The French Connection (1971)

A pair of NYC cops in the Narcotics Bureau stumble onto a drug smuggling job with a French connection.

Director:

William Friedkin

Writers:

Ernest Tidyman (screenplay), Robin Moore (based on the book by),

Stars:

Gene Hackman, Fernando Rey, Roy Scheider

Won 5 Oscars. Another 18 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Gene Hackman	...	Jimmy Doyle
Fernando Rey	...	Alain Charnier
Roy Scheider	...	Det. Buddy Russo
Tony Lo Bianco	...	Sal Boca
Marcel Bozzuffi	...	Pierre Nicoli
Frédéric de Pasquale	...	Devereaux (as Frederic De Pasquale)
Bill Hickman	...	Mulderig
Ann Rebbot	...	Marie Charnier
Harold Gary	...	Weinstock
Arlene Farber	...	Angie Boca
Eddie Egan	...	Simonson
André Ernotte	...	La Valle (as Andre Ernotte)
Sonny Grosso	...	Klein
Benny Marino	...	Lou Boca
Patrick McDermott	...	Chemist (as Pat McDermott)

Storyline

William Friedkin's gritty police drama portrays two tough New York City cops trying to intercept a huge heroin shipment coming from France. An interesting contrast is established between 'Popeye' Doyle, a short-tempered alcoholic bigot who is nevertheless a hard-working and dedicated police officer, and his nemesis Alain Charnier, a suave and urbane gentleman who is nevertheless a criminal and one of the largest drug suppliers of pure heroin to North America. During the surveillance and eventual bust, Friedkin provides one of the most gripping and memorable car chase sequences ever filmed.

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Plot Keywords:

police | heroin | french | drugs | new york city | 

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Taglines:

Doyle is bad news - but a good cop.

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English French

Release Date:

9 October 1971 (USA)

Also Known As:

Contacto en Francia

Filming Locations:

Le Copain 891 1st Ave, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,800,000 (estimated)

Gross:

SEK 1,836,397 (Sweden)

Company Credits

Production Co:

D'Antoni Productions, Schine-Moore Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System) 4-Track Stereo (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The 4-door blue Ford LTD driven by the suspect has actual NY license plates 9620-WM (not a movie prop) complete with proper expiration and safety inspection stickers on the windshield. This car was registered in Westchester County just north of New York City. In the film, this car is under surveillance by detectives riding in the slightly older blue undercover Ford sedan with a straw hat on the back shelf.

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Goofs

When Popeye Doyle is on the roof looking for the sniper, he sees him on the street below running full speed away from the building. Popeye has to run down about five flights of stairs, yet when he gets out of the building the sniper has made almost no distance whatsoever.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Jimmy 'Popeye' Doyle: Merry Christmas. What's your name, little boy?
Little Boy: Eric.
Jimmy 'Popeye' Doyle: Uh-huh, Eric. What do you want for Christmas Eric? Hmmm?

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Connections

Referenced in Psych: Disco Didn't Die. It Was Murdered! (2008)

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Soundtracks

"Jingle Bells"
(1857) (uncredited)
Written by James Pierpont
Sung by Gene Hackman and the kids

User Reviews

Dirty, real, harsh--cops after big drug dealers in New York, 1971.

The French Connection (1971)

Director William Friedkin would make it impossible to see his career straight two years after "The French Connection" by directing "The Exorcist," which took on a life of its own. But prior to that, this was the movie that defined his career. It was the New Hollywood answer to film noir, and the lead male (Gene Hackman) is presented without glamour, the gritty city (New York) without dramatic shadows and light, and the plot (about modern drug dealing) without hyped up dramatics. This is a movie as down in the mouth as the world it represents, and it's all deliberate, and smart.

This is the stuff of a breakthrough movie. It isn't quite as gripping now, I think, but it still sucks you in. There are lots of scenes in cars, including the famous car chase, and lots of good old street stuff in Manhattan, very 1970 (when it was shot). The plot and pace of things is more steady than exciting, usually, not cinema verite but a kind of camera work that is unglamorous with the idea that this really is the way it is, and it works great. It would have been easy to push this farther and make it truly boring, but it doesn't go there. Instead we see the details of a couple of cops out to break a huge dope ring.

Most of the movie (I'm going to guess three quarters) is simply the cops trailing the bad guys, on foot or by car. There are very brief interspersed personal dramas, and there are conversations that keep the plot clear, but the overall big vector here is one direction, and the cops get closer in spurts and jerks to their prey. The velocity does increase gradually in the second half, with a kind of brilliant building to a finale, and by the end it's a thrilling climax.

In a way, this kind of film is the exact opposite of something like "Die Hard," which is all exaggeration and excess. And if those other kinds of movies are more fun, this is not only edgy, it's pertinent. And the music is by jazz great Don Ellis. Look for a scene with the World Trade Center towers under construction in the distance.

Check this film out. A special movie that actually reveals something about police life, hard core, no glitz.