Review of Sudden Impact (1983) by Nick E — 14 Dec 2011

Jennifer Spencer (Sondra Locke) and her little sister were gang raped years ago, after a female friend of the gang had persuaded them to come to the fair. The brutal rape left the sister permanently catatonic and almost vegetative. Jennifer is now out for revenge. She kills her attackers one by one, shooting them first in the genitals then between the eyes, except for the female who is shot in the heart.

In the beginning of the film, Jennifer is seen with one of the rapists named George Wilburn (Michael Maurer). It is early morning and she is with him in a car when she kills him. After the murder, she leaves without a trace. Inspector Harry Callahan (Clint Eastwood) in the meantime is seen in a court room where he has brought a young blonde haired suspect named Mr. Hawkins (Kevyn Major Howard) to trial. The case is dismissed as a travesty because Harry did not have the right to seize the evidence used to prove Hawkins guilty.

After insulting Hawkins in the elevator, Harry goes to his usual coffee diner and orders the usual black coffee. The waitress tries getting his attention by pouring massive amounts of sugar into his coffee and Harry, who is reading a newspaper, does not notice. As he walks out, he takes a sip of coffee and spits it out in disgust. As he returns to complain, he sees that the open signs were switched to closed. A robbery ensues but Harry stops it, going in the back way where he shoots up the gang of robbers. One is left alive and grabs the waitress as hostage, but Harry points his .44 Magnum handgun at him and says "Go ahead, make my day". The police arrive shortly afterward when the robber drops his gun. Jennifer, meanwhile, is shown at an art exhibit but claims that she must miss it because she needs to visit someone up north. She arrives at a hospital to visit her vegetated sister, Elizabeth Lisa Britt. Jennifer tells of what she did to George Wilburn and then leaves her sister. Later that night, Harry is at a mobster named Threlkis' granddaughter's wedding party. Harry antagonizes Threlkis (Michael V. Gazzo) in front of his own granddaughter, accusing him of killing a young hooker. Threlkis freaks as Callahan pulls out papers where the hooker may have confessed everything, and he dies of a heart attack.

Listen, punk. To me you're nothin' but dogshit, you understand? And a lot of things can happen to dogshit. It can be scraped up with a shovel off the ground. It can dry up and blow away in the wind. Or it can be stepped on and squashed. So take my advice and be careful where the dog shits ya!