Example Of Critical Thinking On Leader Dying In The Snow

“Odd Man Out” is a black and white British movie shot by Carol Reed in 1947. Based on the novel of the same name by F. L. Green, the film reflects upon human beings wishing peace and calm in the conditions of a political unrest in the country. Though “Odd Man Out” depicts the real historical period, the concept of the movie is fully psychological; its primary target is to find way into the souls of simple people with their weakness, fear and desire to stay away from trouble. The director’s aim is pronounced right at the beginning of the movie.
Film noir by genre, “Odd Man Out” takes place in some city in Northern Ireland where a small group of rebels maintain a not very successful operation. Though they managed to get the money in the name of the organization, they lost their wounded leader Johnnie. The whole movie is about his wandering and hiding from police meeting random people who either did not want to get their fingers burned or wanted to get profit from him. What really impressed me was the director’s talent to show typical people’s reactions in the face of danger.
Though the film is commonly believed not to be the best film of Carol Reed, many cinema lovers as well as famous directors (for example, Roman Polanski) consider “Odd Man Out” a masterpiece superior to “The Third Man”. My opinion is that the film is amazing and worth detailed analysis thanks to the hard work of the production team.
Most of the film was shot on location in Belfast and London; some scenes were made in the studio. I have noticed that “Odd Man Out” corresponds to the best traditions of the film noir – it almost always rains or snows; there is a romantic storyline; and finally, the characters are chased and running throughout the movie. But the film’s unexpected ending makes Carol Reed’s work stand aside from the big mass of films of this genre. It is fair to say that it is one of the gloomiest and joyless films noir I have ever seen.
The camerawork by Robert Krasker amazed me with obscure landscapes of the city streets, their burdensome detachment. Krasker paid a particular attention to lights and shadows – even special lighting equipment was produced for shooting the movie. As a result, the atmosphere hints at despair and hopelessness. Even faith and love will not save the main character.
The dying man played by James Mason causes a strange reaction of people. His name is famous, and they are either terrified or get greedy in expectation of a big reward for him. One man becomes the reason of many events involving different people – some of them die, some go to prison, some spend a lot of time and run risks to find him. And again, I am not talking of Johnnie in the context of the Irish liberation struggle – the film is about people’s relationships and attitude to each other in the difficult political circumstances.
The romantic part of the story reveals in the passionate feelings of a girl to a man faithful to the organization. It is mentioned in the movie that he belongs to the organization till he is alive so there can be no hope for the couple to be happy together. She finally kills the love of her life – out of pity or egoism. She is tired and disturbed, and does not see any sense in the life without Johnnie. The romantic storyline, though secondary, is very touching and emotional.
“Odd Man Out” does not lack humor, and some dialogues are worth quoting. One of my favorite is the one of the policeman and the cab driver about who he was driving. He said in jest it was Johnnie, and the policeman let him go without even checking. The irony is that Johnnie was really in the cab though the driver did not know it. Another funny episode is granny’s hiding the revolver which looks absolutely ironic because no one would ever suspect an old woman of keeping the weapon.
As for the technical part of the movie, I found it curious that in spite of the age of the film, it has several special effects not very common for the era. Faces in the beer bubbles and moving paintings testify of a talented team capable of creating such qualitative image. The fabulous soundtrack was composed by William Alwyn. The costumes in the movie leave a particular impression because they reflect all the poverty of simple people – children in the torn jackets begging for a penny cause a sensation of pity and full understanding of the hardships in the 40’s.
It is also important to mention that the film was nominated for a Best Film Editing Oscar  and Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival. The work of the talented team was rewarded with the BAFTA Award for Best British Film. The film is literally flawless in the meaning of storytelling, acting and cinematography and is definitely an achievement for both British cinema and world cinema in general.  
“Odd Man Out” is definitely one of the best films I have recently seen, and of course, I would recommend everyone to watch it. It keeps on the edge of the seat and leaves an inimitable impression; it broadens the horizons of the cinema lover because films like this are the basis from which the future masterpieces would start. The motion picture is profound and energetically powerful. It makes reflect upon the values and priorities of the human beings.
I think that it is appropriate to say that films like “Odd Man Out” educate the audience from the point of view of both historical and ethical issues. To me, the film reveals the political situation in Northern Ireland in the described period as well as people in this context.

Works Cited

ROGERS, STEVE. “Soldier in the Snow: A Look at the Making of Odd Man Out, its Key Players and Critical Recognition”. Network (2006).