Magnum Force

Magnum Force (1973)

Runtime: 124 minutes

Directed by: Ted Post

Starring: Clint Eastwood, Hal Holbrook, Felton Perry, David Soul, Mitchell Ryan

From: Warner Brothers

I figured it was about time I got back to rewatching the Dirty Harry movies; that thought suddenly struck me last night, which is why I chose this to watch. A good decision, as this is very good, as I explain below: 

July of last year I rewatched the first Dirty Harry; I hadn't seen anything from that franchise in years, as I had seen all of those many years ago. I was happy to see Dirty Harry again as it's great. As typical with me I procrastinated on finishing this task. I'll fix that now and I'll try to see the other three in the not too distant future.

What a confluence of talent that came together to create this story of San Francisco Police Department Inspector Dirty Harry Callahan dealing with someone in a police officer's uniform (and matching motorcycle) killing the worst criminals of the city vigilante-style; John Milius wrote the script, but he did not come up with the original idea. Instead, it was Terrence Malick (!) who had a pretty similar idea in a script a few years beforehand, and he proposed it for Dirty Harry, but of course instead they went with the Scorpio Killer plot we got for the first adventure of Inspector Callahan. After Milius typed up the script for Magnum Force , Michael Cimino then revised the story. Milius, Malick, and Cimino are definitely quite different from one another but talk about movie-making talent between the three.

Even though you should be able to figure out who is behind those murders before our heroes do, that doesn't mean this isn't always interesting to watch nor is it not enjoyable seeing Dirty Harry trying to crack the case. Before this film and after the fact, the idea of someone going after the worst scumbags (especially when the legal system did not convict due to whatever reasons, which was a key plot point in this movie) is one that is enticing for plenty of people. To be honest, there are certain high-profile trials where a person was declared innocent enough though it was likely they did murder someone, and I am sure plenty would not shed any tears if someone was a vigilante and executed those awful individuals. Then again, I know that there are also plenty who in this present time are horrified at the mere thought of someone in a police officer's uniform flagrantly breaking the law like that... but I did not think of such things while watching the film, and instead I was quite entertained by this tale.

Those that enjoyed the original Dirty Harry should also enjoy this; besides the main storyline, there's also various scenes where Harry busts random criminals who do things like robbery and even trying to hijack an airliner. Considering Milius was the main writer of the story, of course the film lives up to the title by often showing the force of Callahan's .44 Magnum gun. It was nice seeing familiar faces, like Felton Perry, Mitchell Ryan, David Soul, Tim Matheson, Robert Urich, Felton Perry, and as the more traditional officer, Hal Holbrook as Harry's superior. The Lalo Schifrin score being the expected groovy/funky thing also helps make this 70's action/crime drama movie a lot of fun.