Police partners Doyle and Russo put a candy store under surveillance based on a hunch that something fishy was going on. Eventually it turns out that the proprietors are involved in one of the biggest narcotics smuggling rings on either side of the Atlantic, and the cops go to work. Popeye Doyle and Buddy Russo get wind of a big shipment of heroin and begin a tail of the suspects, and their French Connection, two French nationals who are the european link. As money troubles begin for the hoods they decide to kill Popeye and Buddy to give them enough room to bring in the heroin. A combination of police procedural and action/car chase. I remember watching The French Connection for the first time several years ago. I knew people regarded it as an instant classic, so I was expecting to love it. But the power of subjectivity appeared, and it turned out I didn't like it all too much. In discussions with cinema lovers, I was lambasted because people see this as one of the all-time greats. I watched this for a second time recently, and how about that! My opinion changed. While not calling this film an all-time great, I do respect and like it very much. The film fits the definition of a 70's American film. It is dark, gritty, and features some heavy violence. Also, the film happens to be home of one of cinema's greatest car chases. Essentially, the movie is a giant chase but that particular car chase is something else. I'll discuss it more later on in this review.<br/><br/>This Oscar-winning film takes us onto the streets of New York City following two detectives, Jimmy 'Popeye' Doyle (Gene Hackman) and his partner, Buddy Russo (Roy Scheider). Popeye is infamous for taking in street-level drug dealers, and at best his policework can be described as shady. He's violent drunk cop with low ethical standards, and his career is rapidly falling apart. But he seizes his biggest opportunity when he learns of a huge heroin shipment coming from France. Now we have an interesting contrast between Popeye and the heroin smuggler, Alain Charnier (Fernando Rey). I just mentioned Popeye has low moral standards, but he still is a dedicated cop. On the other hand, Charnier is a smooth gentleman that no one can predict he is a criminal. Now the standoff between the two men begins when Popeye does all he can to bring Charnier in.<br/><br/>Now going back to that car chase! It was a wonderfully executed car chase and what I like is that it is all real. There was an actual chase filmed in Brooklyn exactly how you see it on screen. It's crazy too because the chase is about a simple car trying to outrun and outmaneuver a moving train which eventually has a dead conductor at the wheel. So then it turns into a psychologically-crazy man versus machine kind of chase. The chase also proves the recklessness of Popeye. He held no regard for the common people as he had close calls with them during the chase. He was basically using the people for his benefitÂ….in an oddly positive way. Some of the camera techniques are very effective. They filmed in a way where the subjects are actually further away from the cars than shown on screenÂ….which must have been a relief for some of the actors. But yes, this is one of the biggest car chases to have ever been filmed so this film is a must-see just for that.<br/><br/>Speaking of actors, well yes let's talk about the acting. Director William Friedkin famously did not want Gene Hackman in the lead role. Hackman, by 1971 was already a bankable star, but Friedkin did not think so. Luckily, they decided to cast Hackman anyway and it's a good thing they did. Hackman is one of those actors who can do any genre and always gives his best effort. I loved his performance here and his character was perhaps the only three-dimensional character in the film because the film spends so much time on him. But I was won over by Hackman almost right away. The scene where he enters a bar and violently asks everyone to turn out their pockets in the search for drugs-well, I knew I would be in for a treat. I was happy to see his performance win Best Actor at the Academy Awards. Roy Scheider does a solid job as Popeye's partner, but I didn't feel the same way for him as I did for Popeye. There was nothing much to do for him except to act as a backup. Same goes for Fernando Rey. A very solid performance, but his character was also under-utilized.<br/><br/>The French Connection is a violent, fast-paced film. I said in my opening the movie plays like one giant chase, but I liked the frenetic pacing of the movie. My favorite scene is no doubt that car chase, but I loved the smaller scenes especially the ones where Popeye is up to no good. I also loved the actual photography of the film. Sure, the movie is over forty years old but seeing the streets of my favorite city in the world always makes me happy as it brings back some fond memories. The film has a violent nature and it may take you by surprise, but this film is heralded by many as an instant classic. I may not think so, but I did enjoy it very much.<br/><br/>My Grade: B+ Whether it was the best movie of the year is up for debate, but that does not mean The French Connection is a bad film. In fact, it is a superb film. It is very well made, it has a hard edge, is well directed, has a fine script, some very memorable sequences, is well scored and Gene Hackman once again is superb in the lead. I like cop flicks just as much as the next person, and I have to say The French Connection is one of the best of them. Not only does it have all the things I mentioned above, but I think it has aged well and it is definitely worth seeing more than once. All in all, superb, worth seeing for Hackman. 10/10 Bethany Cox This tough, brilliant crime film features Hackman as the indefatigable Popeye Doyle, who passionately hates drug pushers. The word "frog" is often used as a derogatory term for someone of French descent. When Popeye refers to Charnier as "Frog One," he's trying to distinguish Charnier from his partner, Pierre Nicoli. It can also be a way to show Popeye's generally bigoted attitude. He's deliberately trying to confuse Willy into making a confession. Poughkeepsie is a small city about 80 miles north of New York on the Hudson River. Willy may have a drug connection up there that buys product from him and sells it in that region. His line, which is somewhere along the lines of "when was the last time you picked your feet in Poughkeepsie" is basically nonsense. Repeating it and variations of it including only Poughkeepsie or just when the person has last "picked their feet", over and over in a threatening manner, is a tactic meant to bewilder the subject. While the criminal is desperately trying to figure out what this sentence is a code for, the interrogators intersperse the badgering with actual questions like "who's your connection Willie, what's his name!?" and "is it Joe the barber?" The totally confused criminal up against the wall, doesn't know what this Poughkeepsie thing is, but it sounds bad and he sure didn't do it. So to take the questioning away from this mysterious act the police think he's performed, that must be pretty terrible, Willie admits to what they really want to know out of fear. This tactic/phrase was actually developed by the character that Gene Hackman played, in real life (the movie is loosely based on a true story). Source: French Connection Commentary extra found in the DVD version of the movie. They more than likely bought Devereaux a new car exactly like the old one. Putting the car back together after spending several hours tearing it apart would have taken at least twice as long, plus there was the actual damage they caused to the interior while ripping out upholstery, carpeting & other trim. From there it'd be a simple matter of buying a new Lincoln, pulling out the rocker panels in that one & stashing the heroin & transferring the license plates to it. a5c7b9f00b Episode 1.129 telugu full movie downloadThe Blazing Forest 720pthe Rebut full movie in hindi free download hdthe Dunes Day full movie in hindi free downloadXXENOS in hindi movie downloadhindi Every Which Way But LooseEpisode 1.233 full movie in hindi free download hd 720pMaybe… Now in hindi movie downloadTent culos At micos telugu full movie downloadZombie vs. Incline in hindi movie download
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