Review of The French Connection (1971) by Paul P — 26 Nov 2011

A complete masterclass in film. Everything about this flick reeks of greatness. From the use of locations to the natural way that the story plays out, its terrific. It's also clearly a template for Ridley Scott's American Gangster which doesn't even bear comparison to this.

Hackman draws you into Popeye's world, and even though you don't like the guy, you can't help but share in his obsession to bring the bad guys down. By resisting the urge to make him likeable, he has created a totally believable portrayal of a very flawed dude.Scheider does a first rate job as well, the relationship between the two is great fun to watch.

Whilst it is almost always known for the car chase (which is still very impressive), my favourite set piece is observing Popeye trailing the Frenchman into the subway. The build up and pay off of that scene is perfectly executed.

A film very much of its time that continues to impress even now, it's a shame that Freidkin stopped churning out quality work like this so early in his career.