The Gentle Gunman 1952
The Gentle Gunman
The relationship between brothers Terry and Matt, both active in the IRA, comes under strain when Terry begins to question the use of violence.
The relationship between brothers Terry and Matt, both active in the IRA, comes under strain when Terry begins to question the use of violence.
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All 0 Videos & 5 Photoscast
Full Cast & Crew... Terence Sullivan
... Matt Sullivan
... Shinto
... Maureen Fagan
... Molly Fagan
... Flynn
User reviews
See All 1 Reviews23 Jun 2021 by John Chard
Ealing take on the Irish Troubles. Directed by Basil Dearden and adapted to screenplay from his own play by Roger MacDougal, The Gentle Gunman finds John Mills and Dirk Bogarde as brothers in the IRA circa 1941. Matt (Bogarde) is the young and hungry in the name of the cause brother, Terence (Mills) has grown tired of the violence and questions the IRA’s methods. This puts a strain on their relationship, whilst it also puts Terence on a collision course with the IRA superiors who brand him as a traitor. The Irish Troubles has never been an easy subject to broach in movies, the political stand point of the film makers invariably leaning towards bias. Whilst critics and reviewers have to battle with their own convictions when trying to stay firmly on the fence. The Gentle Gunman is an attempt at being an anti violence movie, one with a “gentle” pro British slant from that most British of film studios, Ealing. Unfortunately it’s tonally all over the place, awash with a mixed bunch of characters that range from apparent comic relief, to rabid Irish terrorists and a town crier like British bigot. Things are further put into the realm of the unbelievable by Mills and Bogarde trying to hold down Irish accents, a shame because without the fluctuation of the vocal chords the performances are rather good. It’s also a bit too stagey and the pace often drags itself into a stupor, making the adequate action scenes act more as a merciful release than anything truly exciting. On the plus side the film looks amazing at times, with Gordon Dines (The Blue Lamp) on cinematography dealing firmly in film noir filters. Which goes some way to explain how the film has come to be in a couple of reference books about British noir. But really it’s a marginal entry and all told it's just a routine drama from a Studio who were much better in other genre spheres. 6/10
Directors:
Release Date:
Oct 23, 1952 (United Kingdom)
Run Time:
1hr 26`
MMPA Rating:
Original Language:
English
Production Countries:
United Kingdom
Status:
Released
Plot Keywords:

Related Movies To
The Gentle Gunman
Ealing take on the Irish Troubles. Directed by Basil Dearden and adapted to screenplay from his own play by Roger MacDougal, The Gentle Gunman finds John Mills and Dirk Bogarde as brothers in the IRA circa 1941. Matt (Bogarde) is the young and hungry in the name of the cause brother, Terence (Mills) has grown tired of the violence and questions the IRA’s methods. This puts a strain on their relationship, whilst it also puts Terence on a collision course with the IRA superiors who brand him as a traitor. The Irish Troubles has never been an easy subject to broach in movies, the political stand point of the film makers invariably leaning towards bias. Whilst critics and reviewers have to battle with their own convictions when trying to stay firmly on the fence. The Gentle Gunman is an attempt at being an anti violence movie, one with a “gentle” pro British slant from that most British of film studios, Ealing. Unfortunately it’s tonally all over the place, awash with a mixed bunch of characters that range from apparent comic relief, to rabid Irish terrorists and a town crier like British bigot. Things are further put into the realm of the unbelievable by Mills and Bogarde trying to hold down Irish accents, a shame because without the fluctuation of the vocal chords the performances are rather good. It’s also a bit too stagey and the pace often drags itself into a stupor, making the adequate action scenes act more as a merciful release than anything truly exciting. On the plus side the film looks amazing at times, with Gordon Dines (The Blue Lamp) on cinematography dealing firmly in film noir filters. Which goes some way to explain how the film has come to be in a couple of reference books about British noir. But really it’s a marginal entry and all told it's just a routine drama from a Studio who were much better in other genre spheres. 6/10
Cast & Crew of
The Gentle Gunman
Directors & Credit Writers
... Director
Cast
... Terence Sullivan
... Matt Sullivan
... Shinto
... Maureen Fagan
... Molly Fagan
... Flynn
... Dr Brannigan
... Henry Truethome
... Johnny Fagan
... Connolly
... Patsy McGuire
... Murphy
... Police Constable at Tube Station (uncredited)
... Brennan (uncredited)
... Sentry (uncredited)
... Sentry (uncredited)
... Ship's Officer (uncredited)
HB
Harry Brogan... Barney (uncredited)
... Bill - Detective (uncredited)
DY
Doris Yorke... English Landlady (uncredited)
Produced By
... Producer
... Producer