The Gentle Gunman 4K Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		0.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		3.5

The Gentle Gunman 4K Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov June 22, 2025

Basil Dearden's "The Gentle Gunman" (1952) arrives on 4K Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films. The supplemental features on the release include exclusive new introduction by James Dearden; archival program with Dirk Bogarde; recent program with critics Matthew Sweet and Phuong Le; vintage promotional materials; and more. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

The traitor

A quiet corner of Northern Ireland, 1941. Local IRA leader Shinto (Robert Beauty) and his men blame one of their own, Terrence Sullivan (John Mills), for several consequential blunders. Because Terrence has disappeared, they suspect he might have even switched sides. Terrence’s younger brother, Matt (Dirk Bogarde), an IRA soldier, is angry, too. However, he has trouble believing that he was trained by a traitor.

In the middle of a carefully planned operation in the London subway, the two brothers cross paths, and Terrence risks his life to prevent a massacre. Shortly after, Shinto’s two expert bomb makers are captured by the British, and an order is issued to take out the traitor. Now fully convinced that his brother has switched sides, Matt sides with Shinto and vows to help, but when the perfect opportunity eventually arrives, he hesitates to do what is expected of him. Meanwhile, Terrence risks his life again to free the captured bomb makers.

Basil Dearden directed The Gentle Gunman for the Ealing Studios in 1952, while working with a screenplay handed to him by Roger MacDougall, who adapted his play of the same name. MacDougall had completed the play a couple of years earlier.

Despite the impressive cast, it is quite easy to tell that Dearden was not given a big budget. Indeed, The Gentle Gunman is a very pragmatic film that takes full advantage of existing studio resources and tech talent to achieve period authenticity, and while it frequently looks pretty, it does not always look right. For example, there is an abundance of footage where the controlled lighting and camera movement infuse the drama with an artificiality that is extremely difficult to brush aside. On top of this, an ongoing struggle to get Irish accents right unquestionably hurts the desired period authenticity.

If one severely downplays its inability to establish a convincing period identity, The Gentle Gunman could produce some interesting food for thought, though it must be said that it is hardly unique. For example, the brothers have completely different takes on the definition of violence and its justification, which instantly alter their definitions of freedom fighter and terrorist as well. While the drama heats up, it is suggested that the cause they have been supporting is an easily manipulative license for lawlessness, too. The final act even places loyalty under the microscope, with some predictably logical questions about its purpose and definition. (While testing Matt’s loyalty, what Shinto and his men prepare to do is exactly what Stalin and his henchmen did a few years later when they initiated the “purge of traitors”).

But the pragmatism of The Gentle Gunman makes it impossible for the direct and indirect questioning to transform the conflict between the two brothers into something much bigger and more interesting. Dearden would have needed more time for that kind of multi-layered film, and undoubtedly a substantially bigger budget. As it is shot, The Gentle Gunman goes through a series of predictable situations and delivers equally predictable character arcs that fail to produce much excitement.

Dearden’s director of photography was Gordon Dines, whose credits include The Blue Lamp (1950), Pool of London (1951), The Cruel Sea (1953), The Square Ring (1953), The Maggie (1954), and The Colditz Story (1955).

The Gentle Gunman 4K Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Indicator/Powerhouse Films' 4K Blu-ray release of The Gentle Gunman does not have a Blu-ray copy of the film. If you need one, you should consider acquiring this Blu-ray release.

Please note that some of the screencaptures included with this article are taken from the 4K Blu-ray disc and downscaled to 1080p. Therefore, they do not accurately reflect the quality of the 4K content on the 4K Blu-ray disc.

This 4K Blu-ray release -- as well as the Blu-ray release linked above -- brings to America the excellent 4K restoration of The Gentle Gunman that StudioCanal introduced in the United Kingdom with this Blu-ray release in 2022. In native 4K, the 4K restoration can be viewed with Dolby Vision and HDR grades. I chose to view it with HDR.

If you have seen our review of the Region-B Blu-ray release, you already know that I like the 4K restoration a lot. It gives the entire film a magnificent, very healthy, organic appearance that makes it look brand new. On my system, even in 1080p, the visuals are often breathtaking. So, how does the 4K restoration look in native 4K? Great again. Delineation, clarity, sharpness, and depth are in 'reference level' territory. However, I must mention something that folks who have the Blu-ray and 4K Blu-ray and compare their presentations of the film on a very large screen will undoubtedly notice. In native 4K, some of the inherited density fluctuations are more pronounced. Also, the HDR grade darkens some parts of the native 4K presentation a tad too much for my taste. I like the same parts look in native 4K without it. I like how the grayscale looks in 1080p a lot. There are no encoding anomalies to report.

The Gentle Gunman 4K Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this release: English LPCM 1.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The Mono track is very healthy. However, as I noted in our review of the earlier Blu-ray release, in a few areas the sound becomes slightly compressed. I still think that this is an inherited limitation because there are no other signs pointing to a possible different explanation. (Despite the great cats, The Gentle Gunman was shot with a small budget). While revising the film, I did not encounter any other issues to report.

The Gentle Gunman 4K Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• James Dearden: Battle for the Soul - in this recent program, James Dearden introduces The Gentle Gunman and comments on some of its unique qualities, as well as the period in which the film emerged. In English, not subtitled. (8 min).

• A Closer Look at The Gentle Gunman - in this recent program, critics Matthew Sweet and Phuong Le discuss The Gentle Gunman. In English, not subtitled. (34 min).

• The Guardian Interview with Dirk Bogarde - in this archival audio interview, Dirk Bogarde discusses his life and career with critic Tony Bilbow, The interview was conducted at the National Film Theatre, London, in 1983. In English, not subtitled. (79 min).

• Image Gallery - presented here is a collection of original promotional materials for The Gentle Gunman.

• Dialogue Continuity Script - a copy is presented in text format.

• All Hands (1940) - a short film produced by Ealing Studios for the Careless Talk Costs Lives campaign, starring John Mills. In English (with small bits of German), with optional English SDH subtitles. Restored. (12 min).

• Dialogue Continuity Script - an exclusive booklet with new essay by Robert Murphy, archival production reports on the making of the film, extracts from the film's pressbook, an overview of contemporary critical responses, new writing by Jeff Billington on All Hands, and technical credits.

The Gentle Gunman 4K Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

If you instantly dismiss The Gentle Gunman because some of the Irish accents in it are not as authentic as they could have been, I think you would be making a big mistake. I admit in our review that this is an issue, but it is not the humongous issue it is made out to be. There are plenty of legendary classic films where German characters are played by English speakers, or American characters with American accents are played by European actors. The current trend of insisting that all older films that feature such 'anomalies' are deeply flawed, and future films should avoid them, is horrible. More importantly, it is very, very damaging. The Gentle Gunman could have been a much better film if it had been made with a bigger budget and greater vision. It could have used the conflict between the two brothers to produce many timeless truths about those who choose to kill in the name of a cause they believe is sacred, as well as those who are manipulated not to shame them because of it. I think it is worth seeing because it unites several terrific actors and produces some surprisingly good visuals, but it is not one of the great films about Northern Ireland's troubled past. Indicator/Powerhouse Films' 4K Blu-ray release brings to America StudioCanal's recent, excellent 4K restoration of The Gentle Gunman. A separate Blu-ray release streets on the same date as well. RECOMMENDED.