The French Connection (1971)
9.22.2005
First viewing
DVD (Netflix)
Movie: D+
Audio: B
Video: C
I've read a lot of good things about The French Connection. It seems like everyone loves it, and the film is consistently hailed as one of the best cop dramas ever. Let me be blunt: it is not one of the best cop dramas ever.
We'll start with what is simultaneously a strength and a weakness: the story and script. The French Connection's screenplay doesn't spoon feed the viewer. Small details are left to the viewer to figure out. Standard literary devices like foreshadowing are completely absent. There are times when the movie feels like it is rushing by, moving too fast to keep up with, making the plot seem like it isn't properly fleshed out. While this should draw the viewer in, forcing one to piece together the story just as the detectives do, it actually alienated me. If I had cared about the characters or the outcome of the story, it may have worked. But since I didn't care that much, I wasn't willing to invest the effort. So the story flew by, and parts are still somewhat confusing.
In between the small pieces of story that the screenplay actually gives the viewer are chase scenes. Chase after chase after chase after... You get the point. Watching cops tail criminals does get a bit repetitive after a while. A short while. 20 minutes into the film, and I was already tired of watching The French Connection. Not a good sign.
The acting was good; Gene Hackman is almost always enjoyable. But even he couldn't save this one. The two main characters, played by Hackman and Roy Scheider, were just standard "tough guy" cops. Maybe this was radical and new in 1971, but now, that's what every movie cop is. With characters who live their jobs (literally, I don't know if these guys had lives outside of police work) there's not a whole lot to work with, even for the best actors.
There were a few positives. Willam Friedkin's direction was superb. Using odd angles and cleverly placed zooms he achieved a documentary feel that really heightened the realism of the film. The Nova vs El chase was exciting and well-shot. I loved the gritty, true-to-life feel that film possessed. A lot of movies shoot for this level of realism, but never come close. The French Connection seems to achieve it easily.
The DVD did a fair job of recreating this realism and grit. The 5.1-channel sound mix wasn't overpowering or gimmicky. Subtle traffic noises and a few gun shots were the only things I noticed in the surrounds, which is how it should be. The music was mixed well and the dialogue was clear. The sound did lack dynamic range. There wasn't any real LFE to speak of, and the highs sounded a bit muffled. The video had a lot of grain, but I doubt it was any more than the original film. It added to the grit of the city and wasn't distracting in the least. Detail levels were fair, even good for a movie of this age. I did think some of the interior scenes with lower light levels appeared a tad murky. But, overall, a decent video presentation.
Regardless of the acting, direction, and quality of the DVD, The French Connection fails to entertain. The uninteresting story doesn't warrant the extra work to piece the details together, leaving the viewer confused and unsatisfied. The chase scenes, aside from the car-chasing-train scene, are repetitive and tedious to watch. What it comes down to is this: The French Connection isn't fun to watch. It's more like a chore.
First viewing
DVD (Netflix)
Movie: D+
Audio: B
Video: C
I've read a lot of good things about The French Connection. It seems like everyone loves it, and the film is consistently hailed as one of the best cop dramas ever. Let me be blunt: it is not one of the best cop dramas ever.
We'll start with what is simultaneously a strength and a weakness: the story and script. The French Connection's screenplay doesn't spoon feed the viewer. Small details are left to the viewer to figure out. Standard literary devices like foreshadowing are completely absent. There are times when the movie feels like it is rushing by, moving too fast to keep up with, making the plot seem like it isn't properly fleshed out. While this should draw the viewer in, forcing one to piece together the story just as the detectives do, it actually alienated me. If I had cared about the characters or the outcome of the story, it may have worked. But since I didn't care that much, I wasn't willing to invest the effort. So the story flew by, and parts are still somewhat confusing.
In between the small pieces of story that the screenplay actually gives the viewer are chase scenes. Chase after chase after chase after... You get the point. Watching cops tail criminals does get a bit repetitive after a while. A short while. 20 minutes into the film, and I was already tired of watching The French Connection. Not a good sign.
The acting was good; Gene Hackman is almost always enjoyable. But even he couldn't save this one. The two main characters, played by Hackman and Roy Scheider, were just standard "tough guy" cops. Maybe this was radical and new in 1971, but now, that's what every movie cop is. With characters who live their jobs (literally, I don't know if these guys had lives outside of police work) there's not a whole lot to work with, even for the best actors.
There were a few positives. Willam Friedkin's direction was superb. Using odd angles and cleverly placed zooms he achieved a documentary feel that really heightened the realism of the film. The Nova vs El chase was exciting and well-shot. I loved the gritty, true-to-life feel that film possessed. A lot of movies shoot for this level of realism, but never come close. The French Connection seems to achieve it easily.
The DVD did a fair job of recreating this realism and grit. The 5.1-channel sound mix wasn't overpowering or gimmicky. Subtle traffic noises and a few gun shots were the only things I noticed in the surrounds, which is how it should be. The music was mixed well and the dialogue was clear. The sound did lack dynamic range. There wasn't any real LFE to speak of, and the highs sounded a bit muffled. The video had a lot of grain, but I doubt it was any more than the original film. It added to the grit of the city and wasn't distracting in the least. Detail levels were fair, even good for a movie of this age. I did think some of the interior scenes with lower light levels appeared a tad murky. But, overall, a decent video presentation.
Regardless of the acting, direction, and quality of the DVD, The French Connection fails to entertain. The uninteresting story doesn't warrant the extra work to piece the details together, leaving the viewer confused and unsatisfied. The chase scenes, aside from the car-chasing-train scene, are repetitive and tedious to watch. What it comes down to is this: The French Connection isn't fun to watch. It's more like a chore.
posted by Ethan at
9/23/2005 06:52:00 AM
2 Comments:
Holy crap...that review is spot-on. For some reason I thought you were going to like this one, but that last sentence pretty much describes exactly how I felt. Now, can someone explain why I always hear this and Ronin in the same conversation? It's usually got something to do with the chase scenes, but I think it's pretty clear which one of those two has better ones. Normally I like my car chases to exceed 30 mph, and involve vehicles that do not have routes detirmined by the type of vehicle it is, ie, A TRAIN!
By
Micah B, at 9/23/2005 09:29:00 AM
Finally, a movie we agree on :) Ronin is clearly the superior film, especially in regards to the chase scenes.
By
Ethan, at 9/23/2005 10:27:00 AM
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