Review of The French Connection (1971) by Jeremy S — 06 Mar 2010

One of Friedkin's best, it hasn't aged all that well, but it's still got a lot of punch and a killer performance by Gene Hackman. It's story is pretty familiar as far as cops and narcotics stories go, but the construction and pacing is what makes it great.

So many great shots tell the story with the camera, like Fernando Rey aka "Frog One" sitting with his right hand man in a fine restaraunt eating a five star meal while Hackman stands out in the cold across the street watching, stamping his feet, eating a greasy slice and dumping out his coffee, too horrible to quaff.

The gritty realism is another thing this picture is famous for and it set a much copied standard. And the next time you think of the now defunct Pontiac, remember the brown Lemans that Popeye all but destroys chasing his would be assassin in one of the best rawly realistic chase scenes ever filmed.