The demise of the Production Code gave first-time director Mike Hodges the freedom to make this British gangster movie in a more realistic style than would ever have been possible before and the result was a gritty and uncompromising end-product that proved to be both groundbreaking and highly influential. Based on Ted Lewis' novel "Jack Returns Home", it's the tale of one man's quest for revenge and features some great location work, considerable amounts of brutality and a cast of pretty unsavoury characters. The mood of the piece is grim throughout and the action includes a number of well-staged sequences that, for various reasons, prove to be very memorable.
Jack Carter (Michael Caine), who works as an enforcer for London gangsters, the Fletcher brothers, travels to Newcastle-upon-Tyne to attend the funeral of his brother who had reportedly been killed in a car accident whilst drunk. After failing to gather any more information from Frank's daughter Doreen (Petra Markham) or his mistress, Margaret (Dorothy White), Jack goes to the local racecourse where he meets one of his old contacts, a chauffeur called Eric Paice (Ian Hendry) who proves to be very unhelpful. However, after discovering that Eric works for local crime boss Cyril Kinnear (John Osbourne), Jack goes to visit the ultra-smooth villain at his mansion where he encounters a porn star called Glenda (Geraldine Moffatt) and the same kind of reticence about Frank's death that he'd come up against elsewhere.
At the "bed and breakfast" lodgings where Jack is staying, he gets visited by some heavies who tell him to leave Newcastle and after an altercation, is told that they were hired by local businessman Cliff Brumby (Bryan Mosely). This proves to be false information and a little while later, a couple of thugs working for the Fletcher brothers call by with the intention of taking Jack back to London. The two men decide to leave promptly, however, when Jack threatens them with a shotgun but turn up again at a different location when Jack's in the middle of a conversation with the uncooperative Margaret. On this occasion, Jack makes a rapid escape and the chase that follows ends well for him when Glenda picks him up in her sports car and drives him at great speed to meet Brumby on the top floor of a multi-storey car park.
The information that Brumby discloses at this point enables Jack to start unravelling the mystery of what had happened to Frank an provides the catalyst for the series of killings that follow.
"Get Carter" contains a number of memorable scenes such as the one in which Brumby is thrown off the top of a multi-storey car park, the sequences during which Jack and his landlady are interrupted in flagrante delicto and the powerful finale. Overall, there's an unremitting bleakness that permeates all the action and is well complemented by some of the grim-looking outside locations and the action that takes place in the drab bingo hall, a smoke-filled pub and the grubby betting shop.
Jack Carter returned to his hometown to avenge the death of his brother despite the fact that he never liked Frank and knew that the Fletchers and the Newcastle mob both disapproved of his actions because of the threat he posed to the smooth running of their businesses. Michael Caine, in a very controlled performance, shows convincingly how driven, callous and ruthless Jack is and also how abusive he is in his relationships with a series of women. The quality of the supporting cast is also very impressive with very solid contributions from everyone involved.
Jack Carter (Michael Caine), who works as an enforcer for London gangsters, the Fletcher brothers, travels to Newcastle-upon-Tyne to attend the funeral of his brother who had reportedly been killed in a car accident whilst drunk. After failing to gather any more information from Frank's daughter Doreen (Petra Markham) or his mistress, Margaret (Dorothy White), Jack goes to the local racecourse where he meets one of his old contacts, a chauffeur called Eric Paice (Ian Hendry) who proves to be very unhelpful. However, after discovering that Eric works for local crime boss Cyril Kinnear (John Osbourne), Jack goes to visit the ultra-smooth villain at his mansion where he encounters a porn star called Glenda (Geraldine Moffatt) and the same kind of reticence about Frank's death that he'd come up against elsewhere.
At the "bed and breakfast" lodgings where Jack is staying, he gets visited by some heavies who tell him to leave Newcastle and after an altercation, is told that they were hired by local businessman Cliff Brumby (Bryan Mosely). This proves to be false information and a little while later, a couple of thugs working for the Fletcher brothers call by with the intention of taking Jack back to London. The two men decide to leave promptly, however, when Jack threatens them with a shotgun but turn up again at a different location when Jack's in the middle of a conversation with the uncooperative Margaret. On this occasion, Jack makes a rapid escape and the chase that follows ends well for him when Glenda picks him up in her sports car and drives him at great speed to meet Brumby on the top floor of a multi-storey car park.
The information that Brumby discloses at this point enables Jack to start unravelling the mystery of what had happened to Frank an provides the catalyst for the series of killings that follow.
"Get Carter" contains a number of memorable scenes such as the one in which Brumby is thrown off the top of a multi-storey car park, the sequences during which Jack and his landlady are interrupted in flagrante delicto and the powerful finale. Overall, there's an unremitting bleakness that permeates all the action and is well complemented by some of the grim-looking outside locations and the action that takes place in the drab bingo hall, a smoke-filled pub and the grubby betting shop.
Jack Carter returned to his hometown to avenge the death of his brother despite the fact that he never liked Frank and knew that the Fletchers and the Newcastle mob both disapproved of his actions because of the threat he posed to the smooth running of their businesses. Michael Caine, in a very controlled performance, shows convincingly how driven, callous and ruthless Jack is and also how abusive he is in his relationships with a series of women. The quality of the supporting cast is also very impressive with very solid contributions from everyone involved.