Yes, it's a great film. I have never forgotten the cold turkey scene, and that he burns the hotel down in revenge. Both scenes shocked me. And the grittiness of Marseille is impressive. Definitely one for the rewatch list. Like the Black Rain comparison.
Agree it holds up well, and like so many films shot in this period, its grit makes it feel even more refreshing in the current era of slick, tech-heavy ‘perfection’. Typically, Friedkin remained dismissive of the film, and as recently as 2021 complained to Forbes it was an ‘interloper’ and ‘not a proper sequel’. He insisted what happened to the $32 billion worth of dope that was taken from the Property Clerk's Office by members of the New York City Police Department, was the story they should have pursued. He even wrote to Frankenheimer at the time, making this point, trying to deter him from helming a film he deemed a cash-in on the first film’s success.
My main frustration with FC2 is it undermines one of the great endings in cinema. I loved the grim fall out of what happened to the main characters at the end of the first film. The final gun shot in the dark was perfect, Doyle’s obsession driving him to shoot at shadows, followed by the disclaimer that all the criminals got off lightly, while Charnier disappeared completely. Discovering Doyle would now get another shot at him - literally! - could only break that spell.
Compelling argument but I disagree. The sequel that Friedkin proposed would no doubt have been more successful for being set in America, but it also would've been just another corrupt NYPD film and there enough of them. I love the way this throws Doyle as bait into a totally foreign world and shows us how he deals with it. And the ending is as sudden as the beginning. No fuss, it just happens. Completely jarring.
I saw The French Connection when I was nine and loved it, often citing it as my gateway into reading and writing crime fiction. I saw French Connection 2 as a child and hated it. However years later I gave it a second chance and I'm so glad that I did--such a dark, moody film that shows you a different side of Popeye. As much as I loved the character in the first movie, he was also easy to hate Part 2 gave him dimensions that made Popeye a fuller, more vulnerable individual.
Just watched this on the weekend, I think it’s one of the better sequels out there and actually adds to the original plot. It also seems to be shot documentary style ala Friedkin which helps greatly with the flow. A very worthy sequel 👌🏻
I grew up watching French films and it was a pleasure to recognize familiar faces in French Connection II. Bernard Fresson was a solid actor and makes a good counterpoint to Hackman, much like Roy Scheider did in #1.
Wholeheartedly agree , another great Review ,again old enough to have seen FC2 at the Cinema in 1975 in UK, found it an exhilarating watch,not sure if any other Actor had as many great films one after the other in 1970’s, I Never Sang For My FatherFrench Connection The Poseidon Adventure ( soft spot for P.A as fist film I saw without an Adult presence in 1972, )Scarecrow, Night Moves, The Conversation , FC 2,Bite The Bullet and his unforgettable cameo in Young Frankenstein .
I've been a bit hard on French Connection II in the past, mostly because it's difficult to separate it from the first film, but I'm coming round to the idea that it was incredibly necessary, especially considering all the racist anti-hero cops that popped up after French Connection's success. Doyle is still Doyle, but taking the guy and making him bait was a bold idea. I can only assume that Hackman was on board because of that - I know he never saw Popeye as a hero. Also, he gets to do ALL the acting, and I'd argue his performance in this is better than the first film simply because it gives him more to do.
It also helps that the script went through the typewriter of a couple of diehard iconoclasts (Robert Dillon and Alexander Jacobs), both of whom weren't particularly interested in telling straight genre stories, and gave it a kind of pulpy Jacobean revenger tragedy flavour. It's always going to be quivering in the shadow of Friedkin's movie, but now I'm tempted to revisit.
I agree completely that Hackman's performance in 2 is superior. This is partly as you say because he is given more to do. And because, unlike number 1, we get to see him as a complete fish out of water and, increasingly out of his depth in a foreign criminal culture that is the equal of anything that New York can throw up. Revisit it, you will not be sorry. And, if you do, please drop by and let me know what you think.
Yes, it's a great film. I have never forgotten the cold turkey scene, and that he burns the hotel down in revenge. Both scenes shocked me. And the grittiness of Marseille is impressive. Definitely one for the rewatch list. Like the Black Rain comparison.
Hackman's Dolye is so unlikeable. And he plays him with relish. For me it's at least the equal of Part 1.
Agree it holds up well, and like so many films shot in this period, its grit makes it feel even more refreshing in the current era of slick, tech-heavy ‘perfection’. Typically, Friedkin remained dismissive of the film, and as recently as 2021 complained to Forbes it was an ‘interloper’ and ‘not a proper sequel’. He insisted what happened to the $32 billion worth of dope that was taken from the Property Clerk's Office by members of the New York City Police Department, was the story they should have pursued. He even wrote to Frankenheimer at the time, making this point, trying to deter him from helming a film he deemed a cash-in on the first film’s success.
My main frustration with FC2 is it undermines one of the great endings in cinema. I loved the grim fall out of what happened to the main characters at the end of the first film. The final gun shot in the dark was perfect, Doyle’s obsession driving him to shoot at shadows, followed by the disclaimer that all the criminals got off lightly, while Charnier disappeared completely. Discovering Doyle would now get another shot at him - literally! - could only break that spell.
Compelling argument but I disagree. The sequel that Friedkin proposed would no doubt have been more successful for being set in America, but it also would've been just another corrupt NYPD film and there enough of them. I love the way this throws Doyle as bait into a totally foreign world and shows us how he deals with it. And the ending is as sudden as the beginning. No fuss, it just happens. Completely jarring.
Also, FC2 means more 70s Gene Hackman, which is only a good thing.
On that, I agree
I saw The French Connection when I was nine and loved it, often citing it as my gateway into reading and writing crime fiction. I saw French Connection 2 as a child and hated it. However years later I gave it a second chance and I'm so glad that I did--such a dark, moody film that shows you a different side of Popeye. As much as I loved the character in the first movie, he was also easy to hate Part 2 gave him dimensions that made Popeye a fuller, more vulnerable individual.
I’m with you. FC2 maybe not as good as the original but it is better than people think. It’s a different kind of film and I’m a fan.
Just watched this on the weekend, I think it’s one of the better sequels out there and actually adds to the original plot. It also seems to be shot documentary style ala Friedkin which helps greatly with the flow. A very worthy sequel 👌🏻
I grew up watching French films and it was a pleasure to recognize familiar faces in French Connection II. Bernard Fresson was a solid actor and makes a good counterpoint to Hackman, much like Roy Scheider did in #1.
Really agree with you here. Fresson is the straight man with an edge to the out of control Doyle.
Wholeheartedly agree , another great Review ,again old enough to have seen FC2 at the Cinema in 1975 in UK, found it an exhilarating watch,not sure if any other Actor had as many great films one after the other in 1970’s, I Never Sang For My FatherFrench Connection The Poseidon Adventure ( soft spot for P.A as fist film I saw without an Adult presence in 1972, )Scarecrow, Night Moves, The Conversation , FC 2,Bite The Bullet and his unforgettable cameo in Young Frankenstein .
Great film and review thanks Andrew. I loved the fish market scene
Great film and review thanks Andrew. I loved the fish market scene
Great film and review thanks Andrew. I loved the fish market scene
I've been a bit hard on French Connection II in the past, mostly because it's difficult to separate it from the first film, but I'm coming round to the idea that it was incredibly necessary, especially considering all the racist anti-hero cops that popped up after French Connection's success. Doyle is still Doyle, but taking the guy and making him bait was a bold idea. I can only assume that Hackman was on board because of that - I know he never saw Popeye as a hero. Also, he gets to do ALL the acting, and I'd argue his performance in this is better than the first film simply because it gives him more to do.
It also helps that the script went through the typewriter of a couple of diehard iconoclasts (Robert Dillon and Alexander Jacobs), both of whom weren't particularly interested in telling straight genre stories, and gave it a kind of pulpy Jacobean revenger tragedy flavour. It's always going to be quivering in the shadow of Friedkin's movie, but now I'm tempted to revisit.
I agree completely that Hackman's performance in 2 is superior. This is partly as you say because he is given more to do. And because, unlike number 1, we get to see him as a complete fish out of water and, increasingly out of his depth in a foreign criminal culture that is the equal of anything that New York can throw up. Revisit it, you will not be sorry. And, if you do, please drop by and let me know what you think.
THE FRENCH CONNECTION is a great movie.
But THE FRENCH CONNECTION II is poliziotteschi!
Fromtheyardtothearthouse.substack.com
Good observation - I agree.
I have the vague memory of my Religious Education teacher talking about this film when I was a teenager in the ‘90s.
An anti-drug film?
Think it must have been something like that.