Great style that has the same nostalgic feel as the films of french poetic realism, Jean Gabin and all that. But apart from that it's a quite dull and simple film. It reminds you of classic tragedies, greek style, but it never surprises you. The leading character is quite good (reminds me of Robert de Niro at times), but the acting is hard to commit to, exagerated and coordinated. Having said all that, Ford really knows how to work his crew which creates a thoroughly mesmerizing atmosphere.

A simple story, told in a straight-forward - but always very competent - way. Whether or not you appreciate McLaglen's (Oscar-winning) acting-style, it's pretty damn good for a '30s-movie.

Cinematography is great but the rest is a mixed bag, relying on sympathies that a modern viewer, or at least I personally, won't have. Also Margot Grahame's Irish accent is terrible. Even so it was an decent story and had some good dramatic moments. I continue to wish Ford had done an actual noir.

Weird acting, some kind of an exaggerated stage style. Lots of kitsch moments, looking by today's standards, but I was entertained during the whole movie, anyway.

#800

An awful lot of hokey, theatrical silent-film touches. I mean, how many times can I watch McLaglen throw down his hat or slam his fist on a table? Picked up a bit in the second half; but still, ultimately sunk by its own melodrama. The only really good part was McLaglen drunk and happy at the brothel (or whatever that place was).

696

Ford's direction and August's photography are the real stars here. The style borrows significantly from German expressionism, with the play between light and shadow. McLaglen stumbles through the film in the foggy streets of Dublin, highlighting the moral fog in which he finds himself. Nicely done all around.

McLaglen chews the scenery mercilessly but this is a good film anyway

Soused Judas stumbles through a moral fog.

# 616

An obvious film (what else do you expect from a Dudley Nichols screenplay?) but still a good one, with a terrific performance from McLaglen and excellent character support by Donald Meek, Una O'Connor and J.M. Kerrigan. Preston Foster is wooden, and Ford lays on the Irish atmosphere much too thick, but this is definitely worth a look. Nice moody photography.

Apart from the chiaroscuro-drenched cinematography, there's not too much that's very admirable here. The film's dark nature is periodically muddled by hokey elements, from the laughable acting (McLaglen won an Oscar for being obnoxiously drunk throughout the entire film) to the blunt themes and symbolism.

A brilliant, deeply moving film directed superbly.

"Subtle" usually isn't in Ford's vocabulary, but this film has a slightly more complex morality than his usual work. But Ford makes a fatal mistake: he assumes your sympathies lie with the Sinn Fein. I didn't care what any of these idiots did to each other. And McLagen's performance is so over-the-top that I never developed any sympathy for him either, whether I was meant to or not. However, the black & white photography is very impressive. And there are some tense scenes, especially the trial.

765