The Gentle Gunman

This small gem of a thriller is set in the ambiguous battleground of Northern Ireland during World War Two, where a hotheaded young Irish patriot (i.e. terrorist) learns his older and wiser brother (a disenchanted ex-IRA soldier) has been suspected by his old comrades of duplicity. It may not be a classic, but the film offers plenty of action, some unobtrusive melodrama, and a script that never strays too far from the larger issues. The optimistic ending may ring false, but it at least provides a memorable punch line, when an Englishman and his Irish companion are shown celebrating their differences with a toast. Says the Britisher: "To England, where the situation is serious but never hopeless", to which the Irishman replies: "To Ireland, where the situation is hopeless but never serious."