THE ENFORCER

OK, I know what your thinking, punk. Did I star in this film before the monkey movie, or are you just feeling lucky? Well, as this is only the third film in this franchise, all I have to say is -- go ahead -- make the day of Director: James Fargo; and Actors: Clint Eastwood, Tyne Daly, and Albert Popwell. But only in 1976, and for 96-minutes. BANG-BANG-BANG!


The Enforcer

THE STORY:

She's inexperienced. She's never shot a gun in her life. Plus to top it all off, she's a woman too.

Nonetheless, the pocket PC, Kate Moore (Tyne Daly), still manages to become an Inspector in the San Francisco Police Department; to the chagrin of her fellow Inspector, 'Dirty' Harry Callahan (Clint Eastwood).

Alright. I know what you're thinking to yourself. Why should Harry give a toss if Kate becomes an Inspector or not. Right? Well, because she becomes his new partner too -- that's why -- due to the fact that his previous partner bit the bullet whilst battling the 'People's Revolutionary Strike Force'.

Hey! Wait up! You've heard about these revolutionary rascals, haven't you, dear reader? Recently they got their hands on a sh*t load of dangerous weapons, and are not afraid to use them to further their own pockets. 

Ouch! That sounds pretty bad for both Harry and Kate, I'm sure you'll agree. So tell me, who can they turn to, to help them track these punks down? That smartly dressed chap who is running away from that -- BOOOOM! -- explosion? Yeah. He'll do for a start. Moreover, I am pretty damn sure that the Negro activist, Big Ed Mustapha (Albert Popwell), can eventually point them in the right direction as well.

Most notably: Bobby Maxwell's (DeVeren Bookwalter) direction.

Still, that's most probably why what next transpires kicks off when the Mayor jerks everyone off, and then gets kidnapped by the not-so free loving piece-nicks of America. As Kate gets flirty - Harry gets dirty - Priests see the light - and Alcatraz best get ready for one hell of a fight.

KABOOOM!

THE REVIEW:

Do you know what? I can hear a right carry on from my window whilst I'm writing this piece. Music is blaring. People are screaming. And all in all the motley crew presumably having a good time at everyone else's expense, is... errr... having a good time. So what should I do about it, huh? Or more precisely, what should I do about it if I was one of the characters in this film -- 'The Enforcer'?

Well, if I was Dirty Harry himself, the answer would be an obvious one really. BANG-BANG-BANG! But what if I was someone else? The mayor for instance. Would I just turn the other cheek and hope for the best? Or what if I was Lacc... err... I mean 'Kate'? Would I try to talk them down, and hope that none of them would hit me in turn?

Admittedly, quite an interesting dilemma, isn't it? And that is exactly the type of quandary which is at the heart of his film -- reaction -- and whose stance is right or wrong.

You see, there was a scene in this film which illustrated this point perfectly in my eyes. It's the scene where Harry first meets Kate at her interview, and quizzes her rather jovially about if she is the right person for the job at hand. Granted, some people could view Harry's stance as being somewhat bigoted from today's more modern outlook. However, to me, what he was trying to do was to illustrate who's the right 'person' for the job, and not just who would 'fill a quota' just for the politically correct lobby. 

Anyway, enough of my bullsh*t for now, lets have some filmic facts, huh? (1) This flick was going to be called 'Moving Target' or 'Dirty Harry III', before the producers eventually decided to call it 'The Enforcer' instead. (2) The two militant organisations seen in this film were partly modeled on two real-life militant groups -- called the 'Symbionese Liberation Army' and the 'Black Panther Party'. (3) This was the only 'Dirty Harry' film that did not have the music of Argentinean film composer, Lalo Schifrin, in it. (4) Originally Clint was supposed to direct this production himself. But when he ran into some editing difficulties on another one of his projects -- 'The Outlaw Josey Wales' -- he quickly passed the reigns onto his assistant director, James Fargo. (5) At the time this film was being made, Alcatraz Prison was listed on the 'National Register of Historic Places'. (6) There was an improvisational scene shot where Clint's character and Tyne's character were having a drink together at a bar. They only managed to have one good take though; resulting in this scene being cut from the movie. (7) This was Michael Cavanaugh's motion picture debut. (8) An un-named writer sued Clint Eastwood for plagiarism in 1980, accusing him of taking the title of this movie from one of his very own projects. Thankfully, Clint shot this accusation down in court, by stating that the name in question derived from the Humphrey Bogart thriller, 'The Enforcer'.  Case dismissed. (9) Allegedly Tyne Daley turned down her role in this film three times before deciding to take a part in it with one additional proviso -- remove the romance angle between her character and Clint's character. Clint agreed. And (10) This movie grossed sixty million dollars on its initial release, and doubled when it went overseas.

Overall I would have to say that 'The Enforcer' was a fairly decent film . On the one hand I loved the actors, the pretext, and the underlining message it was attempting to convey. Whilst on the other hand there were scenarios that felt a bit fleeting and 'set-up' in context -- such as the 'Mayoral' inclusion for example, or that whole 'suit wearing' bomber ploy. Though, whilst saying that, I have to hold up my hands and state for the record that I really did get a kick out of this movie -- as it had that Clint Eastwood / seventies swagger that I really do dig. Agreed, Inspectors?

Ha! You got to love it.

THE RATING: A-