Dirty Harry (1971)

Effective first installment in ¨Dirty Harry¨ series and followed by various sequels still gripping and stirring . The film starts with a prologue : ¨In tribute to San Francisco Police officers who gave their lives in the line of duty¨ . Iconoclast Harry Callahan(Eastwood) attempts to detain vicious killers who are robbing a bank , he takes on criminals determined to bring them to justice, even if he has to break some rules . This time has a young partner who is assigned when his ordinary pal is wounded . The rock-hard inspector is accompanied by a Mexican cop (Reni Santoni) and they track down a nasty series killer (Andrew Robinson) .The psychotic murderer is detained but is freed on legal technicalities and Harry takes the law into his own hands. Harry wielding a revolver Magnum 44 ( in fact, as is titled the second entry, Magnum force) returns his unorthodox means ; facing off ominous murderous that is threatening the city of San Francisco. Harry in troubles as habitual with his chiefs (Harry Guardino , John Larch) and the District Prosecutor (Josef Sommer) because his methods lead abuse the criminal's civil rights and a pile of death in clod blood along his wake. Harry pursues the revenge-obsessed murderer and encounters he has more problems with him than he expected. Rule-breaking Callahan strides grimly throughout San Francisco in pursuit the murderous , including an exciting final on a school bus . Whatever your reservations about Harry's expeditious methods we know he'll always vanquish , shooting in cold blood with his pistol .

Formula thriller plenty of action , crisply edition , tension, suspenseful and lots of violence . Clint Eastwood's good performance as two-fisted Harry Callahan , the tall and taciturn inspector who utilizing his Magnum 44 pistol kills baddies and , as always , he says some original phrases . Well written by Harry and Rita Fink ; it packs intrigue , violence, action-filled and is a really effective film . It turns out to be interesting and plenty of vivid action , suspense and thrills. Good secondary cast gives effective performance as John Larch , Harry Guardino , Josef Sommer as the prosecutor and John Vernon as the Mayor. Good use of locations filmed in Panavision and Technicolor , by cameraman Bruce Surtees , son of prestigious photographer Robert Surtees , reflecting splendidly the streets of San Francisco , ordinary scenario of the series . Adequate and atmospheric musical score by usual Lalo Schifrin , including a classic jazzy leitmotif . Taut and expert direction by Don Siegel who formerly directed him in ¨Coogan's bluff¨ and subsequently in ¨Escape from Alcatraz¨ and well financed by the usual, Robert Daley as executive producer from Malpaso Company . Followed by ¨Magnum Force¨ by Ted Post with Robert Urich and David Soul , ¨The enforcer¨ 1976, by James Fargo with Tyne Daly, Harry Guardino, ¨Sudden impact¨1983, Eastwood with Sandra Locke , Pat Ingle and ¨Dead pool¨ 1988, by Buddy Van Horn with Liam Neeson and Jim Carrey . This formula thriller will appeal to Harry Callahan series enthusiasts , because of the tension, unstopped action , exciting edition , chills abound in this original entry . Well worth seeing for Clint Eastwood fans and it's a cool companion for the action genre followers . An entertaining and amusing film , mounted for its maximum impact and with several scenes that'll have you on the edge of your seat

Fmovies: This was the first of the always-entertaining "Dirty Harry" cop series and it was a good one - maybe the best of the series.

One of Harry's famous lines was in this opener: "Do ya feel lucky, punk?" Speaking of punks, Andy Robinson, who played the villain, never got famous as Clint Eastwood ("Harry") certainly became but he was tremendous in this film. He didn't even have to utter a line: he just looked deranged! Great casting.

Looking back, the one thing I really appreciate about this film as opposed to the rest of them in this series was the absence of Harry's annoying superiors constantly on his case. He actually got support from his bosses in this movie.

The film as a big hit because people were already tired of all the liberal preaching of the 1960s in which we were supposed to feel sympathy for the criminal instead of the victim. This series was on the side of the cops, not the crooks, which is probably why the sick film critics never liked Dirty Harry.

This is one solid crime story with no boring spots and no sappy sub-plots with romances, either. And it's always nice to enjoy the interesting San Francisco skyline.

One of my all time personal favorite "Dirty Harry" action cop crime movie franchise of the 70's of all time. Insp. Harry Callahan is Clint Eastwood's best role he ever played. This movie is an action powerful masterpiece, I love this film franchise to death all 5 movies. Clint Eastwood with his .44 Magnum blow away this 70's action classic masterpiece. Their were 5 "Dirty Harry" movies of course 4 sequels. Magnum Force, The Enforcer, Sudden Impact and The Dead Pool and I enjoy all 5 "Dirty Harry" movies they are all great. There is no bad Dirty Harry movie at all. I love the cinematography, the filming locations shot in a San Francisco area. Great soundtrack by Lalo Schifrin.

I love "Dirty Harry" movies I am a fan of this movies I grew up watching them I would say they are MILES way better movies than "Death Wish" franchise. The first Death Wish come out in 1974 and it become a franchise like Dirty Harry. I don't like Death Wish the first movie I couldn't get in to it. I love Superman and John Carpenter's Assault on Precinct 13 with Dirty Harry these movies I love Death Wish I don't like.

Dirty Harry come out in 1971 it was directed by wonderful director Don Siegel who worked with Eastwood before, this was their fourth movie together. Clint Eastwood plays excellent as Insp. Harry Callahan on a hunt of a serial killer Scorpio (Andy Robinson). Who is killing people and ransoms San Francisco for $100,000 to stop the killing. Insp. Harry Callahan (Clint Eastwood) knows he has to stop the killer, he has to be stop.

Another was the quality of Clint Eastwood's character as "Harry Callahan", which was obviously a breakthrough for him at the time. He is best described as a smart-talking cop who hated criminals and broken the laws in serving time for the police. Harry wasn't a vigilante and he wasn't above the law. He did what he did to protect the innocents. I love how Harry jump on a bus on the roof, you have great showdown between Harry and Scorpio. Harry stabs a killer with a knife in his leg real powerful acting performance.

Clint Eastwood, Reni Santoni and Andy Robinson perfectly played their roles. Andy Robinson and Reni Santoni were reunited in Cobra (1986) my favorite action film from The Cannon Group, Inc. Cobra was an Stallone's answer to Dirty Harry. Andy Robinson was in horror flick Hellraiser (1987), he was a terrific actor did a great performance ever as a psychotic killer Scorpio. Reni Santoni as Chico Gonzales partner of Insp. Harry Callahan. Those there actors in these movie are great. I love Insp. Harry Callahan famous catch praise line: I know what you're thinking. "Did he fire six shots or only five?" But being this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world and would blow your head clean off, you've gotta ask yourself one question: "Do I feel lucky?"

Dirty Harry is the best action masterpiece of the 70's my personal favorite franchise movies of all time. It was box office and critical successful. I love this movie to death I do have the DVD and all 5 movies on Blu-ray disc. I love this film to death I love Insp. Harry Callahan he is my favorite action hero.

Dirty Harry fmovies. Released on Christmas Day 1971, "Dirty Harry" transformed Clint Eastwood from cult figure to superstar. Another maverick cop thriller, "The French Connection," was released a few months earlier, and it may have won the Oscars and garnered the critical acclaim, but "Dirty Harry" is the true classic of the two, and the most influential. Great action magnificently directed by Don Siegel, the master of the genre, great dialogue, and relentless tension make this the ultimate detective thriller and one of the defining films of the 1970s.

In quoting these famous lines: "A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do!" and "Go ahead, make my day!". They meant something for Clint Eastwood, turning from cowboy to hit man with a surge of raging anger and ambition. The mountain terrains became an urban metropolis, thus putting the guy off the saddle and into the bloody streets of San Francisco. Which makes DIRTY HARRY an incredible classic not to be missed, as well as Eastwood's shift to the action genre where society is run by evil. Its continuous impact of the events take place with a tight grip and a smooth pace. This remains to be one of the most entertaining experiences in classic movie history. All it takes is a cop over the edge and "The Most Powerful Handgun In The World".

Violence was the key factor of DIRTY HARRY, and continues to be violent even today. We've never come to see staggering sights of brutalities before, but it was made possible to heighten the overall realism of a dark San Francisco infested with crime. Another was the quality of Clint Eastwood's character as "Harry Callahan", which was obviously a breakthrough for him at the time. He is best described as a smart-talking cop who hated criminals and broken the laws in serving time for the police. A very unique character he was, for going by his own personal business and taking the job "dirty". The best acheivement goes for the cinematography. It sure doesn't look pretty, but the effectiveness of the dark renders this haunting where no place is safe enough to run or hide. The real winner is Don Siegel, for presenting the perfect atmosphere to shoot a picture that already had a premise driven by fear and anxiety, anger and tension. He sure hasn't done anything like this before, and possibly no movie had since then. Otherwise, we would have still been seeing these one-dollar Western shows in the afternoon!

Watch DIRTY HARRY today and you can see how the styles of moviemaking has evolved slow and easy, but it still packs a powerful bullet or two. If you've seen this six times or only five, you knew how lucky Clint Eastwood got the perfect part for being an all-new action star. This is the one, and original cop movie. And remember, this is "In Tribute To The Police Officers Of San Francisco Who Gave Their Lives In The Line Of Duty"!

How radically different cinema history, and our collective consciousness, would have been if Frank Sinatra hadn't injured his hand before shooting started on "Dirty Harry". Sinatra was due to play Harry, but had to withdraw, clearing the way for Clint. Given Sinatra's unique brand of self-loathing, Harry would have been an uglier personality than Clint made him. As it is, Lieutenant Callaghan is an ornery anti-liberal cuss of a guy, but he is straight and likeable. Arguably, it was this characterisation which made Eastwood a megastar.

San Francisco in 1971 was ready for stardom itself. The West Coast love-in scene and the gay 'boom', together with McQueen's "Bullitt", raised awareness of San Francisco as an exciting liberal city with a photogenic skyline. The film's funky score by Lalo Schifrin is perfectly-judged, and spawned numerous imitators.

The central narrative concerns a lone nut who is trying to hold the city to ransom. He starts by murdering citizens to extort money from the mayor, then progresses to kidnapping children. This plays cleverly on the inchoate anxieties of Middle America, where law-abiding people were puzzled and alarmed at the 'crime wave' and the threat it posed to them and their families. Crime in the decades before the Kennedy assassination had been compartmentalised by Hollywood. Gangsters were bad, but they killed other gangsters. Now the danger was unpredictable, irrational - and solitary. The lone madman was as likely to strike against me or you as against an institution. Only a single-minded strong man, operating on the fringes of the rules, could combat this new terror.

Harry is a paradox. In one sense, he is an 'outlaw'. He has little respect for formal authority (in the opening minutes, we see him being rude to the mayor) and he carries a strictly non-regulation monster of a gun. Harry is openly racist and mutinous. And yet he is also deeply moral. He conforms to an unarticulated ethical code that is anglosaxon American. He protects the weak and confronts the wrongdoers, no matter how the odds are stacked against him. Indeed, the cowardly bureaucrats who will never reward him or promote him are able to exploit his profound decency. They send him on all the difficult, dirty jobs because they know that his sense of right and wrong won't allow him to walk away.

Early in the film, the famous bank robbery scene occurs. This has become so familiar that it hardly needs elaborating here, but to summarise, Harry foils an armed robbery using icy courage and grim humour - and his magnum handgun. The special brand of Eastwood humour recurs throughout the story (eg, the suicide jumper and the gay called 'Alice'). White anglosaxon America is encouraged to laugh at the undergroups which supposedly threaten it.

When the bad guy 'Scorpio' is cornered, he immediately starts bleating about his civil rights. This is meant to arouse our fury, because we have seen him callously destroying the lives of others, and here he is exploiting the protection of the state. To make matters worse, the state agrees with him. We see the DA and a judge explaining to Harry why the cogent evidence against Scorpio is inadmissible. Just exactly why the DA would call a meeting with a lowly policeman in order to explain department policy is far from clear, but the scene is thematically necessary. Scorpio is using the System against the decent, godfearing people who own it. The liberal appara