Dirty Harry (film series)

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Dirty Harry
Dirty Harry.png
Created by
Original work Dirty Harry (1971)
Owner Warner Bros.
Years1971–1988
Print publications
Novel(s) List of novels
Films and television
Film(s)
Games
Video game(s)
Miscellaneous
Pinball Dirty Harry
Dirty Harry
Directed by
Written by
Produced by
Starring Clint Eastwood
Cinematography
Edited by
Music by
Production
company
Distributed by Warner Bros.
Release date
1971–1988
Running time
530 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$66 million (four films, except 2)
Box office$309.9 million (worldwide)

Dirty Harry is an American neo-noir action thriller film series featuring San Francisco Police Department Homicide Division Inspector "Dirty" Harry Callahan. There are five films: Dirty Harry (1971), Magnum Force (1973), The Enforcer (1976), Sudden Impact (1983) and The Dead Pool (1988). Clint Eastwood portrayed Callahan in all five films and directed Sudden Impact.

Contents

Callahan is notorious for his unorthodox, violent and ruthless methods against the criminals and killers he is assigned to apprehend. At the same time, he is assigned a partner who is usually either killed or seriously injured during the film.

Films

Dirty Harry (1971)

Dirty Harry (1971) was directed by Don Siegel and starred Clint Eastwood as Harry Callahan. Harry tracks serial killer Scorpio (loosely based on the Zodiac killer). Eastwood's iconic portrayal of the blunt-speaking, unorthodox detective set the style for a number of his subsequent roles, and its box-office success led to the production of four sequels. The "alienated cop" motif was subsequently imitated by a number of other films. At the beginning of the film, Callahan corners a bank robber and says, "You've got to ask yourself a question: 'Do I feel lucky?'. Well, do ya, punk?". The line became famous, although often misquoted as "Do you feel lucky, punk?"; the second movie, Magnum Force, opens with Harry asking, "Do you feel lucky?"

It was the fourth-highest-grossing film of 1971 after Fiddler on the Roof , The French Connection , and Diamonds Are Forever .

Magnum Force (1973)

Magnum Force (1973) was directed by Ted Post. The main theme of this film is vigilante justice, and the plot revolves around a group of renegade traffic cops who are executing criminals who have avoided conviction in court. Despite Harry's penchant for strong-arm methods, he does not tolerate coldblooded murder of the accused and resolves to stop the killers. In this film, Harry's catch-phrase is "A man's got to know his limitations".

The Enforcer (1976)

The Enforcer (1976) was directed by James Fargo. In this film, Harry is teamed with a female partner with no field experience (in 1976, American women had only recently been allowed to fill patrol and investigative assignments in most police bureaus), Inspector Kate Moore (Tyne Daly), as they take on a terrorist ring calling themselves the People's Revolutionary Strike Force. Harry opposes introducing inexperienced officers to the dangers of police work, whether male or female, and sees the homicide division as too dangerous for his new partner, who worked until recently in the personnel department. Though Moore starts out overenthusiastic, she soon proves herself valuable to Harry, and matures quickly, earning Harry's respect in the process.

Sudden Impact (1983)

Sudden Impact (1983) was directed by Clint Eastwood. Aging, but still bitter, Callahan is sent to a small town to follow up a lead in a murder case, which leads him directly to a rape victim who is out to avenge herself and her catatonic sister by killing the people who sexually assaulted them. The film is notable for Callahan's catchphrase, "Go ahead, make my day".

The Dead Pool (1988)

The Dead Pool (1988) was directed by Buddy Van Horn. Harry finds that he is among the subjects of a dead pool, a game betting on deaths of celebrities. Someone tries to rig the game by killing the celebrities on one player's list. Harry's catch phrase in this movie was "You're shit out of luck".

After this film, Eastwood retired from playing the Dirty Harry character, as he felt his age (58 in 1988) would make Harry a parody.

Cast

CharacterFilms
Dirty Harry Magnum Force The Enforcer Sudden Impact The Dead Pool
19711973197619831988
Harry Callahan Clint Eastwood
Frank DiGiorgio John Mitchum  
The Mayor John Vernon   John Crawford  
Al Bressler Harry Guardino  Harry Guardino 
Scorpio Andy Robinson  
Chico Gonzalez Reni Santoni  
Bank Robber Albert Popwell  
Lt. Neil Briggs  Hal Holbrook  
Charlie McCoy  Mitchell Ryan  
John Davis  David Soul  
Red Astrachan  Kip Niven  
Mike Grimes  Robert Urich  
Phil Sweet  Tim Matheson  
Earlington "Early" Smith  Felton Perry  
J.J. Wilson  Albert Popwell  
Kate Moore  Tyne Daly  
Bobby Maxwell   DeVeren Bookwalter  
Lalo  Michael Cavanaugh  
Karl  Dick Durock  
Abdul Kenneth Boyd 
Miki Jocelyn Jones 
Father John  M. G. Kelly  
Big Ed Mustapha  Albert Popwell  
Jennifer Spencer  Sondra Locke  
Mick Paul Drake 
Ray Perkins  Audrie J. Neenan  
Lester Jannings  Pat Hingle  
Horace King  Albert Popwell  
Capt. Jerome McKay  Bradford Dillman  
Capt. Briggs  Bradford Dillman  
Lt. Donnelly  Michael Currie
Samantha Walker  Patricia Clarkson
Peter Swan  Liam Neeson
Al Quan  Evan C. Kim
Harlan Rook  David Hunt
Johnny Squares  Jim Carrey

Reception

YearFilm Rotten Tomatoes Metacritic Box office [1] Inflation adjusted (as of 2019) [1]
1971 Dirty Harry 88% (49 reviews) [2] 87 (10 reviews) [3] $35,976,000$196,886,800
1973 Magnum Force 70% (27 reviews) [4] 58 (7 reviews) [5] $39,768,000$202,884,200
1976 The Enforcer 69% (35 reviews) [6] 58 (7 reviews) [7] $46,236,000$196,014,600
1983 Sudden Impact 57% (37 reviews) [8] 52 (13 reviews) [9] $67,642,693$187,900,400
1988 The Dead Pool 55% (33 reviews) [10] 46 (15 reviews) [11] $37,903,295$83,276,600

Influence on other productions

Sin City: That Yellow Bastard

Frank Miller, creator of the Sin City graphic novels, revealed in an interview that he created the Sin City story-arc That Yellow Bastard out of his dislike of The Dead Pool. Miller said: "When I went to see the last Dirty Harry movie, The Dead Pool, I was disgusted. I went out and said, this is not a Dirty Harry movie, this is nothing, this is a pale sequel." and I also said, "that's not the last Dirty Harry story, I will show you the last Dirty Harry story." [12] Another character in That Yellow Bastard story is Nancy Callahan, named after Harry Callahan.

Bruce Willis played Hartigan, the "Dirty Harry of the story", in the Sin City (2005) film.

The Protector

This 1985 film featuring Jackie Chan was Chan's second American feature film. The movie was noted for being similar to the Dirty Harry series, with inspiration taken from there by director James Glickenhaus.

The Rookie

Directed by and co-starring Clint Eastwood; the film features an aging, tough cop who partners with a rookie cop, played by Charlie Sheen. Upon the film's release critics and audiences noted the similarities between Eastwood's two characters. [13]

Gran Torino

Eastwood returned to acting after a four-year self-imposed hiatus [14] in this 2008 film, which he also directed, produced, and partly scored with his son Kyle and Jamie Cullum. Eastwood plays Walt Kowalski, a recently widowed Korean War veteran alienated from his family and angry at the world. Walt's young neighbor, Thao Vang Lor, is pressured into stealing Walt's prized 1972 Ford Gran Torino by his cousin for his initiation into a gang. Walt thwarts the theft and subsequently develops a relationship with the boy and his family.

Biographer Marc Eliot called Eastwood's role "an amalgam of the Man with No Name, Dirty Harry, and William Munny , here, aged and cynical, but willing and able to fight on whenever the need arose". [15] Manohla Dargis compared Eastwood's presence on film to Dirty Harry and the Man with No Name, stating, "Dirty Harry is back, in a way, in Gran Torino, not as a character but as a ghostly presence. He hovers in the film, in its themes and high-caliber imagery, and of course, most obviously in Mr. Eastwood's face. It is a monumental face now, so puckered and pleated that it no longer looks merely weathered, as it has for decades, but seems closer to petrified wood." [16]

Tania Modleski, author of Clint Eastwood and Male Weepies, said, "[f]or many reviewers, Gran Torino represents the final step in Eastwood's repudiation of the Dirty Harry persona. If Unforgiven ends up being equivocal in its attitude toward violence and vigilantism, Gran Torino appears to accept the impotence of the lone, avenging hero" and that the impotence "is perhaps underlined by Walt's repeated gesture of pointing his finger at villains as if it were a gun." [17] Amy Biancolli of the Houston Chronicle said that though Walt, an "old fart", does not have the same name as Dirty Harry, "there's no mistaking the rasp in his voice or the uncompromising crankiness of his Weltanschauung ." [18] Tom Charity of CNN said of Walt, "Like other Eastwood heroes before him, Walt sacrifices his independence by accepting that others depend on him." [19] John Serba of The Grand Rapids Press said that Walt, who is "bitter, hopelessly cranky," "shares a sense of moral certainty" with Callahan, but that Walt "is infused with the wisdom and weariness" that Callahan does not have. [20]

Home media

Warner Home Video owns rights to the Dirty Harry series. The five films have been remastered for DVD three times — in 1998, 2001 and 2008. They have been packaged in several DVD box sets. The Dirty Harry films made their high-definition debuts with the 2008 Blu-ray discs. Warner's marketing plan calls for only "The Dead Pool" film to be available as a separate Blu-ray, requiring fans who want the other four movies in high definition to buy the box set. [21] In 2010 all five movies were released as a Blu-ray box set, "Clint Eastwood Dirty Harry Collection".

Other media

Novels

In the early 1980s, Warner Books published twelve books, authored under the pseudonym Dane Hartman, that further the adventures of Dirty Harry. The novels were later translated into French in the 1990s, as the Collection Supercops. [22]

Video games

In 1995 Williams Electronic Games (WMS) created a Dirty Harry pinball machine, inspired by the 1971 film. 4,248 units were manufactured. Notable features include a gun handle shooter, a moving cannon used to shoot playfield targets and custom audio callouts recorded by Clint Eastwood. Game modes, sounds and dot matrix animations reflect events in the film, such as a car chase, barroom brawl, defusing bombs and "Feel Lucky" mode. [23]

Dirty Harry is a 1990 video game based on Dirty Harry film series. It incorporates several references to the film series.

Dirty Harry , originally scheduled for a 2007 release, is a canceled video game by The Collective based on the 1971 film of the same name.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clint Eastwood</span> American actor and film director (born 1930)

Clinton Eastwood Jr. is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western TV series Rawhide, Eastwood rose to international fame with his role as the "Man with No Name" in Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy of spaghetti Westerns during the mid-1960s and as antihero cop Harry Callahan in the five Dirty Harry films throughout the 1970s and 1980s. These roles, among others, have made Eastwood an enduring cultural icon of masculinity. Elected in 1986, Eastwood served for two years as the mayor of Carmel-by-the-Sea, California.

<i>Dirty Harry</i> 1971 film by Don Siegel

Dirty Harry is a 1971 American action thriller film produced and directed by Don Siegel, the first in the Dirty Harry series. Clint Eastwood plays the title role, in his first appearance as San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) Inspector "Dirty" Harry Callahan. The film drew upon the real-life case of the Zodiac Killer as the Callahan character seeks out a similar vicious psychopath.

<i>Magnum Force</i> 1973 film

Magnum Force is a 1973 American neo-noir action thriller film and the second to feature Clint Eastwood as maverick cop Harry Callahan after the 1971 film Dirty Harry. Ted Post, who had previously worked with Eastwood on Rawhide and Hang 'Em High, directed the film. The screenplay was written by John Milius and Michael Cimino. The film score was composed by Lalo Schifrin. This film features early appearances by David Soul, Tim Matheson and Robert Urich. At 123 minutes, it is the longest of the five Dirty Harry films.

<i>The Enforcer</i> (1976 film) 1976 film by James Fargo

The Enforcer is a 1976 American neo-noir action thriller film and the third in the Dirty Harry film series. Directed by James Fargo, it stars Clint Eastwood as Inspector "Dirty" Harry Callahan, Tyne Daly as Inspector Kate Moore, and DeVeren Bookwalter as criminal mastermind Bobby Maxwell. It was also the last film in the series to feature John Mitchum as Inspector Frank DiGiorgio.

<i>Sudden Impact</i> 1983 film by Clint Eastwood

Sudden Impact is a 1983 American neo-noir action thriller film, the fourth in the Dirty Harry series, directed, produced by and starring Clint Eastwood and co-starring Sondra Locke. The film tells the story of a gang rape victim (Locke) who decides to seek revenge on her rapists 10 years after the attack by killing them one by one. Inspector Callahan (Eastwood), famous for his unconventional and often brutal crime-fighting tactics, is tasked with tracking down the serial killer.

<i>The Dead Pool</i> 1988 film by Buddy Van Horn

The Dead Pool is a 1988 American neo-noir action thriller film directed by Buddy Van Horn, written by Steve Sharon, and starring Clint Eastwood as Inspector "Dirty" Harry Callahan. It is the fifth and final film in the Dirty Harry film series and is set in San Francisco, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clint Eastwood filmography</span>

Clint Eastwood is an American film actor, director, producer, and composer. He has appeared in over 60 films. His career has spanned 65 years and began with small uncredited film roles and television appearances. Eastwood has acted in multiple television series, including the eight-season series Rawhide (1959–1965). Although he appeared in several earlier films, mostly uncredited, his breakout film role was as the Man with No Name in the Sergio Leone–directed Dollars Trilogy: A Fistful of Dollars (1964), For a Few Dollars More (1965), and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966), which weren't released in the United States until 1967/68. In 1971, Eastwood made his directorial debut with Play Misty for Me. Also that year, he starred as San Francisco police inspector Harry Callahan in Dirty Harry. The film received critical acclaim, and spawned four more films: Magnum Force (1973), The Enforcer (1976), Sudden Impact (1983), and The Dead Pool (1988).

Dirty Harry is a canceled video game that was in development by The Collective intended to be published by Warner Bros. Interactive. The game was to continue the story of the 1971 film of the same name starring Clint Eastwood as Harry Callahan, the protagonist. Eastwood was intended to reprise his role, lending his voice and likeness as well as consulting and creative input. The game was to follow the same storyline of the film, with the San Francisco detective tracking down a serial killer named Scorpio. Versions were planned for both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles, with a release in 2007.

<i>Coogans Bluff</i> (film) 1968 film by Don Siegel

Coogan's Bluff is a 1968 American crime thriller film directed and produced by Don Siegel. It stars Clint Eastwood, Susan Clark, Don Stroud, Tisha Sterling, Betty Field and Lee J. Cobb. The film marks the first of five collaborations between Siegel and Eastwood, which continued with Two Mules for Sister Sara (1970), The Beguiled (1971), Dirty Harry (1971) and Escape from Alcatraz (1979).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dirty Harry (character)</span> Fictional character

Inspector Harold Francis Callahan, nicknamed Dirty Harry, is a fictional character and protagonist of the Dirty Harry film series, which consists of Dirty Harry (1971), Magnum Force (1973), The Enforcer (1976), Sudden Impact (1983), and The Dead Pool (1988). Callahan is portrayed by Clint Eastwood in each film.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Go ahead, make my day</span> Film catchphrase in 1983s Sudden Impact

"Go ahead, make my day" is a catchphrase from the 1983 film Sudden Impact, spoken by the character Harry Callahan, played by Clint Eastwood. The iconic line was written by John Milius, whose writing contributions to the film were uncredited, but has also been attributed to Charles B. Pierce, who wrote the film's story, and to Joseph Stinson, who wrote the screenplay. In 2005, it was chosen as No. 6 on the American Film Institute list AFI's 100 Years...100 Movie Quotes.

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Dirty Harry novels include film novelizations and original tie-ins based on the Dirty Harry film franchise. Like the films, the novels portray Inspector "Dirty Harry" Callahan as he ruthlessly fights criminals.

<i>Gran Torino</i> 2008 American film by Clint Eastwood

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walt Kowalski</span> Fictional character in the 2008 film Gran Torino

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References

  1. 1 2 "Franchise: Dirty Harry". boxofficemojo.com.
  2. ↑ "Dirty Harry". rottentomatoes.com. December 24, 1971.
  3. ↑ "Dirty Harry". metacritic.com. December 24, 1971.
  4. ↑ "Magnum Force". rottentomatoes.com. January 1, 1973.
  5. ↑ "Magnum Force". metacritic.com. January 1, 1973.
  6. ↑ "The Enforcer". rottentomatoes.com. January 1, 1976.
  7. ↑ "The Enforcer". metacritic.com. January 1, 1976.
  8. ↑ "Sudden Impact". rottentomatoes.com. January 1, 1983.
  9. ↑ "Sudden Impact". metacritic.com. January 1, 1983.
  10. ↑ "The Dead Pool". rottentomatoes.com. July 13, 1988.
  11. ↑ "The Dead Pool". metacritic.com. July 13, 1988.
  12. ↑ Robert, Daniel (August 3, 2005). "Interviews > Frank Miller Creator Of Sin City". Suicidegirls.com. Archived from the original on July 23, 2008. Retrieved April 24, 2012.
  13. ↑ "Variety Reviews - The Rookie - Film Reviews - - Review by Variety Staff". Variety.com. December 31, 1989. Retrieved April 24, 2012.
  14. ↑ Turan, Kenneth (December 12, 2008). "Review: 'Gran Torino'". Los Angeles Times . Archived from the original on November 26, 2011.
  15. ↑ Eliot, Marc (2009). American Rebel: The Life of Clint Eastwood . New York: Harmony Books. p.  329. ISBN   978-0-307-33688-0.
  16. ↑ Dargis, Manohla (December 12, 2008). "Hope for a Racist, and Maybe a Country". The New York Times . Retrieved January 10, 2010.
  17. ↑ Modleski, Tania. "Clint Eastwood and Male Weepies." American Literary History . 2010. Volume 22, Issue 1. p. 136-158. DOI 10.1093/alh/ajp051. First published online on November 20, 2009.
  18. ↑ Biancolli, Amy. "Gran Torino." Houston Chronicle . Thursday January 8, 2009. Retrieved on March 16, 2012.
  19. ↑ Charity, Tom. "Review: 'Gran Torino' offers great Eastwood." CNN . January 9, 2009. 2. Retrieved on March 16, 2012.
  20. ↑ Serba, John. "Scowls, subtlety make 'Gran Torino' classic Clint Eastwood." The Grand Rapids Press . Friday January 9, 2009. Retrieved on March 16, 2012.
  21. ↑ "New Dirty Harry DVDs: We're in luck - DVD Spin Doctor". Dvdspindoctor.typepad.com. March 10, 2008. Retrieved April 24, 2012.
  22. ↑ Used book ad for the French version of The Long Death. Archived October 28, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  23. ↑ "The Internet Pinball Machine Database".
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