I have seen bits and pieces of this over the years but never the whole thing. It was interesting to see this film after having seen Gran Turino. It was everything that I expected it to be - a tough-guy cop that takes on the world of crime. While it was the film that really spawned that genre I still think that it is better than the vast, vast majority of the movies that came after it.

One of the defining film of the 1970s.

Surprisingly straightforward story-wise, but very enjoyable all the same. 'Dirty Harry' is no doubt stylish, features an eye-catching plot and has a very good lead performance from Clint Eastwood; he really does own the role. With that noted, I was surprised at how simply the story unfolds. That's not necessarily a criticism, I just presumed it would've been more than just 'event one, event two, event three etc. ... the end'. I enjoyed it, which is all that truly matters. It's, for me, an entertaining, solid film. I have no real issues with it.

When a deranged sniper picks victims at random and personally taunts the San Francisco police department, he draws the ire of the grumpiest cop on the force. Harry Callahan, played with typical take-no-prisoners panache by Clint Eastwood, isn't here to make friends or to feel good about himself. He exists solely to conduct court on the streets, rulebook be damned; to shoot first and ask questions later. Presumably because the weapon he carries, an iconic, big-barreled Smith & Wesson, doesn't leave enough of its target to raise any objections. Although everyone clearly despises him on a personal level, it's hard to see Harry positioned as anything but the banner-waving antihero: he gets to spout the sweet quotes, wear the cool sunglasses and strike a bunch of badass poses, so his opinions become the film's opinions. That’s a problem when the themes grow more ambitious, addressing the shaky ground between what's legal and what's arbitrarily "right." Harry sees everything in stark black-and-white, flying into a seething rage when a high-profile collar walks free due to his own brutish interrogation tactics, and we're meant to cheer when he stalks and eventually forces a second confrontation with the freed criminal. The pursuit itself makes for gripping entertainment - messy, gritty and intense - but the overt political messaging makes it more complicated than a simple yay-rah get-the-bad-guy. The film uses its antagonist, the aforementioned sniper, as incendiary proof of the holes in the justice system. If more situations were handled outside the courtroom, I guess, we'd see far fewer hijacked school buses or tortured kids. Odd that the fallacy of this argument is lost on Harry, who's earlier beaten to a bloody pulp by three yokels. Believing what they see, and refusing to wait for the whole story, they jump to conclusions and take him for a peeping Tom. Harry licks his wounds and carries on, blissfully unaware of the poetic irony. This isn't just your basic gunsmoke action movie. I might not agree with its conclusions, but I appreciate the debate it inspired within me. It's always good to test one's own beliefs. Also good to soak up a healthy dose of raw '70s atmosphere from time to time, which is something _Dirty Harry_ has in spades.

Still one of the best. Andy Robinson is the ultimate creep.