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From Amazon.co.uk
This first sequel to Dirty Harry was written by a couple of strong voices, writer-directors Michael Cimino (The Deer Hunter) and John Milius (Farewell to the King). But that doesn't mean the film is particularly good. After Don Siegel's ferociously dark style in the first movie, Ted Post's blocky, television-ish direction in Magnum Force is a huge letdown. The story doesn't win any prizes, either. Eastwood's San Francisco detective Harry Callahan (apparently having retrieved his badge after throwing it away at the end of Dirty Harry) takes on a vigilante squad within the city's police force. David Soul is pretty convincing as the major spokesman for these right-wing avengers. Eastwood, on the other hand, had already turned Callahan from fascinating outsider in Siegel's film to purveyor of tough-guy shtick in this one. --Tom Keogh
Product Description
The second Dirty Harry movie, Magnum Force concerns itself with a vigilante group that has targeted notorious scofflaws for extermination. When a prominent gang boss or drug-runner is set free by the air-headed liberal courts, a covert group of "avengers" is soon on hand to blow the miscreant to bits. While detective Dirty Harry Callahan is no great friend of civil liberties, he is dead set against wholesale murder as a solution to legal loopholes. Discovering that all the killings have been committed by a .357 Magnum, Callahan suspects that his on-the-edge partner, Charlie McCoy (Mitchell Ryan), is responsible. But the answer is less transparent than that, as Harry learns almost at the cost of his own life.
Special Feature:
- Commentary by screenwriter John Milius
- A Moral Right: The Politics of Dirty Harry (Filmmakers, social scientists and authors take a provocative look at the moral, political and ethical themes of the Dirty Harry films.)
- The Hero Cop: Yesterday and Today
- Dirty Harry Trailer Gallery
Special Feature:
- Commentary by screenwriter John Milius
- A Moral Right: The Politics of Dirty Harry (Filmmakers, social scientists and authors take a provocative look at the moral, political and ethical themes of the Dirty Harry films.)
- The Hero Cop: Yesterday and Today
- Dirty Harry Trailer Gallery
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:DVD
I have to admit this film is no where near as good as Dirty Harry, but it still has the elements of comedy, action and good v evil that the first film has. Clint puts in a fine performance as the gritty cop, however I feel they should have highlighted his change of heart to retrieve his badge and become a cop again.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Lou Knee
Format:DVD
This movie was a blisteringly good follow up to the original Harry Callaghan offering, slightly derrogated at the time for having a far fetched story line, but really, it doesn't look that far fetched to me now: There's been plenty of true stories in the press of in house police management of cases that virtually amount to illegal vigilantism by uniformed police officers in both the the USA and the UK in the thirty five years since this movie was made, and it's absolutely the norm in many countries still, so really this was a fantastic fictionalised warning of the dangers of police power corrupting their own law enforcing officers. It finishes as well as it starts off, and has some superb cat and mouse scenes, with fearless cop 'Dirty Harry' pursuing these rotten apples with as much purpose as he does all the other scumbag criminals in the city who put people's lives in danger. And his realisation that this canker goes far deeper than he imagined, and his subsequent determination to get the big maggot in the middle is pure Dirty Harry, and makes the movie even more enjoyable. Terrific movie entertainment.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
With 'Dirty Harry', filmgoers applauded Harry for bumping off known villains 'without playing by the rules', as they say. This has become a central idea behind many cop films since, with right-wing populists supporting this stance.
'Magnum Force' turns the concept around. Known villains who escape the law are again being murdered, but Harry's not involved and is mystified and disturbed by what's going on. Eastwood rivettingly conveys Harry's realisation that he's unwittingly inspired a team of motorbike traffic cops to go round committing the murders. And the moral ambiguity goes, to coin a phrase, all the way up to the top.
I don't think it's clear whether Harry objects to the murders (morally the same as what he was doing in the previous film) or the question of whether the killers risk killing the innocent alongside the guilty. Either way, the action and reflection combine to set a very effective pace in a gem of '70s paranoia.
Oh, and the motorbike chase aboard an aircraft carrier's quite fun as well.
'Magnum Force' turns the concept around. Known villains who escape the law are again being murdered, but Harry's not involved and is mystified and disturbed by what's going on. Eastwood rivettingly conveys Harry's realisation that he's unwittingly inspired a team of motorbike traffic cops to go round committing the murders. And the moral ambiguity goes, to coin a phrase, all the way up to the top.
I don't think it's clear whether Harry objects to the murders (morally the same as what he was doing in the previous film) or the question of whether the killers risk killing the innocent alongside the guilty. Either way, the action and reflection combine to set a very effective pace in a gem of '70s paranoia.
Oh, and the motorbike chase aboard an aircraft carrier's quite fun as well.
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4.2 out of 5 stars
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good but should have been better
The subject matter makes this film an intrinsically interesting proposition. However, it is also seriously flawed. Read more
Published 3 months ago by therationalist
5.0 out of 5 stars
Magnum Force
Awesome film good quality item, would recommend seller, Clint Eastwood at his best yet again ********. Love Dirty Harry so only natural I would buy this film.
Published 4 months ago by Stumpmeister
5.0 out of 5 stars
Even better than Dirty Harry (if that's possible)
I watched this DVD with a true sense of forboding. I was dreading that, like Battlefield Earth or Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, this film would ruin the image of a legend (in this... Read more
Published 12 months ago by Magic Lemur
3.0 out of 5 stars
still dirty
eastwood puts in another good performance as harry this time he goes after a group of rogue cops who decide to deal out their own justice. Read more
Published 14 months ago by jed
5.0 out of 5 stars
Second one and still going strong
The second of five Harry Callahan movies, and it's still going good.
"Clint Eastwood headlines this solid sequel pitting Det. Read more
"Clint Eastwood headlines this solid sequel pitting Det. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Fluclo
3.0 out of 5 stars
Very good affair which improves with each viewing.
Very good. Buy it. Better than Dirty Harry (the first film).
The Enforcer is also very good.
The Enforcer is also very good.
Published on 15 July 2009 by Mr Viewer
4.0 out of 5 stars
"What does a girl have to do to go to bed with you?" He replies: "Try...
"What does a girl have to do to go to bed with you?" He replies: "Try knocking at the door."
Dirty harry was a very tough act to follow. Read more
Dirty harry was a very tough act to follow. Read more
Published on 5 July 2009 by Peter Wade
3.0 out of 5 stars
That's three salty-lookin' dudes...
With a posse of maverick traffic cops dishing out vigilante justice on the streets of San Francisco, Inspector Harry Callahan, previously not adverse to the `direct' approach, is... Read more
Published on 30 Dec 2008 by Matthew Mercy
4.0 out of 5 stars
A good sequel, not as intense as the first
This is a great movie and well worth seeing. It's not in the same league as the first but still a thriller that's worth checking out. A good movie but not great.
Published on 4 Jun 2008 by CJ
4.0 out of 5 stars
That's just dirty, Harry!
This is part of the "Dirty" Harry Callaghan series of cop films.
If you don't like violence, or find the fashion of the 1970s too naff, then this is not a film for you. Read more
Published on 7 Jan 2005
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