Coogan's Bluff
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Movie Reviews of Coogan's Bluff
Movie Review: I willshop here again.
Summary: 5 Stars
The movies came when promised, were in excellent shape, and I have no complaints about the service at all.Movie Review: On the side of the law . . .
Summary: 4 Stars
The year 1968 was a busy one for Clint Eastwood, as Hang em High, Where Eagles Dare and Coogan's Bluff, all hit the big screen. Coogan's Bluff marks the first collaboration between Eastwood and director Don Siegel. The pair would team up in five other films, including Dirty Harry.
Deputy Sheriff Coogan (Eastwood) is an Arizona lawman sent to New York City to bring back extradited prisoner James Ringerman. A routine matter becomes complicated when Coogan is ambushed, and Ringerman escapes custody, leaving the chagrined lawman with bump on the head, and a burning desire to recapture him. Lee J. Cobb delivers a blustery performance as Lt. McElroy, the NYPD detective in charge of the case, exasperated by the out of towner's failure to follow established protocols. Employing the methods that served him well in Arizona, Coogan adapts to life in the big city as he tracks the fugitive, with a disturbed McElroy following in his wake. While not terribly deep, this is a very entertaining tale of pursuit set in the psychedelic 60's. Urban life is portrayed none too warmly, as city dwellers seem to prey on each other. The look at the clash of cultures is interesting, though brute force seems to work wherever you are. Eastwood became a star in spaghetti westerns, and while still playing a cowboy of sorts, he begins his transition to the cop roles that would become a standard for him in the 70's.
The supporting cast is terrific. Don Stroud is ideally suited to the role of Ringerman, and his performance is nearly flawless. You really want to slug the guy. Susan Clark is very good as a somewhat idealistic probation officer, smitten with the ways of the man from out west. Trisha Sterling's quirky off beat performance as Ringerman's spaced out girlfriend, "Linny Raven" is also well done. Sterling is the daughter of actress Ann Sothern. Also appearing in his first Eastwood film is Albert Popwell, the actor probably most well known for being asked at gunpoint if he "felt lucky" in Dirty Harry.
Thought of as a precursor to the TV program McCloud, Coogan's Bluff is grittier, and has a shorter time frame that compresses the action and raises the level of tension as it focuses on pursuit. The Eastwood/Siegel collaboration gets off to good start in the Big Apple. This is the also the first Eastwood film to feature a score by composer Lalo Schifrin. Highlights are his rousing opening theme, and the wacky Pigeon-Toed Orange Peel nightclub number. Ah yes, do you remember the 60's?
Movie Review: Pre-Dirty Harry takes on New York
Summary: 4 Stars
Before Dirty Harry took the country by storm in 1971, Clint Eastwood played a similar character with the same director, Don Siegel, in 1968. Piute county deputy sheriff Walt Coogan out of Arizona is good at what he does, but in the process usually makes a lot of people angry. After one incident, Coogan is sent to New York City to bring back a prisoner, Jim Ringerman, for trial. Fed up with city police and their procedures, Coogan bluffs his way into getting his prisoner out, only to have him escape as they try to leave. With the NY police on his tail now for losing a prisoner, Coogan must do whatever he can to get him back. Siegel was and is known for his gritty movies with strong leads, and this one definitely fits that category. Stylized but gritty, it's an entertaining movie with two great action scenes, a fistfight in a pool hall and a motorcycle chase, both of which are helped by Eastwood doing many of his own stunts. A definite must-see for fans of Eastwood or the Dirty Harry series.
Almost like a tryout for Harry Callahan, Eastwood stars as Deputy Sheriff Walt Coogan, a no-nonsense country peace officer out of his element in NY. He might not know all the niceties of the job, but he'll get it done. Lee J. Cobb plays Lt. McElroy, the NY police officer who tangles with Coogan about his methods. Susan Clark plays Julie Roth, a probation officer Coogan meets and takes a keen interest in. Don Stroud, who would later play a rival of Eastwood's in Joe Kidd, is good in a small part as Jim Ringerman, a prisoner Coogan must bring back to Arizona for an unidentified crime. Tisha Sterling and James Edward also have memorable characters as Linny Raven, Ringerman's hopped up girlfriend, and Sgt. Wallace, a stakeout cop.
The DVD is a good price but don't expect much. The widescreen presentation of the movie looks good, but that's it on the disc. No special features, not even a trailer. It's a good movie though and one that Eastwood fans will surely enjoy. Check out Coogan's Bluff!
Movie Review: Classic Eastwood Urban Western Gets a Makeover
Summary: 4 Stars
Another great Clint Eastwood movie gets the DVD release treatment, and finds Clint playing the title role in this "rural cop in the big city" action drama. This movie paved the way for the long running and succesful (though much more benign) TV series "McCloud" starring Dennis Weaver, and deals with the cultural clash between a Sheriff from Arizona, and NYPD's finest. This is a fairly straightforward story, but handled very well by the Don Siegel in the directors chair, who went on to make other Eastwood gems such as Dirty Harry a couple of years later. Fighting off the constant stereotyping by his New York brother officers, Lt Coogan (Eastwood) is a laconic fish out of water, and has to track down and return to Arizona with escaped killer Ringerman, played by Don Stroud. Red tape, and more than a little obstruction by the locals, mainly in the form of Lee J Cobb as his opposite number add to his woes, along with being caught up in the 60's drug and crime scene. The story suffers a little from this point of view, as the hippie psychedelic portrayal looks a bit dated, but the action more than makes for this minor complaint. Plenty of pace makes the 95 minute running time zoom by, and even though the ending is more than a little familiar, it's still a very enjoyable movie. Good solid early Eastwood action with a few great moments of comedy thrown in, and a particularly clever choreograghed bar room brawl, complete with pool sticks and balls is worth seeing also, and durability on the rewatching scale makes this a solid buy for fans and newcomers alike. EnjoyMovie Review: Long Overdue, Finally Here
Summary: 4 Stars
Ever since Coogan's Bluff parted from the movie theater's after 1968, it's been shown on TV and was available for a short time in VHS format.The visual as well as the audio had been severely compromised. The color was pale, dull, bland etc. and the sound was never right, thus having a negative effect with Eastwood's performance and pushing the limits of the viewer. The movie lacked the quality that you expect to see in a major movie star and from a major movie studio like Universal. Now, for the first time since 68' you can see the movie the way the Director Don Siegel wanted you to see it. Thanks to DVD, the color is restored, sharp and pleasing to the eye, the sound is clear and crisp, you can hear the actors, and let's not overlook the soundtrack by composer Lalo Schifrin. The DVD has Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1 and Dolby 2.0 Mono. Whether you've seen Coogan'Bluff before or haven't does not matter. The Top Notch restoration will give the viewing experience as if your seeing it for the first time. It's that good. Don't let this one pass you by. I've given this movie 4 Stars, the only thing that prevented it from going to 5 Stars, is that there are two scenes deleted from the film. The first is in the beginning scenes of the movie where Eastwood is with his Sheriff in the office and given an unwanted assignment to travel to New York.The other is a short exchange with Eastwood and a Doctor in the hospital. Why were these scenes left out ?