Review of The French Connection (1971) by Calumrhysuk — 02 Apr 2017

There's no denying how influential Friedkin's brilliant cop thriller is, and the stark imagery that accompanies it. I could continue to comment on the positive values on the film, of which there are many, but then it'd leave you asking why I didn't give it a 'masterpiece' rating. Well firstly, I saw this film for the first time many years ago, and it was due to a small clip of the famous car chase that made me want to watch it so much, and let's face it, that car chase is utter brilliance, the pace, the action, the thrills throughout, and of course that final image where Doyle finally incapacitates the antagonist on the stairs.

Gene Hackman also couldn't have played Doyle any better than he did here, his role as an at-times sadistic cop with a personal chip on his shoulder, thrust within in a gritty, crime-embroiled New York City. But the problem is, there is little-to-no character development, to the extent that despite our longstanding adventure with Doyle, we don't actually care too much of his outcome, this goes likewise with the villains and for Roy Scheider's character. In a movie that's about good versus evil, it's usually vital to give us a character we can relate to, so we can actually distinguish the difference between the good and the evil, so we can actually root for a character's succession. But it never happens, we are presented with the basics of Doyle and that's it, from there on it's about the job.

But as I've previously mentioned, this film is revolutionary in the crime genre, and in cinema as a whole, and I enjoy the experience every time I watch it, the thrilling chase scenes, the gruff embodiment of hate that is Doyle, to the paranoia-clad villains, Friedkin's achievement can't be diminished.