Dirty Harry 4K 1971 Ultra HD 2160p

In 1971, Don Siegel's movie “Dirty Harry” was released, starring the inimitable Clint Eastwood in the title role. This is their fourth joint work. The first was the picture “Coogan's Bluff” in 1968, then the western “Two Mules for Sister Sarah” in 1969, in which Eastwood played naparu with Shirley MacLaine, and the psychological drama “Deceived” in 1971.

The plot of the movie is simple: someone kills a girl shot from a rifle with a telescopic sight and leaves a message to the police, stating that he requires a hundred thousand dollars or he will kill again. Callahan is assigned the case.

So who is Harry Callahan and why is he nicknamed “Dirty”? Working for the San Francisco Police Department is hardly a way to get rich or famous. But for Harry work there, if not the meaning of life, then absolutely certainly the overwhelming part of it. And he gives himself to it wholeheartedly. It is his vocation - to cleanse the city of San Francisco from criminal elements. And Harry does it with a soul and the help of his friend, a gun “Magnum” 44 caliber. He is not afraid to get his hands dirty in blood, does not shy away from the toughest and sometimes cruel methods. It is easier for him to shoot a villain than to negotiate with him. He is guided by his own code of honor and justice. This is what earned him a bad reputation and the nickname “dirty”. For this he is disliked by his superiors, and he dislikes him in return.

Eastwood's character is one of those who defined the image of a tough guy in cinema for many years to come. Cold-blooded and tough, sarcastic and uncompromising. He's not glib and he speaks when he has to. He says what he needs to say and never in the wrong way. He handles gangsters with dashing skill, while cracking scathing jokes. He doesn't hide his contempt for those who interfere with the lives of others. He always acts alone, only occasionally resorting to the help of partners who are fatally unlucky (they are killed or hospitalized). He is always dismissed from the case, but he spits on it and goes on trial. After all, the case always turns out to be personal.

In fact, the movie is not so much about the protagonist's struggle with the maniac as with the law. The maniac is too pathetic and weak. Faced one-on-one with Harry, he squeals like a girl and begs for mercy. He's no match for him. All he's capable of is a sneaky shot from around the corner. In today's world of convention and bureaucracy, it's very hard to get justice by legal means. Sometimes in the struggle for it, the law becomes an obstacle. And then comes the dilemma - law or justice? Callahan chooses justice.

The hero, standing on guard of law and justice, comes across this very law, preventing him from doing his job. Paradoxical, isn't it? Under the sign of such a paradox and existed tough guys in the movies of the 70-80's. They were on the edge, on the cutting edge, outside the system. Eastwood, Bronson, later Stallone and Schwarzenegger (the latter, by the way, took a lot from the image of Eastwood). That can only happen in a movie. And it was with a movie like “Dirty Harry” that it all began.

The movie is good in the style of police action movies of its time. There are no undertones. A good guy is always a good guy, a villain is a villain and nothing more. It's all very simple. A criminal runs away, a cop catches him. A punch is a punch, a shot is a shot. No intricacies, no surprises, no unexpected twists.

Like the Man With No Name from Sergio Leone's trilogy, Dirty Harry has become Clint Eastwood's signature character. His name has become a household name and his phrases have become catchphrases (at least two lines uttered by him have made history). It is a sign of quality and true recognition. And although in the final movie Harry throws away his police badge - his adventures are not over. He will return in the next movies in the series.

A truly iconic work by the wonderful tandem of Siegel-Istwood, which has become a classic of the police action movie.