Charts the headlong fall of Pinkie, a razor-wielding disadvantaged teenager with a religious death wish.
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CinemaSerf
7
By CinemaSerf
Richard Attenborough and William Hartnell are both at the top of their game with this edgy and gritty adaptation of Graham Greene's novel of small-time, seaside, thuggery. The former is "Pinkie", the leader of a group of glorified ruffians who finds himself being chased by the police and just about everyone else following his revenge killing of a journalist whom he thought topped one of his gang. Hartnell is formidable as his nemesis "'Dallow" and this also features a career-defining performance from Hermione Baddeley ("Ida") who has also determined to get to the truth about the murder. John Boulting uses tight photography, the Brighton scenario, the darkness of alleys, the pier, the sea and the skill of Attenborough in portraying this cowardly bully of a man to good effect and creates one of the best British crime dramas that, though set before it, still exudes some of the ghastliness of WWII and of those odious little men who tried to capitalise on the misfortune of others. A solid supporting cast and some well focussed dialogue building on the original story make for quite a compelling cinema experience and it's aged well.
