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Carol Reed

Carol Reed

Director and producer, also editor and writer · Died April 25, 1976, aged 69 · Putney, London, England, UK

Sir Carol Reed (30 December 1906 – 25 April 1976) was an English film director best known for Odd Man Out (1947), The Fallen Idol (1948), and The Third Man (1949). He won the Palme d'Or for The Third Man and the 1968 Academy Award for Best Director for Oliver!. Description above from the Wikipedia article Carol Reed, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

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Biography from TMDB.

Born
December 30, 1906
Died
April 25, 1976 (aged 69)
From
Putney, London, England, UK
Works as
Director and producer, also editor and writer
Titles
20 on MovieCove · 36 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 37 days to Oct 26Down 20% in 30 days

What are Carol Reed's films like?

Across their 20 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Bonds.

Genres

Drama9 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 79th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies
Comedy3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 77th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Comedy movies
Crime3 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 66th percentile
: browse their Crime movies
Adventure2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 77th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Adventure movies
Biography2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 78th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Biography movies

Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Morality
34%
Bonds
21%
Society
14%
Power
11%
Self
11%
Survival
5%
Ideas
4%
Justice4 titles, browse their movies with this themeDeception4 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity4 titles, browse their movies with this themeBetrayal3 titles, browse their movies with this themeSacrifice3 titles, browse their movies with this themePurpose2 titles, browse their movies with this themeRomantic love2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFamily bonds3 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 20 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

A split, not a type: Grounded 12 · Stylized 5 · Heightened 3

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

Gentle 2 · Charged 11 · Intense 7

Shifting: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their shifting movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 8 · Shifting 11 · Whiplash 1

Straight-faced: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their straight-faced movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 12 · Some laughs 7 · Funny 1

Even-paced: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their even-paced movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 8 · Even-paced 12 · Relentless 0

Engaged: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their engaged movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 7 · Engaged 12 · Full focus 1

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 15 · Open-ended 4 · Ambiguous 1

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Tense
17
Melancholic
9
Hopeful
5
Warm
4
Bittersweet
3
Other
12

How their films linger

Bittersweet9 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHopeful7 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteRousing4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteFeel-good4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end · 1 with a twist

  • Happy7
  • Bittersweet8
  • Tragic4
  • Ambiguous1

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Carol Reed's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 12 of their 20 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (10).

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Carol Reed's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

36 credits, 20 with a MovieCove page; 1 appearance as themselves is hidden until asked for.

  • The Public Eye(1972)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all films

  • Flap(1970)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 38th percentile of all films

  • Oliver!(1968)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 89th percentile of all films

  • The Agony and the Ecstasy(1965)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 87th percentile of all films

  • The Running Man(1963)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 62nd percentile of all films

  • Mutiny on the Bounty(1962)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 84th percentile of all films

  • Our Man in Havana(1959)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 85th percentile of all films

  • The Key(1958)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 67th percentile of all films

  • Trapeze(1956)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 74th percentile of all films

  • A Kid for Two Farthings(1955)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 65th percentile of all films

  • The Man Between (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1953)

    Director · Producer

  • Outcast of the Islands(1951)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 70th percentile of all films

  • The Third Man(1949)

    Director · Producer · Writer · as UK Version's Opening Narrator (uncredited)

    Midcredits score: 98th percentile of all films

  • The Fallen Idol(1948)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films

  • Odd Man Out(1947)

    Director · Producer

    Midcredits score: 95th percentile of all films

  • The True Glory(1945)

    Director · Editor

    Midcredits score: 77th percentile of all films

  • The Way Ahead(1944)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 79th percentile of all films

  • The New Lot (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1943)

    Director

  • The Young Mr. Pitt(1942)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • We Serve (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1942)

    Director

  • Letter from Home (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1941)

    Director

  • Kipps (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1941)

    Director

  • Night Train to Munich(1940)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 88th percentile of all films

  • The Girl in the News(1940)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 66th percentile of all films

  • The Stars Look Down(1940)

    Director

    Midcredits score: 76th percentile of all films

  • A Girl Must Live (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1939)

    Director

  • Climbing High (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1938)

    Director

  • Penny Paradise (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1938)

    Director

  • Bank Holiday (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1938)

    Director

  • Who's Your Lady Friend? (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1937)

    Director

  • Talk of the Devil (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1936)

    Director

  • Laburnum Grove (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1936)

    Director

  • Midshipman Easy (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1935)

    Director

  • It Happened in Paris (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1935)

    Director

  • Autumn Crocus (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1934)

    Assistant Director

  • Loyalties (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(1933)

    Assistant Director

Career shape

A full career of 35 titles from 1933 to 1972.

Biggest box office

The Third Man (1949)

$1.4M worldwide

Highest rated

The Third Man (1949)

Midcredits 98th

Film career

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting1 of 35: 0 only acting, 1 with another roleDirecting33 of 35: 24 only directing, 9 with another role · typical Midcredits score77thProducing9 of 35: 0 only producing, 9 with another role · typical Midcredits score86thOther crew2 of 35: 2 only other crew, 0 with another role

35 titles, 9 with more than one role — directing and producing overlap on 9 of them.

By decade

1930s11 · crew1940s13 · 1 acting · 13 crew1950s5 · crew1960s4 · crew1970s2 · crew

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on MovieCove, shown from 5 scored.

How do Carol Reed's films land?

Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 77th percentile, the median of all 20; across their 20 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 75th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

75thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 20

Approval · how many liked their films

78thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 20

Reach · how many have seen their films

64thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 20

Midcredits score across 20 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up12
  • 50th to 74th7
  • 25th to 49th1

Shape of the crowd

15 of their 20 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved4
  • Crowd Pleaser15
  • Mixed1

Most divisive · director

Flap (1970)

61st percentile spread · 21% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor, director, writer, producer

The Third Man (1949)

Midcredits 98th · 86% liked

Reviewers score the atmosphere 77/100 and the pacing 50/100 in their films, across 20 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a director.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Is Carol Reed's work okay for kids?

Across a limited sample of up to 4 MovieCove titles with content scores.

Their medianMedian of all films
Violence & Gore3 titlesmedian 46 · moderateMedian of all films: 44
Sex & Nudity4 titlesmedian 20 · mildMedian of all films: 32
Profanity3 titlesmedian 7 · minimalMedian of all films: 36
Alcohol & Drugs3 titlesmedian 33 · mildMedian of all films: 33
Frightening / Intense3 titlesmedian 39 · moderateMedian of all films: 39

Severity 0–100 from the Content Guide. Categories with under 10 votes on a title are not counted.

Who does Carol Reed work with?

People who share at least 2 of Carol Reed's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Bert Bates shares the most, 5.

Writers

Actors

Composers, cinematographers and editors

Producers