This originally started out as a fresh look at the Dirty Harry series. One of those slow grey sort of weekends where a whole movie series just kind of watches itself. However, along the way there ended up being a slight detour and a kind of post viewing epilogue, which I will get to shortly. My memory was pretty fuzzy on some of the sequels, so it was interesting to see how much (if any) of it had stood the test of time. As you can imagine certain elements don't quite hold up, while others are always a treat. So to get things started let's join the original loose cannon himself, Harry Callahan, as he reels off a few good lines and a hits a few road bumps on the path to the Scorpio killer.
This choice of subject matter seems a little bizarre when you know that this story was inspired by the real life Zodiac killings - which were famously never solved. Something that was still in the public eye at the time of its release. However, regardless of whether the material could be considered in poor taste this is still a fun thriller for the most part.
Whether it's a truly great film is questionable, but it's entertaining nonetheless. It's pop culture status isn't up for debate of course. This is mainly thanks to two elements,
Andy Robinson as Scorpio himself, plus the other big character...
Lalo Schifrin's music. The swinging score adds a lot, as
you'd expect from the composer that worked on Enter the Dragon and
Mission Impossible. It's atmospheric and very 1970s, but I particularly
like the bassy tunes and the eerie vocal work in the killer's theme.
Now you're probably expecting me to cite the big man
himself as a part of the appeal here. Callahan with his terrible jacket, his huge gun, and all his quotable lines. Of course it's part of the fun,
but I found on re-watching this that the real scene stealer was the killer. It's a
wild eyed, manic, and high pitched performance from Robinson who screeches and raves when he gets caught. Or whenever the mood takes him. It's a totally different character than you'd expect in a role that could just have been a silent psychopath. The opening sniper sequence hints on this being the case, until later when he goes off the rails. Clint on the other hand has done
far better things elsewhere, and he comes off as a little wooden up until the ending where
things really start to get him angry. When the that line is delivered a second time with some appropriate malice behind it.
My issue has always been that
under all the layers of nostalgia it feels a little bit like a
TV pilot. There are a number of great pieces of camera work -
particularly the stadium shot where Callahan does his police brutality bit. But there are times when it's just the kind of thing that can be found in any number of
detective killer of the week shows. It's not to say that it isn't well
done, but there's a general vibe from the whole thing that I couldn't shake. It's a small gripe. On
the plus side there are a lot of really moody sequences and it
definitely keeps the tension building once Scorpio's plans go awry. The idea of him going to a back alley crook and paying
for a beating to thwart Harry's investigation is particularly striking. Then of course there's the climax where he torments a school bus full of kids, it's a great finale.
So on to the sequels, since it seems like Harry isn't out of job after all. I recall having mixed feelings about the subsequent outings, that they varied in quality. However it was immediately apparent that despite the lower quality there was a consistent tone. For a while at least. There was still a lot of unimaginative rehashing involved. Even
the pure ham of 'go ahead, make my day' in Sudden Impact is just another excuse for a fresh catchphrase. If only they were as good as the amusingly macho titles; especially Magnum Force.
But it was not to be, they didn't recapture that original sense of urgency or the sense of character afforded by the music and the original villain. Even during those films in which Lalo is actually still involved. It's not that they aren't inventive in some ways, but they often feel pretty lacklustre and lacking energy.
The first of the sequels has a new, harder hitting breed of vigilantes on the streets in
a deliberate attempt to counter balance the right wing overtones in the original. Harry only blasts the crooks with his revolver when they're caught red-handed, not before. The story however is too long, and it never gains
any real momentum. The mystery aspects are also telegraphed really early on. There are still plenty of entertaining sequences, particularly the random crimes that go on outside the plot. But the conclusion at a dock is a damp squib. The bad guys get their comeuppance and there's a brutal fight scene (in fact this and other moments are echoed in Dredd years later) but it's pretty sloppy. At least the music maintains some of the mood, and Hal Halbrook is a good foil for Clint.
In part three, The Enforcer, there's another great title and another attempt at going in different direction. The
casting of Tyne Daly has a lot of promise, but in the end it's another uninspiring finale, this time the Alcatraz prison showdown. It's a shame as she has some good moments with Eastwood and it could have led to a promising buddy cop future. The dynamic is clichéd but they eventually have a little chemistry at least. On the other hand the villains are totally forgettable, a money hungry gang posing as a revolutionary militia. The quality of the music has totally gone out the window, but at least some other supporting cast members return. Nothing else stands out, and resorting to Harry using a rocket launcher feels like a cheap way of upping the ante.
Sudden Impact, again great title, sees Lalo Schifrin back on
the scene. But this a mix bag in terms of the score. But again the
dialogue is punchy, and the new catchphrases are fun. The real issue
here is that there are two plots. Once involving a rape revenge, the
other being Harry having a vacation to escape angry mobsters. Both are
very simplistic, and the combo doesn't entirely fit. There's also a
farting dog in case the tone wasn't mixed up enough. Beyond a sad
romantic element perhaps this was Clint's major idea as the director
this time around? However, despite these oddities it remains a boiler
plate thriller with memorable bits here and there. Things are starting
to to get shaky, and they should have quit while they were ahead.
By the time The Dead Pool
arrives it's all getting a
bit beyond a joke. Here they wheel out Liam Neeson doing a silly accent and James Carrey lip-syncing to Guns N Roses. The whole thing slides into self parody, and sometimes it feels like an unrelated TV pilot. Even the music is really out of
place despite Lalo coming back on board. It feels like they put some effort into a story at least, with themes about hero worship and
sensationalism in the media. But this is a film in which toy car
does jumps over the San Francisco streets. Like something out of a children's spy adventure. Why not have a real car chase that harkens back to those filmed here in decades gone?
It's a strange series, one that feels like each instalment should end with Harry being far too jaded, or too unemployed, to keep going on. Despite so many attempts at capturing the magic the sequels never get past the simplistic
murder mystery feeling. Despite Eastwood directing one of them
himself and the attempts at freshening things up every so often, it's stale very quickly. These aren't a total disaster by any means, at least if you stop at part four. Iconic characters have a least appeal for a reason after all. But if you want a who-dunnit perhaps
watching few
episodes of Columbo instead might be a better idea.
Here's where things take a detour as we move away from Dirty Harry, and into a realm of quiet retrospection. The heroes are greyer, and so are their acts of heroism. All of this ageing anti-hero stuff is played up a lot during the urban drama Gran Torino, and it's amazing that the plot was never written with Clint in mind. It's a tale of intolerance, resentment and anger. With this in mind it's probably not meant to be as amusing as I found it. But while there are many sly moments of humour mixed with the heavy themes and unnerving moments. I can't help but give a knowing smile as the guns get drawn and the local hoods lose their cool in the face of Clint's grimace. There's a certain level of self awareness that has to have been intentional.
Walt Kowalski (Eastwood) is a man out of time, living alone in a dilapidated neighbourhood he doesn't recognise any
more. The locals faces include several gang members who want to steal from him and a family of migrants from South East Asia. He sees the latter only as a reminder of
his service in the military during the Korean War. He's a bitter old
man, someone who's very distant from the heroes of the 1970s and 1980s.
But it's not all played for tragedy, at least not wholly. There's a dark
sense of humour here, something which is at its most sardonic during
scenes in which Walt's family are involved. They're portrayed as
spoilt children who just want to take his house, adding to his
resentment.
If there were any faults it's probably that the story is told with
very broad strokes as Walt finds friendship with his new neighbours
after the eponymous car is nearly stolen. His blood relatives are
shown as being worthy of his disdain, and his new friends fill that gap. The ending in particular feels a
bit too neat and tidy as the health issues caused by his age, and the
problems caused by local hoodlums, both reach a simple dramatic apex. However
this is still a poignant story, and the blend of dry character moments and unsettling crime drama are mixed together well. It's a story that feels
like a conclusion to Clint's past personas as well as being its own
thing.
While on the subject of ageing anti-heroes however, it's time for a fresh viewing of something a little different, one that also puts a full stop on Clint's past, this time as a gunslinger. An anti-Western. Unforgiven has a number of great casting choices, and stands as a reflection on the genre, and the history it was supposedly based on. It's a slow burning character piece with dark shadows and intense moods. I particularly enjoy Gene Hackman as self righteous sheriff Little Bill, and his scenes with famed gunslinger English Bob (Richard Harris) are very memorable. It's a story which never plays to the usual archetypes. Bill's calm and logical demeanour descends into brutality when he feels it's justified, while Bob's eccentric facade is stripped away to reveal a weak man full of tall tales.
Each element has some amount of depth, and the expected tropes are painted with many layers. The ensemble is all pretty interesting rather than just being simple caricatures. This is certainly true of the bounty
hunters led by Clint's William Munny, a once violent man who often claims that he's 'not
like that any more.' But perhaps is simply trying to escape his past, rather than face it or truly change his ways. He struggles with getting back into the saddle (quite literally in one instance), but there's no heroic arc or catharsis as the bloody showdown closes in. Morgan Freeman's Ned on the other hand seems full of confidence
but comes apart at the seams a little once the job is at hand; he's lost the taste for it. Perhaps he didn't like it that much to begin with.
It's full of interesting moments and often defies tradition, telling a story where even the music is sparse. Where you'd expect a full on classical score with Ennio Morricone style themes and overplayed motifs, there are just a few
simple atmospheric tunes. It isn't all bleak silence and marked with occasional violence though. Despite of the
dark subject matter it's a film that often looks particularly pleasant. There are a number of great panoramic scenes and the Alberta location provides a
stunning double for the American frontier. It has all the hallmarks of a
last hurrah, and while Eastwood would go on to make many more films
this is a fitting bookend to his career as an iconic figure in the Western
genre.
Dirty Harry 4/5
Magnum Force 3/5
The Enforcer 3/5
Sudden Impact 3/5
The Dead Pool 2/5
Gran Torino 4/5
Unforgiven 4/5
