Magnum Force (1973)

Dirty Harry is on the trail of vigilante cops who are not above going beyond the law to kill the city's undesirables.

Director:

Ted Post

Writers:

Harry Julian Fink (original material), Rita M. Fink (original material),

Stars:

Clint Eastwood, Hal Holbrook, Mitch Ryan

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Clint Eastwood	...	Harry Callahan
Hal Holbrook	...	Lt. Briggs
Mitch Ryan	...	McCoy (as Mitchell Ryan)
David Soul	...	Davis
Tim Matheson	...	Sweet
Kip Niven	...	Astrachan
Robert Urich	...	Grimes
Felton Perry	...	Early Smith
Maurice Argent	...	Nat Weinstein
Margaret Avery	...	Prostitute
Richard Devon	...	Ricca
Tony Giorgio	...	Palancio
Jack Kosslyn	...	Walter
Bob March	...	Estabrook
Bob McClurg	...	Cab Driver

Storyline

San Francisco Police Inspector 'Dirty' Harry Callahan and his new partner, Early Smith have been temporarily reassigned from Homicide to Stakeout Duty. Meanwhile, those of the city's criminals who manage to avoid punishment by the courts are nevertheless being killed by unknown assassins. Callahan begins to investigate the murders despite the orders of his superior officer, Lieutenant Briggs. A man has to know his limitations...

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Plot Keywords:

dirty harry | police | murder | partner | pimp | 

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Taglines:

A man's got to know his limitations.

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Genres:

Action | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 December 1973 (USA)

Also Known As:

Vigilance

Filming Locations:

1501 Leavenworth Street, San Francisco, California, USA

Box Office

Gross:

SEK 2,295,452 (Sweden)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros, Malpaso Company, The

Technical Specs

Runtime:

124 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The air traffic controller who speaks to Lt. Briggs wears a pocket protector which reads "PATCO". This stands for "Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization" and was the union whose members were fired by Ronald Reagan for going on strike in 1981.

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Goofs

Just after Harry gets word there's trouble in the airport, we hear a female voice over the public address system: "American Airlines Flight 557, Electra II Flagship, nonstop for Washington, now boarding at Gate 5." American Airlines stopped using Electra IIs in 1969. In fact, the full-size Lockheed Electra II turboprop had virtually disappeared from all U.S. airlines by the time of "Magnum Force."

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Quotes

Sunny: [as Harry walks by to his appartment] Hi!
Harry Callahan: Oh, hi... what's your name?
Sunny: Sunny. You know, I've been living here for almost six months now. It's funny I've never met you before.
Harry Callahan: Oh well... I work a lot.
Sunny: I know. You're the cop who lives upstairs.
Harry Callahan: That's right.
Sunny: Mind if I ask you a question?
Harry Callahan: Go ahead.
Sunny: What does a girl have to do to go to bed with you?
Harry Callahan: [blinks twice, then smiles] Try knocking on the door.

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Crazy Credits

The credits are played over a hand (presumably Harry's) holding a 44 Magnum against a red background. As such, this is the only Dirty Harry movie in which the opening credits are not played over San Francisco scenery.

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Connections

Featured in The Hero Cop: Yesterday and Today (1973)

User Reviews

Good Movie

I sometimes wonder if "Magnum Force" is a better movie than "Dirty Harry." In the latter, Harry Calahan is up against a psycho causing panic, while in "Magnum Force" Harry opposes a number of enemies: enemies he would not have expected at first. Crime is still on the rise, there is too much corruption and too few 'real' cops, like him. When he meets some young, aspiring cops he is amazed by their qualities. Great acting by Clint Eastwood who is just perfect in playing the old-fashioned Harry Callahan. There is violence, but the strange thing is you support Callahan in 'cleaning' the city. One of the best in the Dirty Harry-series.