The French Connection has been one of my favorite entries in this project to date. Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider (Chief Brody from Jaws) are New York narcotics detectives who attempt to bust a foreign heroin-smuggling network. At barely over 100 minutes, the film wastes no time guiding the audience up a shallow learning curve. You either keep up with it or you don't. For all of the cryptic, 1970's cop lingo, however, it's basically cops chasing bad guys.
The most famous scene in this film involves Hackman in a car, chasing a bad guy who has hijacked the M-train:
(Apparently, Hackman was his own stunt driver, and I therefore have a new and profound respect for him.)
One of my favorite observations about this film is its nihilism. (See Peter Bradshaw's comments here: http://www.theguardian.com/film/filmblog/2011/jul/14/french-connection.) That's very accurate. Popeye Doyle is not a hugely redeemable character, nor does the film even attempt to rehabilitate his image at any point. The movie ends too quickly for that, concluding in one of the most jarring and awesome manners that I've yet seen
I give The French Connection a score of 8.7.
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