GET CARTER (1971) Dir. Mike Hodges

A second helping Richard Long's words for y'all, This time he brings us a short but personal look at Mike Hodges' classic gritty brit gangster masterpiece, Get Carter. Check out Richards review after the jump!!!


Written By Richard Long

Get Carter is a 1971 film directed by Mike Hodges (the first film he directed). It stars Michael Caine, Ian Hendry, Britt Ekland, John Osborne and Bryan Mosley.

The film is set in North East England and was filmed in and around Gateshead and Newcastle. Being a native of the North East, most of us know or have at least heard of Get Carter and for me, I know the locations of the film as I grew up in them or close by. The car park tower was a central location where I lived. Some places had grand architecture, others had landscapes, but we had the Get Carter car park, until recently of course when it was torn down.

Get Carter is about a Londoner, Jack Carter, played by Caine, who comes back to his home town to learn more about the events surrounding his brothers accidental death. Suspecting foul play, he brutally investigates those linked to his sibling.

The film is gritty and realistic without comic relief, it opted for brutal on screen violence that hadn’t been seen in British movies. It’s an unforgiving film. It’s realistic and that’s what makes it so powerful.

Hundreds of extras were used in the film, from on the streets to bars and club scenes. Apparently bystanders were used as opposed to real extras to give the film a more realistic feel. I feel quite proud that my mum is an extra in the film.

Get Carter wasn’t well received by critic’s initially but flourished in the UK making a decent profit and has remained a cult favourite despite not having a home video release until 1993. The poster for film has become iconic and I think it’s one of Michael Caine’s best movies.

I like Michael Caine, he’s a wonderful actor whose made many films and in this he’s neither the good guy or bad. In fact you are not even sure if you should like him, but you can’t help be drawn to his character.

Many directors have praised the film and Stallone even starred in a remake which wasn’t as good or as well received.

Get Carter for me is a gritty realistic film of vengeance. Its strengths are that it doesn’t pander to its audience and because of that everything is darker and at the same time more consuming to watch.