Review of Brighton Rock (1948) by Jonathan B — 19 Jul 2014

A classic British film of the post-War era starring a young Richard Attenborough as the scheming and heartless "Pinky" Brown, a small time gang leader involved in the seedy underworld of Brighton.

Taken from a novel by Graham Greene, the plot focuses on the way in which Pinky ruthlessly manipulates an innocent, unsophisticated young waitress into marriage in order to stop her from revealing his involvement in a murder.

As the situation spirals out of Pinky's control, he becomes increasingly desperate to cover up his crimes which leads to disastrous consequences. Filmed in a "noir" style, the movie manages to hold the attention and suspense despite the inevitable dated feel to some of the characterisation and dialogue.

This is due in no small part to the fantastic direction of John Boulting as well as the considerable talents of the cast. Joining Attenborough is William Hartnell, Nigel Stock and the marvellous Hermione Baddeley who takes on an almost Agatha Christie style role as an entertainer who is determined to see justice done.

This splendid movie has rightly been praised for many years and is still a fantastic piece of cinematic art. Attenborough is full of menace and utterly convincing, proving that he is an extraordinarily versatile actor capable of much more than the cuddly grandfather figures that he has gone on to play many times since.