ODD MAN OUT    1947 Directed by Carol Reed. 116 minutes. In English

Johnny McQueen (James Mason) is a leader of a radical Irish organization modeled after the IRA. He has escaped jail and is holed up in a house for six months planning a robbery in order to fund the group's clandestine activities. During the heist things go wrong and Johnny is shot... wounded he runs out into the snowy backstreets and alleyways of Belfast. The police then organize a manhunt throughout the city to find him, and what follows is Johnny's attempts to stay alive in the backstreets of the city, and a desperate struggle by Johnny's friends to get him to safety. Johnny faces betrayal on all sides when the British police put a price on his head.

A strange cinematic concoction of film-noir, heist movie, political thriller and melodrama, this film is considered the first masterpiece by Carol Reed (who would later make The Third Man) and is considered to be one of the gems of British cinema. The stunning black and white camerawork has so much damn atmosphere as it follows the staggering Johnny through the phantom streets of the city... and James Mason as the wounded Johnny gives the best performance of his career.

As one critic says: "Although the IRA and Belfast are never mentioned by name, this film was a daring and morally complex examination of Northern Ireland's "troubles," and its compelling tragedy hasn't lost any of its impact. A study of conscience in crisis and the bitter aftermath of terrorism, this was one of the first films to address IRA activities on intimately human terms. Political potency is there for those who seek it, but the film is equally invigorating as a riveting story of a tragic figure on the run from the law. It was this brilliant, unforgettable film that established the directorial prowess of Carol Reed."

We will have a stunning high-definition screening of this film classic.