Plot: What’s it about?
Jack Carter (Michael Caine) is in town to attend his brother’s funeral, but he might stick around to settle some affairs. You see, Carter thinks his brother’s death was no accident and he is bound & determined to uncover the truth. In order to find out information and such, he will have to speak with some rather unsavory characters and venture into some dangerous places, but Carter isn’t one to scare that easily. He is a tough guy to be sure and no stranger to roughing people up, so he is prepared for this trek. When he begins to nose around about the issue, he finds himself on the bad side of a lot of people real fast. But if they think they can scare him off, they’ve got another thing coming in a serious way. Soon Carter gets in deep and discovers some information, which leads him to a pornography ring headed up by Cyril Kennear (John Osborne). No matter what it takes, Carter is focused on finding out who was behind his brother’s death, but in a ruthless & violence hunt like this, will even he find peace when it is over?
This is the original version of Get Carter, so if you need the Sly Stallone edition, you’ve come to the wrong place. This is a very much a dark edged film and as such, those who seek lighter fare need to look somewhere else in this case. If I had to sum this film up in one word, it would be realistic. The locations are excellent and serve the purpose to perfection, which is vital for a serious movie like this one. The storyline asks for seedy, run down places and that’s exactly what we have here. The locations work to give credibility to the storyline and characters and without that, this one would have tanked right off the bat. But it has the visual locations it needs, as well as a stunning cast that seems to capture their roles well, right down to subtle quirks and such. This film uses sex and violence in a non flinching style, so make sure those elements don’t bother you if you pick this disc up. Michael Caine’s character is especially prone toward beating people up, but I think it works well and is vital to this movie in the end. This film might not be for us all, but fans of darker dramas will want to check this out for sure.
In a career filled with terrific performances, Michael Caine has more than proved his skills in front of the camera. He owns two Academy Awards and is more than deserving of them, perhaps even a couple more as well. Caine has played a wide range of roles during his career, from suave lovers to crooked conmen, but his work here as the no nonsense tough guy is my favorite of his resume. I wouldn’t have expected him to be this good here, but he pulls out all the stops and seems in peak form at all times. Caine is able to bring the inner burdens of his character to the surface, without sacrificing the rock solid exterior and that is impressive. Plus, in this film he gets to beat up a ton of people and there’s something to be said for that.
Video: How does it look?
If I’ve ever seen this film, it’s been so long that I have literally no recollection of it. I mention that for a couple of reasons…first this is a rather odd choice fro Warner Archive to bring to the 4K format. No doubt the film has its supporters, but given the depth of Warner’s catalog – well…secondly, films from the early 70’s have a different look and feel to them. They don’t have the razor sharp detail, amazing color palette and HDR that today’s modern pictures do. That said, the 1.85:1 HEVC 4K image is the best the film has ever looked, with grain virtually eliminated we find a nice, yet somewhat bland, image that’s certainly benefitted from the 4K restoration. Colors are a bit muted but it’s no fault of the transfer – it’s just the way the film was shot. Fans will rejoice as this is the definitive version we’ve been waiting for.
Audio: How does it sound?
The DTS HD Master Audio 2.0 mix gets some time to shine and this one is above average and I found no serious issues to contend with. The music isn’t as expansive as I would like, but still comes off well and shows no distortion or other age related problems. The same holds true for the sound effects as they come across in fine form, but lack the extra punch a surround track would afford. No complaints with the dialogue though, the vocals are clean and display no volume errors in the least.
Supplements: What are the extras?
This 4K edition ports over most of the features found on the 2022 Limited Release from the BFI.
- Audio Commentary – Heldover from the original DVD (most likely release in conjunction with the Sylvester Stallone version) we find Director Mike Hodges, cinematographer Wolfgang Suschitzky, and actor Michael Caine as they give us a rundown on the film, its lasting influence as well as details about the shoot and so forth. It’s a good track.
- Audio Commentary – Critics Kim Newman and Barry Forshaw, who created this track for the BFI version, can be heard here. It’s a different vibe than the above track, for sure. Still, true fans of the movie will want to give this one a listen.
- 2022 Introduction by Michael Caine – Pretty much that. A nearly 90 year-old Michael Caine gives us an introduction to the film.
- Mike Hodges in Conversation – This hour long feature gives us anything and everything we’d wanted to know about the esteemed director, from the elements that inspired the story down to the casting and so forth.
- The Sound of Roy Budd – Film music expert Jonny Trunk gives us the lowdown on composer Roy Budd.
- Don’t Trust Boys – Actress Petra Markham reminisces about her contribution to the film.
- Klinger on Klinger – Tony Klinger, the son of the film’s Producer Michael Klinger, give us his input on his father’s work and long lasting influence.
- Theatrical Trailers
The Bottom Line
If you’re a fan of the early 70’s gritty crime-fighting drams then you’re in luck. Movies like Dirty Harry, The French Connection and Bullitt are along the same lines as this one. Warner Archive has done a great job bringing this title to the 4K realm and the addition of the supplements found on the out-of-print BFI disc is certainly the icing on the cake.
