Tay Garnett's half-baked, black & white melodrama "Night Fighters" chronicles the exploits of a rural group of IRA dissidents during the early days of World War II. As an Irishman groveling under oppressive British rule, Dermot O'Neill (Robert Mitchum of "Thunder Road") throws in with the organization because they advocate a way of thinking that he finds agreeable. Actually, peer pressure seems to have been a factor in Dermot's decision. Neeve Donnelly (Anne Heywood of "The Midas Run"), Dermot's longtime girlfriend, advises her footloose 35-year-old boyfriend that she wants nothing to do with the IRA. She contends they will turn him into a murderer. Dermot's younger sister, Bella (Marianne Benet of "Shake Hands with the Devil"), shares Neeve's sentiments about the IRA. Nevertheless, she knows her own headstrong boyfriend Sean (Richard Harris of "The Guns of Navarone") well enough to realize he will do what he pleases with or without her consent. Since many of his closest friends, especially Sean decide to sign up, Dermot is willing to go along with them.
The population appears evenly divided between those who support the IRA and those who oppose it. Later, the local Catholic priest, Father McCrory (Hilton Edwards of "Half a Sixpence"), reads a church proclamation aloud before his sermon which forbids Catholics from joining the terrorist group. As a consequence, the threat of excommunication is held over the heads of those who refuse to abide by the church's decree. A local merchant, Don McGinnis (Dan O'Herlihy of "The Young Land"), calls an IRA planning session with a German agent who helps recruit followers. Initially, Dermot wants nothing to do with the organization. Indeed, his family is divided along ideological lines about the IRA. Dermot's mother, Mrs. Kathleen O'Neill (Eileen Crowe of "The Quiet Man"), refuses to recognize the legitimacy of the terrorist group and warns her wayward son about joining these wild-eyed radicals.
Eventually, the simmering plot comes to a boil when Dermot participates in his first raid against the British. The IRA impersonate British soldiers, hijack an official lorry, and enter an armory using false documents that pass muster. Dermot and company drive off with a load of rifles, cartridges, and various other weapons, such as grenades. Miraculously, nobody fires a single shot during this brief but intrepid daylight raid. Later, the Germans contact the IRA again and notify McGinnis about their decision to send his unit against a British coastal fort to disable it. The Germans have assured them this will be the opening gambit in a Nazi invasion. McGinnis hates it that his crippled leg prevents him from taking part in the fireworks. The German agent who helped launch the group explains the Third Reich doesn't want to see McGinnis arrested. They consider him far too important to be arrested because he is such a skillful organizer. Nevertheless, the desperate McGinnis is terribly frustrated by their decision but obeys their orders.
This time our misguided heroes must resort to violence, armed as they are with machine guns. Several soldiers die during this night time raid. Unfortunately, Sean catches a bit of shrapnel in his leg, and Dermot and he must flee the country. They seek temporary sanctuary in the Irish Free State where they can avoid arrest and Sean can receive proper medical treatment. Dermot tires of cooling his heels and slips back across the border undetected. Homesick Sean isn't as lucky after he recovers from his wound. The British capture him and turn him over to the local police. A trial ensues and Sean lands a ten-year sentence in a Belfast Prison.
Dermot is fed up with the IRA. He believes they should have stood up for Sean. When McGinnis organizes a second raid, an attack on the local police barracks, Dermot refuses to participate. Moreover, he vows to report them to the police! Our protagonist reveals one of the policemen has a wife and child living at the police barracks. Naturally, this is of no consequence to the headstrong McGinnis. However, Dermot doesn't want the blood of innocent bystanders on his hands. Eventually, he has no alternative but to approach the police about the IRA's plans. As an act of reprisal, the IRA beats up Dermot for spilling the beans about their raid. Later, they capture him and hold him for a forthcoming hearing. Although he warned the police, Dermot never divulged the names of the conspirators.
"Night Fighters" goes to extraordinary lengths in showing the creation of the IRA in a small village during its first half-hour. This is probably one of only a few films Hollywood produced about the contentious radical organization. Although it clocks in at about 90 minutes, the film suffers from an abrupt ending. Mind you, Dermot and Neeve gain passage on a ship to England. Meantime, back in the village, Bella belts herself into Dermot's trench coat, ostensibly the uniform for these IRA members, and she takes Dermot's bike for a ride through the pouring rain. A vengeful McGinnis spots her, but he mistakes her for her big brother. He fires several shots at her in the rain and she crashes her bike. At this point, "Night Fighters" ends abruptly. Perhaps the filmmakers exhausted their budget and couldn't afford to provide a more wholesome ending. Altogether, this well-made thriller suffers from this sudden ending. Altogether, "Night Fighters" doesn't qualify as one of Robert Mitchum's better pictures.
