I recently did a rewatch of the movie when I saw it on cable tv, and this is what really struck me on that viewing. However, influential is not the same as great. Coupled with some pretty revolutionary film shots, from the chase scene to the gritty, documentary style montages in the investigation scene, I think it's understandably influential.
The greater theme is definitely obsession, but it also was one of the first films that challenged traditional perceptions of police (I think of the opening shot where him and his partner run down someone and just beat the shit out of him). In the last shootout, he is so consumed by his obsession with catching the criminal, he shoots a fellow officer to death because he thought he was the perp. He puts half of New York at risk to kill a criminal (who happens to cause two people to be killed in his get away). He doesn't car about his partner's well being. He doesn't care about his own well being.
All throughout the film you see him willing to beat the crap out of seemingly insignificant people. I didn't get that the first time through, but I think it shows the lengths he is willing to go to catch this criminal. it's inevitable when a film relies on FX and contemporary social tropesĭid you catch that Popeye shot a fellow cop to death in the final scene? i hope i live long enough to see the blockbusters of today get roasted for being weak many years from now. in westerns that's a 100% villian move.īut yeah, it's pretty dated. he shoots the guy in the back at the end.
just a flawed man, but a flawed man with a mission. Popeye Doyle is an "anti-hero" you're not supposed to like him really. it's more about gritty seedy cops n criminals than action/adventure. Now I'm gonna have to watch French Connection again.Īnd to OP. check out Bullit starting Steve McQueen if you want to see real dangerous driving committed on film. I'm not sure if this is true but most hollywood car chases are shot at much slower speeds as depicted in screen. While this is true that the famous chase was shot guerrilla style, I've heard they were mostly driving at reasonably slow speeds and sped up the footage with a few actual controlled stunt driving clips edited in. I dunno, guess I’m just wondering your thoughts on it! I’m curious whether this was seen in the 70s as a way to make us dislike Popeye, or show him as super tough. I also realize this shouldn’t play into my review, but the racial stuff in this movie is truly off putting. Best picture? Best actor? The scene where the bad guy tricks him off the train with the umbrella was cool, but that was about 10 seconds long. Is this just one of those “good because it influenced others” movies? I literally don’t get it. When it actually ended, in an extremely lame final scene (big bad runs away, you hear a mysterious gunshot suggesting an ambiguous ending, then a title card just says he got away), I literally wanted to stand up and boo. I watched with my girlfriend and after the short car chase was over we were like, nah that wasn’t it, this whole movie must be building up to the big one at the end. The story was extremely generic and simple, yet confusing. I do not understand what people see in this movie. Recently watched The French Connection for a movie club with friends, and I was absolutely shocked at what I saw.
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