The French Connection

When Drug Busting Meets Defensive Driving 101

Ever wonder what would happen if you gave the world’s angriest cop a badge, a car, and an obsession with French drug dealers? Meet Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle (Gene Hackman), a New York detective whose approach to police work makes Bull Connor look like Officer Friendly.

Doyle and his partner Buddy “Cloudy” Russo (Roy Scheider) stumble onto what might be the biggest heroin deal in history while doing their usual routine of harassing random civilians and treating the Constitution like a suggestion list. They spot well-dressed Sal Boca hanging out at a nightclub with known criminals, which in early 1970s New York was like noticing water is wet, but Doyle’s gut says there’s more.

Enter Alain Charnier (Fernando Rey), a sophisticated French criminal who makes other drug lords look like street corner dealers. He’s smuggling $32 million worth of heroin into New York inside a car being brought over by unsuspecting TV personality Henri Devereaux. Charnier is everything Doyle isn’t – sophisticated, patient, and owns more than one sport coat.

The film follows Doyle and Russo as they conduct the world’s most aggressive stakeout. This includes a surveillance sequence that consists mainly of our heroes freezing their badges off while eating what appears to be the worst takeout in New York (which is saying something). Doyle’s dedication to the case extends to following Charnier around the city in a cat-and-mouse game that probably violated every transit authority regulation in existence.

This leads to the film’s centerpiece: a car chase that makes the Fast & Furious franchise look like a driver’s ed video. Doyle, pursuing a hijacked elevated train carrying a hitman, creates a new category of traffic violation while terrorizing Brooklyn in a brown Pontiac. The scene was shot without permits, which means those terrified pedestrians jumping out of the way weren’t acting – they were just trying to get their groceries home.

Things get messier when the feds get involved, leading to jurisdictional disputes that make interdepartmental meetings look like group therapy. The whole operation nearly falls apart multiple times, primarily because Doyle has the diplomatic skills of a hangry rhinoceros. It all culminates in a showdown at an abandoned warehouse (because where else would you conduct a major drug bust?) that goes about as smoothly as you’d expect when Popeye Doyle is involved.

The Verdict

What I Love:

• Gene Hackman making “angry cop” into an art form worthy of the Louvre
• A car chase that probably sent New York’s insurance rates up for decades
• Cinematography that makes you want to take a shower, but that’s the point
• A police procedural that’s about as procedural as a food fight
• The most aggressive use of a porkpie hat in cinema history

What Could’ve Been Better:

• Might make you distrust anyone wearing nice clothes in New York
• Will definitely affect your opinion of elevated trains
• Could make you question the effectiveness of police sensitivity training

“The French Connection” is like if you took a documentary about police work and replaced all the paperwork scenes with adrenaline. It won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, proving that sometimes the Academy voters appreciate a good car chase as much as a period drama.

Rating: 5 out of 5 illegally parked surveillance vans

P.S. – After watching this, you might want to take the subway. Actually, after that chase scene, maybe just walk.