Customer Reviews

The Enforcer (Deluxe Edition)

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(14)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This is the third of five "Dirty Harry" films in which Eastwood stars as a San Francisco police detective. By the time the last appeared (The Dead Pool, in 1988), Eastwood had aged and times had changed but Callahan's non-negotiaable values and unorthodox methods had remained essentially the same. What I find especially interesting in this film is the relationship which develops between Callahan and his partner Kate Moore, skillfully portrayed by Tyne Daly. Until now, Callahan has indeed been a "lone ranger," alienated (by choice or circumstance) from his superiors and fellow officers as well as from the criminals whom he pursues with deadly efficiency. Over time, Moore eventually earns Callahan's respect and trust (albeit grudgingly) as they attempt to rescue San Francisco's kidnapped mayor (John Crawford) amidst all manner of mayhem unrelated to that assignment. Credit James Fargo with keeping the narrative flowing smoothly. The supporting cast is solid, notably Bradford Dillman (Captain McKay) and Harry Guardino (Lieutenant Bressler). There is plenty of action, of course, skillfully presented. Despite its lack of much subtlety or nuance, I recommend it to those with a taste for this sort of urban adventure film. Those who enjoy it should also check out Coogan's Bluff and Bullitt (both 1968) as well as The Gauntlet (1977).

In the original "Dirty Harry," Inspector Harry Callahan (Clint Eastwood) went after a serial killer and in the "Magnum Force" sequel he went after vigilante cops. To balance the latter, with its liberal nightmare, the third film in the series, "The Enforcer," offers up a conservative counterpart by having the villains be long-haired hippie freaks in something called the Ecumenical Liberation Army (i.e., think about Tanya, a.k.a. Patty Hearst, and the SLA). The obvious point is that when it comes to be judge, jury, and executioner, Dirty Harry does not make distinctions, ideological or otherwise.

On the one hand the villains in "The Enforcer" are the weakest of any of the films in the series, but then the ELA is only Dirty Harry's target and not his opponent. That would be Kate Moore (Tyne Daly). The film begins with another example of how Dirty Harry has this bad habit of going after criminals on the streets of San Francisco in his own special way (hey, criminals ask for a car, Harry gives them a car), which always gets him punished by being transferred from Homicide to something less fun like the Personnel department, which is where he ends up this time, working on the promotion board. When he first Moore she is up for a promotion and although he puts her through the wringer, making clear his disdain for the idea that a woman can be a good cop, the politics of the time not only ensure that she gets promoted to fullfill some quota, but the ironic frame of the film means she ends up being Harry's partner when he is put back on the street so that he has a chance to go around and shoot more people, who, this time around at least, tend to start shooting first so that it is more self defense than natural orneriness when Harry starts firing back with greater accuracy and bigger bullets.

Moore surprises Harry because she is not stupid, either in what she says or does, and manages to learn from him despite his attitude and unwillingness to explicitly teacher her anything about the job. Of course, in due time she actually saves Harry's life and he is forced to mumble something about how he could have a worse partner than Moore. Of course, in retrospect we are not surprised that Tyne Daly, who went on to win four Emmys (including three in a row) for her consummate performance as Mary Beth Lacey on "Cagney & Lacey), can hold her own with Clint Eastwood. Given how laughable the hippie revolutionaries are this film could have ended up being a big joke without her performance and the chemistry she has with the star, which is made all the more impressive by the fact that there is absolute nothing sexual about their relationship.

The best parts of this movie are Harry and Moore establishing their relationship and becoming a team. These are the scenes that have not only the most humor, as Harry's chauvinism runs into Moore's competence, but also that actually bet beyond the facade of the character of Dirty Harry. This is what makes many of the action sequences, in contrast, to seem so cartoonish, especially in the film's end game when the mayor is kidnapped and Harry gets to use a bazooka during the final shootout on Alcatraz Island. It might seem strange that the interpersonal relationship is the best part of a Dirty Harry movie, but that is the part of "The Enforcer" that gets five stars, while the violence that was supposed to be the big attraction gets only a three (and the film almost loses another star because of the costumes and music, even more so now that they are both so outdated).

Fans of Clint Eastwood's original "Dirty Harry" will find little to cheer about in this uninspired sequel. Despite good performances by Eastwood and co-star Tyne Daly, "The Enforcer" (1976) suffers from a poorly developed script and James Fargo's lackluster direction. The action highlights are rather sparse, with surprisingly few Clint one-liners to enliven the proceedings. Jerry Fielding's jazz-oriented score is a weak substitute for the pulsating rhythms of composer Lalo Schifrin. A definite low point in the Inspector Callahan series.

The third Dirty Harry, this time with Eastwood taking on a gang of crooks posing as terrorists who kidnap the mayor of San Francisco (John Crawford) for ransom. Tyne Daley as Callahan's partner and Bradford Dillman as Eastwood's superior.
Mckay: What meeting?
Harry: The meeting in this office three months ago when you said a high priority was to run these hoods out of San Francisco.
McKay: I never said to use violence.
Harry: What did you want me to do, yell Trick or Treat at them?
Eastwood's buddy the late Albert Popwell appears for the third time, this time as revoluntionary Big Ed Mustafa. Last appearence for John Mitchum as Frank D'igeorgio and a really pyscho performance by Devereen Bookwalter as Bobbie Maxwell, the ring leader. Grand finale is a battle on Alcatraz.

The Enforcer is the second sequel to Dirty Harry. In this installment, Harry Callahan, the renegade cop with some old-fashioned attitudes and no desire to be tied up with a partner, gets stuck with a female partner, well played by Tyne Daly. Surprise surprise, he learns to respect and rely on her as they make hamburger of a group of domestic terrorists. As in the first two movies, there's plenty of action, suspense, people getting shot, etc., but with a chase on foot in place of the usual car chase.

Whether those with the older DVD will want to upgrade is a matter of personal preference, but the special features look attractive to me:

-- new commentary by Enforcer director James Fargo
-- new featurette "The Business End: Violence in Cinema"
-- "Harry Callahan/Clint Eastwood: Something Special in Films"
-- trailer gallery

This and the other four movies are available on standard DVD both separately and in a 7-disc Ultimate Collector's Edition, which has additional goodies.

They're also on Blu-ray in a 5-disc Ultimate Collector's Edition. Only the Dirty Harry Special Edition is available separately on Blu-ray (here); the other four movies, including this one, are available on Blu-ray in the set.

Here are the links for the Amazon pages for the new separate standard DVD releases of the other four movies in the series:

Dirty Harry Special Edition (2 discs, "special" is apparently better than "deluxe")
Magnum Force Deluxe Edition
Sudden Impact Deluxe Edition
The Dead Pool Deluxe Edition

A group of thugs passing themselves off as The People's Revolutionary Army (or something like that) grab a stockpile of weapons and ammunition, killing Harry Callahan's friend and partner in the process. Callahan's new partner is a woman, something he does not particularly agree with, and she can barely keep up as Inspector #71 tears through San Francisco looking for the PRA. The Enforcer (Dirty Harry #3) lacks the grit and energy of the first Dirty Harry and the excessive bullet riddled body count of the second (Magnum Force). In comparison it almost seems sedate, both visually and in terms of its action content. What the movie does offer is a solid, if a bit routine, police action thriller story made better than average by its script. Harry's deathbed visit to the fading Frank DiGiorgio and his snappy relationship with rookie Inspector Kate Moore are both well done. On the action side of things, fans will no doubt enjoy Harry's unique handling of a hostage situation, a foot chase across San Francisco's rooftops, and the kidnapping of The Mayor. Recommended.

Trivia - This is the only film in the series not scored by Lalo Schifrin. He was unavailable at the time. Harry Guardino returns as Lt. Bressler from the first Dirty Harry and Bradford Dillman (playing Captain McKay here) would return as Captain Briggs in the fourth Dirty Harry, Sudden Impact. Albert Popwell makes his third of four Dirty Harry appearances. In the first Harry adventure he is the wounded bankrobber on the receiving end of Harry's famous "Do you feel lucky?" speech. In the second he plays a murderous pimp who gets more than a simple traffic stop. Here is a black militant who agrees to help Harry, for a price. In the fourth he got to play Harry's friend and partner...uh-oh. Sadly he is absent in The Dead Pool.

"The Enforcer" from 1976(the bicentennial year),the second sequel to "Dirty Harry",(considered by many to be one of the all time classic detective films,Richard Schickel of TIME magazine,the late great Gene Siskel,and The American Film Institute included),may be a better companion piece to the original than the second sequel, "Magnum Force",(that's open to debate.) It came out at Christmas like the others and was just as big a hit at the box office. The screenplay by the late Dean Riesner who co-wrote the original "Dirty Harry" and the late Stirling Silliphant(Academy Award winner in 1967 for the crime drama "In The Heat Of The Night" and he co-wrote the disaster flicks "The Poseidon Adventure" from 1972 and "The Towering Inferno" from 1974),has a plot similar to the original.Except this time instead of one murdering,kidnapping extortionist,Harry Callahan has to deal with seven of them. I first saw "The Enforcer" in the theatre when it was first released(in the same place I saw both "Dirty Harry" and "Magnum Force",my hometown of Arlington,Virginia),and the movie still holds up after more than 20 years.It became one of the most popular of the series.It was on both the ABC & NBC television networks and was broadcast more than a half a dozen times,a sign of a ratings winner.In fact "The Enforcer" was the inspiration for the 1980's NBC series "Hunter". Tyne Daly gives a good performance in the role of Harry's rookie partner.Back then in the mid '70's she was one of the first women detectives.This was several years before she became known as Detective Lacy in CBS's "Cagney & Lacy" back in the '80's for which she was an Emmy Award winner.In an article in TV Guide in August 2000,Ms.Daly revealed that she turned the part of "Inspector Kate Moore" down a few times.However,Clint Eastwood talked her into doing it after he decided to expand her role and letting her get to shoot some of the bad guys.

The picture was directed by James Fargo,who had been an Assistant Director on Clint Eastwood's previous film "The Outlaw Josey Wales" that was released just six months earlier.He also had been Assistant Director on some other Eastwood films and two of then unknown Steven Spielbergs' earliest films,"The Sugarland Express" and "Duel".And, he was Production Manager on "Jaws"."The Enforcer" was James Fargo's first film as Director.The picture has fine cinematography and makes good use of the San Francisco locations. I missed composer Lalo Schifrin's moody music.He was unavailable at the time.The late Jerry Fielding's jazz score is good though.Mr.Fielding had been nominated for an "Oscar" for Best Original Score for "The Outlaw Josey Wales".Unfortunately,he didn't win.Also, even though there were seven villians this time,led by a wacko Vietnam vet,an underground terrorist group who called themselves "The People's Revolutionary Strike Force",(probably inspired by The Symbianese Liberation Army),I didn't build up nearly as much hatred for them as I did for that creep "Scorpio" in "Dirty Harry". Gene Siskel called "Scorpio", "one of the most contemptable louses in movie history".I couldn't agree more.That was Andy Robinson who played "Scorpio" in his very impressive movie debut.

Some more trivia for you,James Fargo went on to direct "Every Which Way But Loose" two years later in 1978,which was Clint Eastwood's biggest box-office hit,on the list of the Top 100 All-Time Box-Office Champions,(adjusted for inflation as of December 2002).And,the late actor John Mitchum,who played "Detective Frank "Fatso" DiGeorgio",Harry's occasional partner in all three pictures, is the brother of the late actor Robert Mitchum.He was a year younger.The theatre trailer and the TV ads and the newspaper ads claimed "The Enforcer" to be,"The dirtiest Harry of them all".Judge for yourself.

Third Dirty Harry picture feels more dated than the previous two with its portrait of crazed radicals as the bad guys none of whom register as believable or menacing villains. The picture feels more like a violent TV episode from the era. Like in Magnum Force, Harry is made into more of a conventional cop hero than the extreme personality from the first (and far and away best) film. The whole show here is his relationship with Tyne Daly as his partner. These scenes are the best in the movie and both actors deliver.

THE ENFORCER is the third entry to the Dirty Harry series. While a good perforance by Eastwood overall, the movie does not quite match up to the Don Siegel-directed original or MAGNUM FORCE, (which I consider his best movie). While THE ENFORCER is not the weakest Dirty Harry movie, it does have the weakest plot. Here Dirty Harry has to save the city of San Fancisco from a group of rebellious punks who are obsessed with heavy artiliary. They call themselves the People's Revolutionary Strike Force, and they are led by Bobby Maxwell, a deranged Vietnam Vet who wants to terrorize the public in exchange for ransom. After slaughtering 2 gas company employees, they break into an artility warehouse to steal the goods. Harry's partner, DeGeorgio arrives on the scene and is killed in the process. While trying to try down DeGeorgio's killer, Harry is assigned a new parter in the form of Kate Moore, (Tyne Daly), a yacking half-pint who wants to impress him in every way possible. Harry doesn't quite agree with the plan, especially when she is on the force just to coincide with the mayor's plans to be "stylish." But Moore turns out to be more valuable then he ever imagined, helping lead him to Maxwell, and saving his life twice along the way.

Of all the Dirty Harry films, this one has the most humor. The comments that Callahan makes at the personel review of Moore are hilarious. We also have him driving a car through a liquor store, (continuing with the traditon of breaking up a robbery). Another funny sequence is when he chases Henry Lee Coldwell halfway across the city and back! He follows him over fences, across rooftops, and through skylights, disturbing a porn shooting in the process! Jerry Fielding took over the musical score here, and as a result, the traditional Dirty Harry theme is nowhere to be found. This is rather disappointing and takes away from the movie's serious potential. Fielding's jazzy them is effective during the chase sequence however. These film does suffer from long sequences that really aren't neccessary. The one that will really make you laugh is when Callahan enters a brothel posing as "Larry Dickman!" Dirty Harry regular, Albert Popwell, shows up here as a leader of a black militant group.

The Revolutionary Strike Force eventually switches gears by kidnapping the mayor for even more ransom. Harry is eventually is led to Alcatraz Island, where the mayor is being held captive. The climax on Alcatraz is exciting, but I wish it didn't unfold so fast. The ending is very sad, although I will not give that away. While THE ENFORCER is not up to par with the first two movies in the series, it is still a solid chapter in the book of Dirty Harry. "Power to the People."

Sadly San Fran has always been a Freakshow Cesspool of immorality and hippies,in this film with a great opening not because the gullible liberalbroad backtalks to the guy but Because the Man is driving a Beautiful mean sounding Yellow Corvette with Sharp wheels,what follows though is that this time instead of vigilantes gone wild you have a so-called "Liberation Army",a sad excuse for a Priest(a Radical Sadly The Church as some but they are not True Catholics,Pfelger anyone?)some Black militants who for some reason(Spoiler) are not the ones responsible for running amok but are helping the PoPo(or Five-oh,the Po-lice),then you have the City of Sand Fudge wanting to impose new "Diversity"Measures such as putting unqualified people or in this case Women not for the skills but for the typical libby causes.
all in all a Great film as usual with Eastwood and Malpaso,and in the end the Hippies lose just like in real life.Get a Job and Conform.