The French Connection

R

Released Oct 7, 1971

1h 44m

Crime

Drama

Mystery & Thriller

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for The French Connection: Trailer 1

List

96%

Tomatometer

94 Reviews

87%

Audience Score

25,000+ Ratings

New York Detective "Popeye" Doyle (Gene Hackman) and his partner (Roy Scheider) chase a French heroin smuggler.

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Critics Consensus

Realistic, fast-paced and uncommonly smart, The French Connection is bolstered by stellar performances by Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider, not to mention William Friedkin's thrilling production.

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Wendy Ide

Times (UK)

Gritty, downbeat and, in Hackman’s “Popeye” Doyle, fronted by one of the most unlikely heroes that cinema had seen, this was one of the great films of Hollywood’s most creatively uncompromising period.

Jan 27, 2024

Full Review

Ben Kern

Minneapolis Star Tribune

[The film] is neither a documentary nor a grim slice of life but simply entertainment -- violent and bloody, yes, but still the kind of action and suspense stuff that kept the pulp fiction magazine alive for years and still intrigues most of us.

May 16, 2023

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Pauline Kael

New Yorker

It's not what I want not because it fails but because of what it is. It is, I think, what we once feared mass entertainment might become: jolts for jocks.

Jul 29, 2022

Full Review

David Elliott

Chicago Daily News

The French Connection gives us suspense mixed with violence, and the cocktail is so volatile that you don't really care if the film is nothing more than two hours of fun in the dark.

Oct 3, 2023

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Joseph Robinson

Fish Jelly Films (YouTube)

Filled with heart pounding sequences, The French Connection satisfies as a gritty crime drama.

Rated: 4/5

Aug 13, 2023

Full Review

Mark Johnson

Awards Daily

Embedded in the style and themes of classic film noir, The French Connection is a grim and relentless detective thriller that is celebrated as one of the most authentic films about police work (and features the greatest car chase in film history).

Jun 8, 2023

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Daniel S

I am in the minority but this movie, on balance, weighs in as average and highly overrated. Hackman is definitely hard boiled but the character itself has no depth. The result is tedious. The car chase scene is thrilling but far less suspenseful than, say, the car chase scene 3 years earlier in Bullett. Again - so what? Much of the action involves us watching hardboiled police either yell at each other or watch criminals. I found it to be a difficult watch much of the time.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

04/25/24

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Alec C

Gene Hackman plays a hard-boiled detective on the trail of a dangerous drug smuggler in this intense crime thriller! "Popeye" Doyle has been pursuing Frenchman Alan Charnier and his drug operation, but soon his obsession with this criminal leads to some collateral damage. An intense and intriguing police story that manages to encapsulate the drug trade through both the cops and the criminals!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/19/24

Full Review

ben j

Great 70s crime thriller that has more than stood the test of time. Some scenes are as riveting and suspenseful as anything coming out today.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

03/02/24

Full Review

Lanfranco C

Watching it after so many years, it seems good, but a little outdated.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/25/24

Full Review

Blobbo X

Chase scene good for 4 stars.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/23/24

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Tim M

Boasting some of the best tailing sequences ever put to film, The French Connection is a grounded yet heart-pounding crime drama masterfully directed by William Friedkin.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

12/05/23

Full Review

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William Friedkin

Director

Gene Hackman

Det. Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle

Fernando Rey

Alain Charnier

Roy Scheider

Det. Buddy "Cloudy"'Russo

Tony Lo Bianco

Salvatore "Sal" Boca

Marcel Bozzuffi

Pierre Nicoli, Hit Man

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The French Connection: Trailer 1

2:46

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Synopsis

New York Detective "Popeye" Doyle (Gene Hackman) and his partner (Roy Scheider) chase a French heroin smuggler.

Director: William Friedkin
Producer: Philip D'Antoni
Screenwriter: Ernest Tidyman
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
Production Co: 20th Century Fox
Rating: R
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 7, 1971, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 25, 2015
Runtime: 1h 44m

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