks, Mr. A.

I did, in fact, find it hard to follow some of the dialog, and I thought that after 20 years of watching the British serial drama "EastEnders" I could make out any working class English accent.

I can't stop thinking about Attenborough Then, and Attenborough Now. My, my.

[ChiO]

I thought that after 20 years of watching the British serial drama "EastEnders" I could make out any working class English accent.

Then it wasn't just me. I've spent years teasing Mrs. ChiO about her inability to understand what Monty Python members were saying -- but never again.

[Mr. Arkadin]

There are some British films that have incredibly thick accents and fast clipped speech that are almost more difficult to understand than just watching a foreign language film where I don't know the language at all! Mike Leigh's Naked (1993) was a very similar experience for me on first viewing. I finally just clicked on the subtitles! While I understand how you feel, I'd urge you to give the film another chance sometime. My wife saw it for the second time the other night and was able to understand it much better.

As for the no noir look, I have no idea how long you hung with the film, but it begins in the bright sunlight of the coastal town and grows progressively darker. The climax is almost pitch black and the end slowly brings us back to the light where we started. A good part of the movie deals with the bond between Rose and Pinkie which is twofold in the murder of an innocent man (mortal sin) and their shared belief in Catholicism (redemption).

[Dewey1960]

I taped it and plan on watching it over the weekend. I managed to peek in a little bit and was mightily impressed by the visual texture of the film and the startling nature of the imagery. Can't wait to sit and absorb it all in one sitting!

[jdb1]

I did like the look of the film - the photography was quite nice, and the contrast between the bright sunshine of Brighton Pier and the dark and shadows of the night, and in interior shots, was striking. However, the film did not, for me, have quite the same atmosphere that we have come to expect from American noirs; Brighton Rock was a not-quite-noir, in my estimation. That doesn't mean it isn't worth seeing, and I'd certainly like to see it again, since I didn't see the entire film last night.

I wonder if the time element has something to do with our trouble in understanding the actors. No doubt speech was somewhat different at that time than it is now in England, just as so many old American films sound dated to us nowadays because of the way the actors spoke in them.