NYPD officers Doyle (Hackman) and Russo (Schneider) find out about and pursue (on a hunch) the possibility of a drug deal between low-level gangbanger Sal Boca (Lo Bianco) and a French trafficker, Alan Charnier (Rey). Doyle’s maverick style makes him no friends, and the parties involved in the deal are ready to outwit the narcotics cops at any time.
Hackman, Schneider are standouts
Hackman and Schneider are perfectly cast as the partners, one impulsive and the other reticent. Hackman’s legendary acting prowess shows here – the man is able to hop from jovial to raging in a heartbeat, and casting the suave, chilled in comparison Schneider gives the film’s star pairing a jarring yet alluring quality.
Fernando Rey, as French drug trafficker Alain Charnier, dominates the support – his seemingly harmless old man in reality a truly reprehensible criminal; one who seems to be able to outwit his police pursuers at any turn. Tony Lo Bianco as Sal Boca is manifest of the low-life looking for a bigger score, whilst Marcel Bozzuffi portrays Charnier’s henchman Nicoli with a steely evil.
Gritty Action with Snappy Script
William Friedkin creates some of the most realistic car-chases ever put to film, as well as capturing the gritty, run-down heart of New York. Friedkin, later to be known more for his skill helming The Exorcist, commits to film a vision of police-work and gritty urban realism that is quite rightly lauded almost forty years later. The action and dialogue scenes sit perfectly in proximity, and the rising tension throughout the movie, as well as the sharp beats of action, present a tightly-produced and slick movie that any director would be proud of.
Most people will know of the Poughkeepsie dialogue, and its bizarre nature. The rest of the film’s script is full of intelligent discussion and real-life references however, and the fact that the narrative is based on a real-life counterpart series of events only adds to the realism of the procedurals. Doyle does get the best lines, and Hackman can deliver any form of dialogue with a rasping sarcasm if he wants.
The score is brooding – at the onset it’s swift, reflecting the quick and brash entry into the events, but later it builds tension, very reminiscent of the Dirty Harry score – urbane and seventies. The car chase that is so revered is a brutal, bone-crushing scene that Friedkin filmed without the permission of the city of New York. Bear that in mind when the car is smashed to pieces as it pursues its target – this is the level of realism that Friedkin aimed for, and this, along with the dilapidated, crumbling surroundings, adds another layer of realism atop a film already too close to reality for its own good.
Impressive Achievement
This really is a quite amazing film, not only for its time but in watching now – a taut thriller, filled with the right amount of grit and power to reflect its source events as well as produce a gripping fictional narrative.
