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I remember during my film class at school. The first thing our teacher said:
"first thing you need to know. The Shawshank Redemption?...a pile of cack"
You like to watch movies, I can tell. Great review. :)
Finally!
I never had seen this before.
I have watched a lot of movies in my lifetime, a lot. Still, some of the famous ones of the 70's, 60's and 50's are still on my watch-list.
It is very difficult for older movies to get into my all-time favourites list. It's quite crowded in there, as so many great movies exist.
JAWS with one big bite made it into this list and probably on to a very high position.
Also having watched the 1 hour 40 minutes documentary on the Blu-ray (the best film-docu I've seen besides the many brilliant Trek documentaries) I even more appreciate the greatness of JAWS.
Quint has immediately become one of my favourite movie characters. Just WOW at Robert Shaw's performance. I never thought I would see him in something better than From Russia With Love, but I just did.
The scariest moment? I really couldn't say. Probably when Brody a bit unwillingly throws the bait into the sea and looks to Quint. Suddenly the shark appears and is scaring Brody to death. Well, me too...
Quint's death scene is horrifying to the max. So is the sequence when the shark attacks Hooper under water in the cage. Damn, I almost wet my pants.
I'm not scared that easily anymore, but JAWS scared the living daylights out of me :))
It was good. Many action scenes and explosions, hoped for a little more humour though.
Edit: Spider-Man was pretty funny.
:-O
One of my favorites with great performances across the board.
However, just a few hours ago I did a mini-marathon on the first three Dirty Harry films since I am in a 1970s mood for a couple of weeks, now. I never liked the last two installments in the series, so I'll skip them.
Dirty Harry: Now, where do I start? I'll try to make it short. After too much heat in development of the film, Clint Eastwood was chosen as the hard-edged no nonsense Inspector Callahan who deals with "every dirty job that comes along," hence the eponymous nickname. Brilliant cast, exceptionally spectacular cinematography, extraordinary soundtrack with a lot of brilliant spooks. I can see why Don Siegel is hailed as one of the best film directors just with this film alone. It's not the plot that's gratifying, but the acting performance on behalf of every actor. Eastwood makes Dirty Harry what he is. And as for Andy Robinson donning the role of the psychotic murderer with sniper rifle, the infamous Scorpio (loosely based on the Zodiac Killer), I haven't seen anyone playing a psychotic character alike this convincing. In fact, I am surprised he wasn't nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Perhaps if the film was to happen today, Robinson would've been nominated and won.
As the first installment in the series, Dirty Harry somewhat differs from the later comings of Callahan's adventures. Instead of an action-packed pacing, this one is a slowed down cop thriller that puts you on the edge of your seat from the first minute to the last. Heck, some of the bits are as good as horror films shot in a dark night-time, especially with Lalo Schifrin's brilliant musical tunes scary the life out of you incorporated with outstanding imagery. But, like the rest of the films in the franchise, politics and bureaucracy play a huge part in the story, as well. 10/10.
Magnum Force: This one tones down the standards of realism and Eastwood's portrayal of the extreme hard-edged cop to avoid public criticism. And of course, in comparison with its predecessor, I could say it is to Dirty Harry what Alien (1979) is to Aliens (1986). It's not the kind of thriller that would put you in the heat of the moment as you go through the film, but a regular crime-driven cop adventure with action-packed story as government system hater Inspector Callahan pursues vigilantes who are far more of haters of the system and the current law than the former, posing as traffic police officers, the case revolves around the violent murders of well-known crime lords. And besides that, there is a tension of a fallout and jealousy between Harry and his superior who prefers to go by the book as it seems. Lalo Schifrin gives his greatest into a funky yet edgy 1970s cop themed music to the soundtrack. As a film, it's purely entertaining, But, compared to the first, it's not that intense. 8/10.
A pre-Starsky & Hutch actor, David Soul plays one of the important roles in the film, for those who are interested.
The Enforcer: While it is an excellent film, and it has a great pacing, this one seems a bit off compared to the previous two as if it's more in family-friendly tone than adult. In this one, Callahan sets out for revenge as a lifelong close friend of his has been the victim of a terrorist act, whom he pursues all over San Francisco while struggling with the policies of the current administration. Eastwood, as always, is the highlight of the film, and in one of the best scenes, he goes around to insult the applicants for police duty as well as the juries for being soft. That was hell of a scene. Like Magnum Force, the plot is a bit of confusion for those who might prefer the rather simplistic approach. Sadly, Lalo Schifrin was unavailable for this one and Jerry Fielding had to fill in the shoes for him at the composer's seat... which is where one of the problems lie in. Fielding's music is somewhat different to that of Schifrin's, and for the pleasure of its enthusiasts, we are to listen to some excellent Jazz Music all along, which for a standalone album, would be a delightful trophy (for Jazz lovers). But, somehow the music doesn't have an edge and intensity into it as it's played over some scenes that involve dramatic foot chases. The sound offers the complete opposite of the image that it goes by. The cinematography doesn't do much, either, as opposed to the stylish portrayal of the imagery that the first two films showed. It was too pedestrian. Overall, it's on par with Magnum Force in its ranking. An action-packed cop adventure. I'll also give it 8/10.
The look on his face alone just describes the kind of character he is.
22 Jump Street - enjoyed the first film, this is more of the same I laughed several times which is good going with contempary comedies.
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I'll be watching this tonight, methinks!
It's fun to pretend Gran Torino is Dirty Harry 6! Clint's own little NSNA if you will ;)
Nighthawks (1981)
A decent 80's action thriller. According to trivia, this was originally conceived as The French Connection 3, and would have starred Gene Hackman and possibly Richard Pryor. Hackman was reluctant to make a third Popye Dolye film, and declined, so the film was re-written as Nighthawks. It could've worked, so long as it didn't turn out like Superman III.
I've seen Nighthawks like ten years ago. I did like it as it's a Stallone movie. Although, it's different compared to his stereotypical action movies that tried to replicate the style of the Rambo series (most of the post-1983 action movies, anyway). I don't think I could place the film among the list of action genre movies. Thriller would be more suitable.
Sudden Impact was a little less memorable- if not for the line 'Go ahead, make my day', I'd hardly remember it at all. Remember, this was back when Clint was putting his girlfriend Sondra Locke in EVERYTHING.
It was Clint's GIGLI (only kidding! :)) )
Seriously though, Sudden Impact would have ideally been the Dirty Harry/ Death Wish crossover we never got. I did like the ending when Harry tells his supervisor the killer got away (or whatever he says) when she was standing right next to him. I like how even though he was a cop, he still sympathized. That could have been Paul Kersey!
The Hunted becomes The Hunter!
It so happens that our good friend, The Rageholic, has reviewed all 5 Dirty Harry films. The usual warnings apply...
He's also reviewed the Death Wish films, beginning with...
Magnum Force in particular is superb, and that story (vigilante cops) has been told so many times since - most notably in 1983's Star Chamber with Michael Douglas, which also coincidentally starred the great Hal Holbrook in a similar role.
David Soul was chillingly excellent in Magnum Force.
One of my favorite revenge films, up there with 'Taken', 'I Saw The Devil' and 'The Man From Nowhere'. Choi Sin-Mik is a friggen beast in this film. One of the most insane and unhinged performances I've seen caught on film. The fight sequences are out of this world, especially the one in the corridor with the hammer. The end twist is just fantastic and shocking. Killer soundtrack and cinematography, too.