Certification. X
Director. William Friedkin
Cast. Gene Hackman, Tony Lo Bianco, Fernando Rey, Roy Scheider.
Rating. 78%
Despite being more than 50 years old, The French Connection still remains one of the most iconic films set in New York. It was one of the first to truly present the grittiness of the city in the 1970s. A New York of Martin Scorsese's Mean Streets and Taxi Driver. A New York that no longer exists.
What makes the winner of 1972 Academy Award for Best Picture so enduring is the simplicity of the storyline. Unlike other heavyweight contemporaries like The Godfather, Serpico or Taxi Driver, The French Connection is not a character study of the main protagonist. Instead, the storyline centres on two New York Police Detectives' attempts to apprehend those involved in a large drug smuggling operation. Simple, but gripping nonetheless.
Packed full of impressive performances, taut direction and an explosive screenplay, The French Connection is a filmmaking masterclass.
In a career defining performance that won him the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, Gene Hackman is superb as Detective Jimmy 'Popeye' Doyle. Equally impressive is Roy Scheider as his partner, Buddy Russo in one of his earliest lead roles [four years ahead of his own career defining performance, as Sheriff Martin Brody in Jaws]. There is a comfortable chemistry between Hackman and Scheider, creating a believable, begrudging partnership.
There is a leisurely, unhurried pace to The French Connection. More than an hour passes before a single gun is fired. For a significant portion of the film, Doyle simply drives around New York, aimlessly searching for criminals to shake down. Little is spoken, Doyle is simply on auto-pilot, nonetheless, these episodes are lovingly recorded, as if the audience were watching a true-crime documentary from a bygone age.
William Friedkin's style of filmmaking would also appear to belong to another time. For a start, the distinctive image of Pierre Nicoli (Marcel Bozzuffi) - arms wide open at the top of the stairs - would never be used to market a film today. Look closely, that's the hero at the bottom of the stairs wantonly shooting someone in the back.
Much of the The French Connection's legacy is a result of the now iconic car chase - at the time, one of the most impressive pieces of action recorded on film. Following a failed assassination attempt, Doyle pursues the assassin to a nearby elevated train station. When the assassin boards a train, Doyle commandeers a car in an attempt to beat him to the next station. The stunt driving is peerless and Friedkin's filming of the sequence is an ultra-real, white knuckle ride as the car speeds through heavy traffic. With no commentary from Doyle - only the incessant, invasive car horn - the brutal physicality of the car chase (with a sense of actual impact), so uncommon in the CGI era, is shown with maximum visceral effect. Still breathtaking to this day.
The climax, if you can call it that, is beyond abrupt, with no time for sympathy or redemption. One of the most nihilistic and unapologetic pieces of cinema of the 20th century. The French Connection undoubtedly suffers from outdated attitudes, language and cultural depiction which will most certainly cause offence. In truth, the film is overtly racist. Although outdated, The French Connection somehow still feels contemporary 50 years on.
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