The French Connection (Blu-ray) Official AVSforum Review

( Max score: 100 )

82

Film Synopsis:

New York City detectives “Popeye” Doyle (Gene Hackman) and Buddy Russo (Roy Scheider) hope to break a narcotics smuggling ring and ultimately uncover The French Connection. But when one of the criminals tries to kill Doyle, he begins a deadly pursuit that takes him far outside the city limits. Based on a true story, this action-filled thriller won five Academy Awards in 1971, including Best Picture, Best Director (William Friedkin) and Best Actor for Hackman.

My Take:

I love crime thrillers. The French Connection is considered by many to be THE crime thriller that opened the door and changed the face of not only crime story’s but film in general. It is based on actual events and real people. The real case was handled in the early 1960’s by Detective’s Eddie “Popeye” Eagan and Buddy “Cloudy” Russo of NYPD (who both had bit parts in the film). What I like about The French Connection is how it details some of the grittier less glamorous side of police work. Rather than being very neat and clean (“just the facts”) it portrays the fine line that sometimes must be walked in order to put cops closer to criminals in order to solve a case. This is sometimes necessary, especially in narcotics work, and requires working on hunches, informant based intelligence, and circumstances that don’t always bear fruit. Today we use more sophisticated methods to help in community narcotics and large scale drug enforcement but there is no substitute for good instincts. The days of “this is the police, come out with your hands up” have been replaced by tactical entry teams and special weapons that are designed to disengage perpetrators.

I love how Popeye and Cloudy just dig in and use good old surveillance work, experience, and gut feelings to build their case. There are aspects of the movie that can’t help but feel dated and the Hollywood spin is plainly obvious but this is still a really fun and engaging film. This movie admittedly launched Gene Hackman’s career. He absolutely owned Doyle and portrayed the often ruthless obsession with which he went about his job to perfection. The now infamous car chase was used as a metaphor born out of a desire from Director William Friedkin to show Doyle’s obsessive, never say die persona. I just loved the film’s ending and thought that it fit so well with the story’s depiction of Popeye’s tough, hard nosed style. Gene Hackman’s performance left audiences riveted and won him an Academy Award for Best Actor. The film garnered 8 nominations and won for Best Picture, Best Director for William Friedkin, Best Editing, and Best Adapted Screenplay. The French Connection was a ground breaking film based on a ground breaking narcotics case. They both left an indelible mark that changed our perspective on film and drug enforcement in this country. ‘Nuff said…

Parental Guide:

The rating is for mature thematic material, language, brief nudity and violence.

Audio: 80

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Video: 84

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The French Connection comes to Blu-ray Disc featuring 1080p AVC encoded video that has an average bitrate of 36 mbps and lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio sound that has an average bitrate of 2.3 mbps.

Those who are expecting this film to look appreciably different than what they have seen of it previously will be disappointed. By that I mean that this film has high levels of grain, deep sometimes crushing blacks, and a distinct use of darker, sepia toned colors that don’t pop off of the screen. This visual style is intentional and has permeated every form of it ever released on home video. This is not a bad thing and those who are familiar with it will appreciate that. What they will also appreciate is that it has never looked better than this. The film’s opening features a wide angle shot of Marseilles France with the sky in the background. The sky has some pretty ugly digital noise that hangs in just above the buildings in the background but it goes away and I never saw it like that again. The shots of France are well resolved with crisp detail and measurable refinement. Colors are cleanly rendered and appear natural throughout the presentation. Detail in the uneven light in the shadowy alleyway is discernible and image depth is notable. Once things shift to Brooklyn the video takes on a starker contrast with deep blacks that are noticeably less gradational and appear slightly crushed. Darker scenes tend to highlight grain and can sometimes make backgrounds look noisy. Chapter 24 during the stakeout of the Lincoln is a good example. The buildings and dark sky in the background during the wide angle shot that pans down the street from Popeye and Cloudy’s vehicle toward the Lincoln, exhibit an uneven grainy texture that makes it appear noisy. Brighter sequences offer improved depth, and clearer definition that seems to wring out as much of the resolution as was originally captured by the camera’s lens. Fleshtones are warm which gives complexions a rosy hue that would be consistent with the cold weather conditions depicted in the film. William Friedkin has color timed the film specifically for this release on Blu-ray. I am no expert on interpreting the difference but from what I can see the results look great. The French Connection is never going to offer razor sharp resolution or high levels of detail because it was simply not shot that way. In my opinion this Blu-ray Disc allows viewers the opportunity to see this classic film looking as good (if not slightly better) as it did upon its theatrical release.

The soundtrack comes in several flavors including Dolby Mono and lossy Spanish/French Dolby Digital 5.1. I went with the high resolution DTS-HD Master Audio option. I believe this mix originated on the THX Certified 2001 DVD release and it is a good one. The presentation utilizes the whole system at various points to generate an open sounding two dimensional soundfield. The highlight for me is Don Ellis’ eclectic music score which simply sounds marvelous. The timbre and pitch of the trumpets which are underscored by the rhythmic pulse of the timpani weaves crystal clear and wide swath across the front soundstage. Treble and mid range articulation is high but never grating as instrumentation sounds smooth and noticeably textured. The score is mixed through all channels with the surrounds offset at a lower volume which enhances depth without overuse. Dynamics were punchy without sounding artificial. Gunshots resonated with brisk authority and fair room penetration. The sounds of the subway train and car chase had ample weight and descriptive clarity. I had no trouble detecting subtle sonic detail within the mix which I attribute to the higher quality of lossless audio. Panning sequences are well integrated which created a seamless blend between the front and rear channels. Dialogue was rendered clearly and stands out slightly above the other sounds within the front soundstage. The recording’s age showed but I never felt that it sounded thin or compressed. This entire presentation seemed to reflect the care that went into bringing The French Connection to Blu-ray and the results were rewarding.

Bonus Features:

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• Disc 1:
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• (HD) William Friedkin introduction to the French Connection
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• Commentary by William Friedkin
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• Commentary by Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider
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• Trivia track
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• Isolated score track
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• D-Box Motion Code enhanced

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• (HD) 7 deleted scenes with optional Director commentary
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• (HD) Anatomy of a chase - 20 minute featurette
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• (HD) Hackman on Doyle - 10 Minute featurette
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• (HD) Friedkin and Grosso remember the real French Connection - 19 minute featurette
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• (HD) Scene of the crime - 5 minute featurette
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• (HD) Color timing The French Connection - 13 minute featurette
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• (HD) CopJazz: The music of Don Ellis - 10 minute documentary
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• (HD) Rogue cop: The noir connection - 14 minute documentary
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• BBC Documentary: The Poughkeepsie Shuffle - 53 minute documentary
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• Making the connection: The untold stories of The French Connection - 56 minute documentary from Fox Movie Channel

Final Thoughts:

I had a blast re-visiting this classic film that holds a special place in American Cinema. There are aspects of it that feel dated but its subject matter is still pertinent today. I never grow tired of witnessing its brilliant direction and the outstanding performance by Gene Hackman. I was excited when its release on Blu-ray was announced and the wait was well worth it. It has never looked better and the lossless DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack enhances the experience by adding a higher level of fidelity to an already decent sound mix. The plethora of bonus features is high on content and quality and gives fans as much information/background on this great film as there has ever been. I can’t recommend it enough.