The picture quality in this release is outstanding. For such an old film it’s very impressive just how much detail has been sourced from the original print. It obviously doesn’t hold a candle to a current movie filmed in HD but for something of the time it’s among the best transfers. The video is grainy but detailed with the only let downs coming from the original recorded sources where different shots provide varying visual quality.
To the film itself. French Connection is a slow movie, it takes almost 40 minutes for all the characters to be setup and a fluid pace to be established. Compared to modern cinema it’s a snails pace but once the film gains momentum hot pursuits, car chases and shootouts all provide great action. It also shows itself as one of the most realistic cop movies you can find since Gene Hackman as Popeye Doyle isn’t the glossy TV cop you would see now. Instead he’s the Vic Mackey (The Shield) of the time, sometimes drunk, underpaid and mad. The main story in the simplest terms is a couple of French guys come over to America and find a city empty of any stock of drugs and attempt to make a deal to resupply with the usual white bags without getting caught by Popeye.
Even though a Blu-ray release The French Connection comes as a 2-disc set with the first disc holding the feature in addition to various extras including a commentary by Gene Hackman. The second disc has various making-of documentaries and featurettes including a couple of modern pieces like a discussion with Hackman about Popeye.
Then we come to French Connection 2. This time the big show doesn’t take place in America but in France where Popeye is back after one of the guys from the first movie. It should be warned that even with the age of the films it provides one of the most vivid sequences of forced drug addiction ever put to celluloid as Popeye is captured and tortured. Where the first movie was known for it’s famous car chase the second is best known for this. The rest of the film is just as gripping, and in some way better than the original.
The extras are not as comprehensive on French Connection 2 but there is still plenty to keep fans interested including commentary tracks. Overall French Connection 1&2 are historical. Among the first of the gritty cop dramas they still provide plenty of action and memorable scenes but they are not films one can just “dip into”, instead focus is required, and once attained, rewarded.
