On E List of Movie Reviews
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The Enforcer (1976)
Rate:
8
Viewed:
1/05, 10/07
10/07:
The first time I saw The Enforcer, I had it rated '3', and now, seeing the film again, it's more of an '8'.
Dirty Harry is definitely back after his exile in Magnum Force. In many ways, it's a big
improvement over the predecessor but falls short in some areas as compared to Dirty Harry.
Clint Eastwood's sense of humor is probably the best part. If anybody thinks he belongs in the Comedy Hall of Fame, I'll second it.
As usual, Clint Eastwood carves an icon out of Dirty Harry. He refuses to negotiate with criminals, follows his own policy
of "shoot first, ask later," and says things that are outlandish. There's one great scene which shows Dirty
Harry, hence the moniker, making most of his unorthodox methods to achieve results by ramming a car into the liquor store to
squash the hostage situation. It'll never happen in real life, but it's funny.
On the other hand, Tyne Daly gives a nice performance but is nothing special. Thanks to Clint Eastwood's enormous popularity
as Dirty Harry, the success of The Enforcer is primarily responsible for making the next two sequels happen:
Sudden Impact and The Dead Pool.
All in all, The Enforcer provides a great fix for all Dirty Harry fans.