Get Carter (1971)

Get Carter is a British twist on a familiar film-noir plot* : a man seeks vengeance for  his brother’s murder. But it’s not only the British Midlands setting that’s different, instead of the usual "good guy" brother finding his dead brother was mixed up with crooks, we get the opposite. The film benefits from a  clever script and a slew of good performances, starting with Michael Caine** as the lead.  We also get plenty of sex and violence, although its more realistic*** and subdued than the typical American fare. 

Summary: A well done, brutal revenge story, it’s a soul-less exercise in style (it reminded me of Point Blank) with everyone who needs killing ending up dead.. I enjoyed it for the Newcastle locations and 1970s British Vibe. Rating - 3 stars

Notes
* As an in-joke we see Carter reading “Farewell, My lovely” on the train to Newcastle. Later, in the “bar” the singers belt out “I like New York in June, how about you?” while Caine orders “Scotch”.
** Its a testimony to Caine's charisma that he makes us root for such a vicious bastard. SPOILER For example, after a pub owner tells Carter he didn’t kill his brother but only helped the bad guys, Carter kills him anyway!. He also causes the death of 2 women, although it’s not clear that either of them deserved to die.

***  I should say “relatively” realistic. One wonders where the police are during the numerous chase scenes, punch-ups and shoot-outs.