FILM REVIEW :
"The French Connection" is William Friedkin's masterpiece & winner of 5 Academy Awards in 1971, including Best Picture, Best Director & Best Actor for Gene Hackman. This gritty police drama based on real life incidents is the film that put Gene Hackman on the map & established him as an A-list superstar. Hackman plays Popeye Doyle a fiery, short-tempered, aggressive but nevertheless dedicated New York detective. Doyle & his partner Buddy Russo (Roy Schneider) are hoping to uncover a huge heroin shipment coming from France. Fernando Ray plays suave businessman & French gentleman Alain Charnier, the mastermind behind the largest heroin supply to New York City.
Shot in real locations on real New York City streets, the surveillance sequences in the early part of the film are gripping & possibly the best put on screen. You are made to feel like you are there, on the stakeout with the two detectives. "The French Connection" features one of the best chase sequences ever put on celluloid. It is unique in that it is not between two cars (as was the case in "Bullitt") but it is a chase between a car & a train. It has been reported that Hackman did most of the driving himself & real civilian cars were on the streets at the time of shooting. It is interesting to note that real-life policemen, Eddie Egan & Sonny Grosso on which Hackman & Schneider's characters are based have small roles in the film. Egan & Grosso were also used as technical advisors to ensure absolute authenticity in the production. "The French Connection" is a fascinating & powerful film, fast, gripping, gritty & extremely entertaining.
"The French Connection" is William Friedkin's masterpiece & winner of 5 Academy Awards in 1971, including Best Picture, Best Director & Best Actor for Gene Hackman. This gritty police drama based on real life incidents is the film that put Gene Hackman on the map & established him as an A-list superstar. Hackman plays Popeye Doyle a fiery, short-tempered, aggressive but nevertheless dedicated New York detective. Doyle & his partner Buddy Russo (Roy Schneider) are hoping to uncover a huge heroin shipment coming from France. Fernando Ray plays suave businessman & French gentleman Alain Charnier, the mastermind behind the largest heroin supply to New York City.
Shot in real locations on real New York City streets, the surveillance sequences in the early part of the film are gripping & possibly the best put on screen. You are made to feel like you are there, on the stakeout with the two detectives. "The French Connection" features one of the best chase sequences ever put on celluloid. It is unique in that it is not between two cars (as was the case in "Bullitt") but it is a chase between a car & a train. It has been reported that Hackman did most of the driving himself & real civilian cars were on the streets at the time of shooting. It is interesting to note that real-life policemen, Eddie Egan & Sonny Grosso on which Hackman & Schneider's characters are based have small roles in the film. Egan & Grosso were also used as technical advisors to ensure absolute authenticity in the production. "The French Connection" is a fascinating & powerful film, fast, gripping, gritty & extremely entertaining.
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"The French Connection" is available to buy from Movies Unlimited. Click the titles below for details:
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The French Connection
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TITLE : The French Connection
YEAR OF RELEASE : 1971
CLASSIFICATION : M
DIRECTOR : William Friedkin
STARRING : Gene Hackman, Fernando Rey, Roy Scheider, Tony Lo Bianco, Marcel Bozzuffi, Eddie Egan, Sonny Grosso.
YEAR OF RELEASE : 1971
CLASSIFICATION : M
DIRECTOR : William Friedkin
STARRING : Gene Hackman, Fernando Rey, Roy Scheider, Tony Lo Bianco, Marcel Bozzuffi, Eddie Egan, Sonny Grosso.
TAGLINES :
* Doyle is bad news - but a good cop.
* The time is right for an out and out thriller like this.
* A $32,000,000 chase turns into the American thriller of the year!
* Doyle is bad news - but a good cop.
* The time is right for an out and out thriller like this.
* A $32,000,000 chase turns into the American thriller of the year!
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Above: Gene Hackman shoots to kill in the finale of the classic chase sequence.
The French Connection [DVD](1971) DVD
Five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Director and Actor, were copped by William Friedkin's fast-moving, fact-based cop drama. Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider are the New York detectives who reluctantly work with federal agents to crack a multi-million-dollar heroin ring. The harrowing car chase scene is a film classic. With Fernando Rey, Tony Lo Bianco. 104 min. Widescreen; Soundtracks: English Dolby Surround, Dolby stereo, French mono; Subtitles: English; audio commentary by Friedkin, Hackman, Scheider; theatrical trailers; BBC "making of" documentary; deleted scenes; photo gallery; two-disc set.
The French Connection Box Set VHS
Both "The French Connection: Special Edition" and "The French Connection II" are also available in a special collector's set.
The French Connection Box Set [DVD] DVD
This special boxed set includes the Academy Award-winning "The French Connection" and "The French Connection II." Three-Disc set. Widescreen; Soundtracks: English Dolby Surround 5.1, Dolby stereo, English 4.0, French mono; Subtitles: English; audio commentary by Friedkin, Hackman, Scheider, Frankenheimer; BBC "making of" documentary; theatrical trailers; deleted scenes; photo gallery; storyboard gallery.
The French Connection(1971) VHS
Five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Director and Actor, were copped by William Friedkin's fast-moving, fact-based cop drama. Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider are the New York detectives who reluctantly work with federal agents to crack a multi-million-dollar heroin ring. The harrowing car chase scene is a film classic. With Fernando Rey, Tony Lo Bianco. 104 min. Widescreen; Soundtracks: English Dolby Surround, Dolby stereo, French mono; Subtitles: English; audio commentary by Friedkin, Hackman, Scheider; theatrical trailers; BBC "making of" documentary; deleted scenes; photo gallery; two-disc set.
The French Connection Box Set VHS
Both "The French Connection: Special Edition" and "The French Connection II" are also available in a special collector's set.
The French Connection Box Set [DVD] DVD
This special boxed set includes the Academy Award-winning "The French Connection" and "The French Connection II." Three-Disc set. Widescreen; Soundtracks: English Dolby Surround 5.1, Dolby stereo, English 4.0, French mono; Subtitles: English; audio commentary by Friedkin, Hackman, Scheider, Frankenheimer; BBC "making of" documentary; theatrical trailers; deleted scenes; photo gallery; storyboard gallery.
The French Connection(1971) VHS
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