It's time to talk about the film which brought Roy Scheider into the public consciousness in a big way - and still holds up as a crime drama masterpiece to this day. It's William Friedkin's THE FRENCH CONNECTION, one of the biggest films of its year, the winner of 5 Oscars (including Best Picture), and the movie that gave Roy Scheider his biggest showcase to date (and which netted him an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor).
[00:00:00] It's Showtime Folks! It's so bad that... I was the way to the car when you got it, you know right from room. You're just no kidding. But wait! Oh, sounds a bit... Get your... I... No... I didn't know. You're gonna need a bigger part.
[00:00:24] Hello and welcome to Episode 7 of The Complete Works Season 4. A deep dive into the career and films of actor Roy Scheider. My name is Mike Smith and join me on this journey across the Scheiderverse. Is my friend, coho, stand fellow Roy Boy. Mike Treeshow?
[00:00:41] How'd you do to them, Mike? I'm doing just great. It's an exciting day here in the Royverse. What...no, what do you... Scheiderverse? Scheiderverse. Come on. Oh, boy. We're 7 episodes deep now. You gotta have this locked down. I can't know. I know. Uh, yeah, you're right, Mike.
[00:00:55] It is time for a biggie in the Scheider forography. I would say. You know, and on last week we talked about Clute, which gave Roy Scheider his first big break and a major Hollywood picture.
[00:01:05] Uh, but today's film is the one that I think cemented his role in 1970's cinema going forward. So in 1969, a non-fiction book by Robin Moore was published entitled The French Connection, The World's most crucial narcotics investigation.
[00:01:21] And that book followed the real life investigation of New York cops, Eddie Egan and Sunny Grosso as they attempt to uncover people participating in a major drug ring. Uh, so seeing the cinematic potential of the story. This book was quickly optioned by Fox and director William Friedkin,
[00:01:36] then best known for his work on documentary films in the 60s. He came on board. And what followed was a fictionalized retelling of the book's events, taking kind of the bare bones of two New York city detectives
[00:01:48] investigating this case involving a Frenchman and mostly making up the rest. Yeah, it is a weird case where it's a non-fiction book that became a fictional story. Uh, which, you know, is a rare thing but it does happen just last year,
[00:02:02] uh, had a blow by plane, uh, was one of those situations where basin a non-fiction book but it is a fictional story and also movie rules. Really good. Maybe people should do this more often. Yes. Maybe yes, correct. Especially specifically blow up a pipeline.
[00:02:16] I mean, watch the movie, how to blow up a pipeline. Based on these two examples of this movie and how to blow up a pipeline, do it more often. Uh, yeah, it worked out for this film. The film ended up being a massive success.
[00:02:28] Uh, the third highest grossing film of 1971 and enduring classic that is today considered among the best films ever made and the winner of five Oscars, including Best Picture. And since Roy Shidder is in it, it's about time that we talked about the French connection.
[00:02:44] I pop by the chair to hand on your hands. Get off the bar and get on the wall. What's mine? Pop by Doyle. If he doesn't like you, he'll take you apart and it's all perfectly legal because Doyle fights 30.
[00:02:56] If you want to take a ride there, fat man. And play his rough. But if I'm ill-chaired. Doyle is bad news, but he's a good cop. We're going now, boy. How many times have I been down? How did look the best song him smiling like a shining dime?
[00:03:09] Yeah. And hope that he would stay and tell me what he was so happy if he had a cap. Who is it, girl? Jewish lucky person. What about the last big times, Benners? He's making fun of you. He's spreading around what the Russians are interested.
[00:03:28] They say we stick around, get in the tail. Our friend's name is Boca, sound of torque, broca. Be OCA. Well downtown, they're pretty sure you pull off a contract that a guy named Marco. And that's not a drop-out, but charge for you and Bloomingdale's. Be OCA. Doesn't matter.
[00:03:45] I'm not on our own. After working a whole day in life, we tailed a broken. And we sadly, for practically, we... How do we come up with? The French connection. A millionaire export or would a record suit clean the be true. And Doyle knows it.
[00:03:58] But he's been known to make mistakes. You're a hunch he's a backfired before it though. This time, you can't afford to be wrong. I know that you hasn't gone down right? I know it hasn't. I could feel I'm dead, certain.
[00:04:34] Last time you're dead, certain we have the dead cop. I'll let's hit him. I know my little butcher heads in here. The steak out. The French... The sweetest thing. The pale. Chase. On stop. French connection. So Roy Scheider stars in the French connection as detective, buddy, cloudy,
[00:05:29] Russo based on real life and YPD cop, sunny, grosso. In a performance that earned Roy Scheider in Oscar nomination for best supporting actor. Wow. Look at that. So there you go. He did not win the award. He lost the award to Ben Johnson for the last picture show.
[00:05:44] But French connection got, I believe, eight nominations and a one five of them. And like I said, including best picture. Right out the gate. Roy Scheider. Oscar nomination. Let's go baby. He's only Oscar nomination. All that jazz?
[00:05:55] Oh, you know he must have been nominated for all that jazz. It would be win for that. I don't remember. I don't think you won. I'm going to double check on that real quick. But yeah, if there was anything, it would have to be all that jazz. Right?
[00:06:09] It just feels like it's such an insane performance. All that jazz was nominated for nine Oscars winning for none of them were best actor. But what if the nomination was? Who's to say? Who will he was nominated for best actor for all that jazz? You're right Mike.
[00:06:25] But yeah, he did not win for that movie. He lost for all that jazz too. Dustin Hoffman for creamer versus creamer. Yeah. Also a good performance. Yeah. Also a good performance. I'm not sure if it's as good as Roy Scheider and all that jazz.
[00:06:39] But you know, these are the debates that's, you know, our 40 years to late. A sentence. Yeah. We only need to keep litigating that one over and over again. But yeah, Roy Scheider got the best supporting action nomination for this movie.
[00:06:51] And his character is the partner of the film's main character. Who is, of course, Popeye Doyle played by Jean Hackman in a performance that won the Oscar for best actor that year. Jean Hackman won. There you go.
[00:07:03] Popeye is based on Eddie Egan from the novel and both Eddie Egan and Sunny Grosso make appearances in the film as well. Eddie Egan plays Captain Walt Simonson and Grosso plays FBI agent Clyde Klein. So they're both like fairly significant supporting actors. Yeah. And the movie.
[00:07:21] Those are more than just like men with coffee or whatever that I thought they might Yeah, exactly. Although pretty much everybody who is men with coffee is an actual New York City cop that was like in. Pretty funny. Yeah.
[00:07:31] They were just filming a New York city and they took cops in from up the street and they put them in this movie. From there, the film's main antagonist, Elaine Scharnier, is played by Spanish actor Fernando Ray, who also appeared in several films by Louis Buenuel.
[00:07:44] Sal Boka is played by Tony Lobionko, also from movies like The Honeymoon Killers and God told me to. Pierre Nicole is played by Marcel Bezufi, who also appeared in Costa Gov. Z. I'm with you which will infreaconsighted as a huge inspiration when making French connection.
[00:08:00] And stuntman Bill Hickman plays FBI agent Bill Muldrig, the guy who gets killed by Popeye Doyle at the end of the movie. He's also the one driving during the car chase in this movie. He's the stunt guy for Jean Hackman during the incredibly famous car chase here.
[00:08:16] He was also the stunt guy for Steve McQueen in bullets, so he was the stunt guy in that car chase too. Also, he was best friends with James Dean and he was driving behind James Dean when James Dean died in a car crash. Whoa.
[00:08:28] That guy's got a lot of connections. A lot of connections. A lot of stuff surrounding cars and movies. But yeah, just bullet in French connection. Just being the stunt guy for those two movies, hell of a resume. It was just really cool.
[00:08:41] I was just reading, speaking of bullet, I just did a little Googling the afternoon and found an interview that Entertainment Weekly did with William Freak and after Roy Scheider died, just like a, you know, in the morning, I'm kind of conversation type thing. Yeah.
[00:08:54] And he was explaining it was, he was talking about a source or how originally that was going to be Steve McQueen instead of Roy Scheider. And because apparently Roy Scheider wanted to be father,
[00:09:07] Karis in the extra-sist and when he didn't get cast in it, they had a falling out. And he was, yeah, of course he'd have freakins. Like, you know, oh fuck, I'm like, I'm the classic really freaking thing. And then it wasn't personal.
[00:09:20] It was just William Peter Blattie, didn't want Roy Scheider. Wow. So I guess what we, I couldn't do it. And so he wanted Steve McQueen to be in source or but Steve McQueen was like, I'm not going to South America.
[00:09:31] If you film, if you film an California, I'll do it. And so he called up his old buddy and they meant, you know, and did the bridge and got Roy Scheider to be in source for it. That's great. That's all weird crossover connections. Yeah, I'll start here.
[00:09:44] And next, an extra layer of that, Steve McQueen was considered before Gene Hackman to play, Papa Doyle in this movie. Actually, he wasn't the first choice. Apparently we can freaking really wanted Paul Newman to play Papa Doyle in this film. Which one? Yeah, I would agree.
[00:09:58] Yeah, you need like a really like down and dirty, but it's a ball to play Papa Doyle. And no one fit the bill back then. She had that. But he was far from the first, it was like Paul Newman. It was Steve McQueen.
[00:10:10] There was like a long list of people who were also considered. I think Peter Boyle was also one of them. Makes sense. Yeah. Yeah, there's that one. And then there was more. But I lost where it was in the thing. Oh yeah, here we go.
[00:10:23] Oh, Lee Marvin, James Con, Robert Mitchum, Jackie, Leeson, all of these people. Charles Bronson was considered actually the reason Steve McQueen didn't do it. Steve McQueen was considered. It sounds like he got close to it.
[00:10:36] But he had just made bullet and didn't want to do another police film. That was his thing. Interesting. Yeah, there we go. He came down, you know. Yeah, exactly. And so they brought on Gene Hackman instead who ended up winning the Oscar for Best Actor.
[00:10:49] So I guess it all worked out. But the film was written by Ernest Tidyman, who is best known as the creator of shaft. He was the author who like created the character shaft that was then made into the movie.
[00:11:00] And in fact, it was the first shaft novel that got him the job writing the French connection. Wow. Yeah. And he won the Oscar for Best Actor in the Screenplay for this movie.
[00:11:08] And it was directed by William Friedkin, whose previous film was 1970s The Boys in the Band. Often said it is a milestone in queer cinema. His next film is The Exorcist. 1970s It was the exorcist.
[00:11:19] The one that Friedkin had of this movie, French connection and then The Exorcist and then Sorcerer, which bombed at the time but is a masterpiece. Yeah. It's pretty incredible. That rules. And then I think it might be cruising right after that, which is also great. So there's that.
[00:11:35] Friedkin also won Best Actor at The Oscars for this movie as well. Beating out Peter by Don and the next film, The Last Picture Show. Norman Juson for Fiddler on the roof. John Schlesinger for Sunday Bloody Sunday and Stanley Kubrick for a Clockwork Orange. That's crazy.
[00:11:50] It's a stacked lineup of maybe one of the best years ever. Yeah, I mean just to be able to say I beat Stanley Kubrick for Best Director. Grandit Stanley Kubrick never won Best Director at The Oscars, which is a whole other thing.
[00:12:02] But just to be able to say hey I beat Stanley Kubrick pretty cool. That's nice thing to be able to say. That's pretty neat. Yeah. The IMDB Blots Knops is for the French connection reads, A pair of NYPD detectives in the narcotics bureau,
[00:12:15] stumble onto a heroin smuggling rain based in Marseille, but stopping them and capturing their leaders proves an elusive goal. So Mike D. going into the French connection. I had seen this movie once before, but very long ago.
[00:12:29] I may have been in high school when I watched this for the first time. And I remember my reaction then being like, yeah it's pretty good. I feel like I thought it was I appreciated it for its like cinematic value.
[00:12:40] And I remember thinking the car chase was pretty cool, but I wasn't totally into the movie. I kind of figured going into it now. I'm probably going to like it a lot more. And in fact that was the case.
[00:12:49] But had you seen French connection before Mike was this the first time watching for you? No, this was a rewatch. Same deal. You know, I think when you're a burgeoning young man getting into film in high school in a quote unquote serious manner. Right.
[00:13:03] You get that like, you know, if I whatever list and something you're like, I got across and off. I don't know if it's on that literally on the AFI list, but this is definitely in that canon. For me, I was the kind of kid who was like, yeah,
[00:13:16] French connection is pretty good, but it's not cinema the way kick ass is cinema. And that's what I mean, do. No way, I'm not. But yeah, it's definitely I think in the canon of one of those kids of our generation. There are people that are our age.
[00:13:31] It's one of those movies that your dad is like, you got to watch the fringe. You know, it's like, yeah, you got to check this movie out. And that was absolutely one of those movies. And I remember I think liking it at the time,
[00:13:42] but it's similar to when we were discussing, I think bullet on our stiletto episode where I was like, when you watch them now in like a modern day lens, you're like, well, this is kind of a little bit boring other than the exciting,
[00:13:52] like the car chase and the last stuff. And I think maybe it was sold to me as like an action movie. When I saw it the first time, so I was like, there's a really a lot going on, like in terms of action.
[00:14:03] Other than the car chase ironically unless you count them beat. Not black people, this is mostly like that much of an action movie. Yeah, exactly. So I remember being like, yeah, okay, it was pretty cool.
[00:14:15] And then now coming back to it and being like, holy shit, this is incredible. Like, wow, this is a masterpiece. It's followed by a masterpiece, followed by a third masterpiece. So I'm freaking like, so yeah, I really loved it. I had a blast with it.
[00:14:30] All of its problematic, fave elements aside. I think the movie rocks, it's so good. And the problematic stuff is like the point. Yeah, it's wild. No, 100%. I mean, so that was sort of a, this movie kind of made headlines again.
[00:14:45] I think it was around the time last year. Yeah, it was, there's a lot of Lee and Freak and related stuff last year because of course, we're in Freak and died last year. And yeah, he passed away. His last movie came out like a few months later,
[00:14:56] the Kane Mutiny Court Marshall, which I have seen. And it's pretty good people should check it out. It's like a solid TV movie, right? Yeah, it like premier on Showtime, I think. I had to have you steal it for me. That was how I ended up.
[00:15:09] It was a dream. Yes, yes, of course. It was a found film. But yeah, that's one that I wish had gotten more attention because it is a really solid movie. But yeah, there was that and I actually just watched cruising for the first time last year.
[00:15:22] And then it was really great. But this movie kind of made headlines last year because it got like some kind of remaster. Like some kind of 4K remaster. I think it was on Critering Channel. Like that was part of the like controversy.
[00:15:33] It was like the part about bastion of the canon is censoring movies or something. Yeah, and so it was a weird thing. So French connection isn't movie that was made by 20th Century Fox, which means
[00:15:42] it is now owned by Disney, which is a weird thing that is the case for a lot of movies. And now it's a weird if you go through Disney plus now, which I know you don't subscribe to it, I have Disney plus.
[00:15:53] And they've recently like imported all of Hulu onto Disney plus Disney plus used to be like it's all family friendly stuff and like the craziest thing they have on there was the Simpsons. Right? Right?
[00:16:04] And now you can scroll through Disney plus and like next to each other will be like in Conto, Moana, Family Guy. Dihard, and Predator are like, right? Everything's like mush together now which is very weird. But French connection was a Fox film.
[00:16:16] It's owned by Disney now and there was a controversy last year where they censored I think it's just one scene. I think it's one line in one scene. Yeah. Very early in the movie. It's after you've seen Gene Hackman and Roy Shader like chased down this guy that
[00:16:29] they think is part of the drug ring right and it's this black guy and Gene Hackman's dressed up as Santa Claus but it's very clearly targeting this one guy based on the color of his skin.
[00:16:38] And then that scene happens where Gene Hackman says a line never trust an end word. He doesn't say an word he says the actual word. Disney for whatever reason censored that line. They are like, I'm not sure exactly how they cut the scene.
[00:16:51] I think that scene isn't there because it's literally just then walking out of a police station together and that's all they say. You kind of like a weird thing other than to build the character of Popeye as being a racist dance. Exactly. But that's also the thing.
[00:17:04] I feel like watching the movie I knew that was the scene that was cut and I owned an unplay right so like I saw that like I saw the original version. And I was watching it and being like, if you remove that scene, I feel like that
[00:17:16] scene is so essential to the movie telling you you shouldn't be on these guys. I saw that. Yeah. You know, I feel like if you remove that then you're sort of wondering does the movie think these guys' actions are like good? Yeah. For a long time. Yeah.
[00:17:33] There's stuff they're doing. I mean I guess luckily that's the only time they say that. You know, it should be like this. It could be all over the movie without that.
[00:17:42] You kind of are left like, oh my other stuff they're doing is bad but the movie's not like you know it's obviously it's really free get. It's you know the before times they're not going to turn to the camera like we expect
[00:17:52] them to do now would be like, right? This is the bad thing to do, right? Yeah. But this is like as close to as a movie gets to like kind of turns the camera and being like this is a bad do. That's what I'm saying. Exactly.
[00:18:02] So without that without that being in the movie feels very strange. Right. It's sort of like when you watch death wish and it's like yeah, problematic faith elements to it. Right. Like I enjoy death wish but at the same time most of the movie is Charles
[00:18:14] and just attacking minorities because they're there sort of you know like that's most of them are committing crimes but like I don't know he's just some guy and he doesn't actually know that they're going to do like crimes like that's the vigilance. Yeah, exactly.
[00:18:28] And so with French connection if you remove that scene you change that scene it does I think change the movie a little bit which I think is part of I mean part of the controversy was just like we shouldn't censor these things like we should just like
[00:18:39] present them in their original form may you know give them context give them like a movie and what like you know show why this is in the movie in the first place or whatever
[00:18:47] but then part of it is like yeah and it does kind of fundamentally change the movie by changing that scene which is interesting. Yeah, yeah and it becomes one another one of those things my my version to
[00:18:57] stuff like that in modern day movies like obviously besides like we like we know better by their quotes you know yeah they knew it was bad then too but there's so many other ways to have characters have a movie be like we know these
[00:19:10] people are bad other than just like go to the worst thing they can say you know so I don't know that's like that flip side like like come up with a more clever way or more interesting way to have a character be racist
[00:19:24] bad without having to say these things but um any yeah I mean it's there and it's like you said it's literally one line and that's it and we move on and it's like a two second thing so yeah I didn't see that I saw the original version
[00:19:36] so I don't know how it's presented and it's like you know censored right but I believe like you know like I had the blue ray and I assume you found it through other means but any kind of legal like way to watch the
[00:19:47] French connection through streaming I think still is like this censored version because that's the version that Disney put out which yeah is a little odd it's just a strange thing and it was on the criterion channel
[00:19:59] in that form and all that kind of stuff but all all that is to say man French connection rips what a good movie it's really really terrific just I was kind of shocked at how quickly it moves compared
[00:20:12] to what I like remembered from it I think you know it moves so quickly and so like it's it's so rough and raw and just feels like yeah this is like prime 1970s New York like one of the great New York 70s movies kind of thing
[00:20:24] but you know compared to something like Clute which I think is also really good I like Clute a lot but that movie is fairly slow pace like it's very it's fairly like you know deliberate in its pacing especially in the back
[00:20:34] half and all that and then French connection moves like a bullet like I felt like I was like locked in the entire time wondering what was going to happen next because again I hadn't seen it a long time and I forgot I
[00:20:45] forgot how it ended I forgot like the it's a pretty bleak iconic ending and I completely forgot like what happens yeah me too yeah and I was shocked right away at the beginning of the movie where it's the opening credits
[00:20:56] and all that stuff all the establishing shots of like we're in New York it's winter he's dressed as Santa Claus and all the stuff within a minute or two we're on a foot chase and they're chasing this guy
[00:21:05] back down the back alley is across lots and I think that that's one of the interesting things about this movie I've been talking about this a little bit and there are more recent episodes also like these sort of like films
[00:21:16] as like cultural archaeology or stuff like artifact from you get to see what New York it looked like in 1970 or 1971 or whatever I've filmed it and you know all these just abandoned areas that like like we were just
[00:21:29] talking about this I guess on no more late for you is I don't know when that's going to come out but you know podcast time travel it's better than two in stuff with um you know Doc OX layers like there's a band
[00:21:39] into crepate peer in 2002 there's no area of New York that's not developed in account for yeah but in 1971 yeah there are there's lots of just blocks just desolate with fires on them he's where they beat that
[00:21:52] guy up when they finally catch him is it a vegan lot that's just like a tire fire burning at it like what the fuck is going on and yeah to see that and you can tell it's it's cold you could see everybody's breath the whole
[00:22:03] movie and you like you get that real you know I guess that's the kind of freaking thing right that like kind of a gritty realism naturalistic new Hollywood stuff like you can tell around location it's cold everyone's
[00:22:15] miserable yeah and all that's going on in this movie and it and it I think pays off you know for all of the problematic stuff um you hear about these directors in this era and like the lengths they're going to
[00:22:26] to kind of torment and you know to Kubrick you hear about that that's really developed all those things and well even with him freakin like you know would like I think there's the story like shot a gun off
[00:22:35] on set I think with blanks but on set of the extra cysts to get somebody to jump big enough on camera to scare them yeah things like that it kind of works I don't know how to how to separate those two things
[00:22:46] in my brain of like you know this is probably shouldn't have done this to these people but like look at the art you made you know and I think there is there's no better example of that in this movie than
[00:22:56] the car chase scene yeah that's exactly so that the car chase scene is incredible I mean it's you know rewatching it again having not seen it in a very very long time and again and like only remembering it's like
[00:23:07] oh yeah that's the part of french next that I really enjoyed as I like oh man like I it's better than I ever imagined it being it's so good you know it's a scene where it starts off there's like a sniper
[00:23:17] that you know trying to shoot pop idol and that scene is so tense and so it's so insane and you know shoots like a woman in her baby like yeah yeah it's just pushing her carriage yeah it's insane
[00:23:28] and yeah he chases after the guy and then he's chasing after that he's like trying to get on the on the train with the guy and he's not getting on there and the guy waves at him and all that stuff
[00:23:37] it's really terrific and then yeah pop idol is driving underneath the subway you know and just trying to catch the train and just weaving in and out of traffic and this whole sequence is so intense and so cool and the music is so great throughout the movie
[00:23:51] it's starts with the opening credits that just has the music blaring like French connection which is fun that that whole sequence was filmed completely illegally they did not get the permits to do those things and so when you're watching the french
[00:24:06] connection you're watching people actually swirve in and out of traffic and in many cases actually accidentally hitting cars yeah that are just driving by or their parked cars or whatever many of those things were not meant to happen and it kept them in the movie
[00:24:21] because it was a real it looked cool and yeah they did a completely without permission Jean Hackman you know is there for some of those shots but mostly it's that stuntman Bill Hickman and William Freak
[00:24:32] and with a camera in the back seat who said that yeah the rest of our camera operators had wives and children and I did not so I so I said I would just in case we died doing this like at least
[00:24:45] to like no one will mourn me right at least it'll be him yeah I think later in life he like fully was like that was the stupidest thing we could have never done like we should have not have done that
[00:24:59] yeah and it's also a great quote to the they did have to get permission from a guy at the transit authority to make it happen so that they can kind of follow the train and do all that stuff and the guy at the transit authority did
[00:25:12] it under the condition that they give him forty thousand dollars and a one way ticket to Jamaica and we can speak and said well why a one way ticket and he said because when the movie comes out I'm going to be fired
[00:25:27] and in fact he was fired he was fired good good good good good good and yeah it's it's completely reckless like irresponsible filmmaking man look at that car it's so cool it's so cool
[00:25:41] yeah I don't know I mean I guess I guess credit to to freakin for putting his own life on the line at least for that yeah so that's good yeah absolutely but yeah it's completely insane filmmaking and it's so
[00:25:54] exciting to watch but yeah and it's like what I remember the movie is like yeah the car chase is great and everything else is kind of like you know it's slow or whatever and watching again I was like how do I ever have
[00:26:04] that opinion like everything around the movie is also great and so like fun and energetic and like problematic sure but like you know it's very much about it being that I don't know it's very much about like pop by Doyle in the in-race either they're not good
[00:26:21] cops they are in fact very bad terrible cops and they are so obsessed with catching this guy with like you know getting this drug ring not because they want to like save people you know but it's
[00:26:34] because they you know are just obsessed with like the pursuit of this guy to the degree where like they are actively harming people around them and then at the very end of the movie they're in that final shoot out
[00:26:43] Jean Hackman shoots the FBI agent Bill Molderig you know and and shout it's like what if you don't it's like ah come on we got to go this way we're gonna catch him and it's such a gut punch of the
[00:26:54] ending of the movie where you know they had this obsession they went through all this and like for what for like two people to go to jail for like two months like that's yeah that was the thing that took me
[00:27:06] most of probably surprised like there's the like freeze frame bleak ending and then it has the little code of like so it's such as like sentence commuted charges dropped like it just shows you everybody that it went through all this for like literally nothing
[00:27:19] yeah and like and pop eye and shite or get like reassigned like you know a different unit where they can't hurt people anymore taking out of the narcotics division yeah and I love that the they stumble into this right that opening scene they're like beating up
[00:27:33] this guy this like informant or whatever or trying to get him to informants on people because they need something there's like nothing going on and they just go to this bar to have a drink and and you get
[00:27:43] the idea that pop eyes already figure like has planned this right they've kind of because he's like eyeing everybody convinces cloudy to go into this bar to get a drink after their shifts and he's like we should tell that guy and it's like are we
[00:27:55] here to get a drink like what do we do and then we turn off yeah and they just tell this guy any they happened to be right you know like just by chance not not because of anything just that
[00:28:06] by chance they found this guy who seems to be living beyond his means and switching cars and doing all this weird stuff and that's how they they back they stumble into this ring and then the whole like second act of the movie is them failing to
[00:28:17] be cops like they can't they can't find any connections they can't like their wire tapping they're going nowhere like it's it's wild yeah they're how bad they are yeah absolutely and that's also what I kind of wanted to
[00:28:30] bring up so I watched the French connection and you know I got to watch this movie and I was so I was so glad to rewatched like afterwards it's like man this was so great you know what for full context for the episode I should watch French
[00:28:43] connection to nice you know and I did a French connection to is currently streaming an HBO Max which is where I watched it and as is the original French connection although I don't know if it's the censored version or not but French
[00:28:54] connection to is there and I was like you know I've never seen French connection to a racehiders not in it I know that much so we're not going to watch it for the podcast so I might as well
[00:29:02] watch it now watch it and see like how I think and all that kind of stuff and French connection to is a weird movie mic it's a really strange movie so it is directed by John Frankenheimer which
[00:29:13] did you know that I didn't know that that's a cool John Frankenheimer director of Mike and Mike favorite the train which we did Mike Mike Mike watch on for Mike and Mike go to the movies while back he also directed Bronon and Burman knock a
[00:29:27] trasm and the van Sherry and Candidate like like he's like trespass no that's Walter Hill that's Walter Hill also a great action director but yeah John Frankenheimer like a pretty well known like suspense action thriller guy especially in the
[00:29:39] 60s and 70s and he directed French connection to and French connection to is so weird because it completely undoes the ending of French connection one where I read that like oh there's two returning cast members to French connection to one of
[00:29:52] the machine hackman Gene hackman's back as Pope I Doyle the other one for Nando Ray as Elaine Sherry the bad guy in French connection and at the very end of French connection I guess there's a big US ending to French connection well at the very
[00:30:05] end of French connection they show you those title cards that tell you like what happened to every character oh true yeah and in that one for his title card it says Ellen Sherry was never caught he escaped right French connection to is Gene hackman hunting him down
[00:30:19] in ever said Pope I ever gave up that's true yeah and so French connection to is actually about Pope I traveling to France the entire thing takes place in Marseille and I think there's some
[00:30:30] fun stuff to be had in the first half hour or so because it's very much like here's an extremely New York guy with extremely dirty tactics in France you know it's a different vibe that and all of the
[00:30:42] cops in Marseille portrait is like oh we don't like to beat people up randomly or that kind of thing and Pope I was like well but that's how you get results you know like that kind of stuff and so you have that like
[00:30:54] it's pretty fun like fish out of water stuff in the first half hour and then Ellen Sherry gets wind that Pope I is in Marseille and he kidnapped him he gets his bed to kidnapped Pope I
[00:31:04] and forces heroin on him and gets Pope I and gets Pope I addicted to heroin and then about an hour of the movie is watching Pope I be addicted to heroin and having to detox from heroin in an hour like almost an hour of
[00:31:20] the movie's runtime is just that and it really drags during that time the first half hour is pretty fun and then when he finally gets over that like when you finally like gets unaddicted to heroin the last half hour
[00:31:32] is also kind of fun like it's you know he burns that building and there's a good foot chase and all that kind of stuff but the hour in between man it really made me appreciate the French connection a lot more
[00:31:44] because of how tightly pasted is and that at French connection hour 45 it's pretty quick French section two is about two hours and a full hour of it is just that it's really boring it's it's pretty lame actually
[00:31:58] that sucks yeah I actually just recently on the movies that made me I forget who the guest was but they did an episode on twist endings and they were sort of not really talking they cut you know
[00:32:10] the way podcast are they started talking about other kinds of endings and stuff right talked about the ending of French connection two and I was like what's fascinating that's why all that sounds like a really cool ending
[00:32:22] and then I watched your French connection and I was like this is kind of the same way they described French connection to and I confused and then then I think I saw your letter box review or went and looked and saw some ratings on
[00:32:34] French connection two and was like you know it maybe I don't need all I know how it ends I don't think I need to see it and that is yeah French connection two ends you know there's the big foot chase he's chasing down a
[00:32:44] Popeyes like on the shore and Elaine Sharon is going to boat like trying to escape but he's like almost doing like the wave thing that he does in French next to him boy and where he's leaving is on the train on the train yeah and Popeyes shoots him
[00:32:54] he gets shot cuts a credits like a John Frankenheimer film it's just like at the second he shoots a lady on a movie ends yeah yeah that's what they were talking about like you know twist endings and they're like what
[00:33:05] about the cut to black kind of thing I love it and so they talked about French connection two and then it was pretty funny they were like maybe we should just end the podcast here and then just cut to the end credits song yeah look at that
[00:33:16] pretty good so yeah French connection two I guess we'll all pass on it yeah I mean I think again there's some good stuff in there and I know it has fans like there are
[00:33:24] people who are like big fans of French connection two I saw among my letter box mutuals I saw some I saw some people who liked it I think it's okay there's good
[00:33:31] stuff but like the man that middle hour like drags and it's it's so it's such a shame compared to this first movie which just men rips it's so good yeah and even that that section where they're like being bad investigators or you know failing at it
[00:33:47] and they're tailing people and wiretow all that stuff and it's like yeah it's coming up fruitless you know could feel in a in the hands of maybe a lesser director or you know a lesser film like like pointless like you know a lot of people
[00:34:00] remember that like the way people talked about like fins plot line in the last Jedi they're like well what's even the point he fails right you know a thema hashtag thematics or whatever but failures they keep saying theme in that movie exactly French connection
[00:34:15] doesn't like totally it doesn't even like nobody says that about the middle active this movie right because it is just it's so intense and exciting and then you know they fail they're
[00:34:26] failing the whole time and by accident find the car or if I get the I don't even remember how they get there but yeah sort of stumbling into it yeah yeah I mean they are tailing the car
[00:34:37] for what like they're chasing after car in their own car and then they get into like a huge traffic jam in the Brooklyn Bridge and they can't follow the car or yeah they lose them
[00:34:48] and so and when like the actual big car chase happens that's only because somebody's trying to kill Popeye Doyle there's a sniper that he then chases down yeah no every time they try
[00:34:57] to do anything or follow you know other information it just leads to more dead ends or it doesn't like help them out at all yeah but I love just the capturing of the world of New York City in
[00:35:08] this movie and the kind of kind of the underworld that exists within it I think and just following them in their methods evil as they often are it's you know just stuff like when they they break
[00:35:19] into the bar they get into the bar and they're just like you know it's an almost entirely black people in the bar and you know they're causing fear they're causing like you know mayhem they're
[00:35:29] like you know almost I'm not sure they actually like shoot their guns up into the air but like they basically do yeah no when I did notice that because Popeye does that when the like those
[00:35:41] hoods are gonna like steal the hubcaps off the car and they think they're like the drug deal so they're like they're part of a connection or whatever and when they like bust them or whatever
[00:35:52] Popeye jumps out of his car and just shoots his gun over in the air yeah you're in Manhattan like what are you doing yeah absolutely but then yeah there's that whole sequence and then there's
[00:36:03] this one guy they start like you know questioning they start then he's like oh you're mouth and often like come into the background with me and it turns out he's just like in informant for them like
[00:36:10] he's an important release or something yeah something like that like he's somebody who gives that information uh and but he or at least he's like undercover or something like with again this
[00:36:19] group of people and he and how is like all right where do you want it like I got to you know beat you up now because just like to put on appearances and stuff and all all that stuff like is
[00:36:29] is so fascinating uh and I think the like the look at the inner life of Popeye compared to Shidder that you get is really interesting too where I think Shidder of the two of them is much
[00:36:40] more put together than Popeye is you know and you have that scene where a rushhider visits Popeye Popeye is like he's hungover he's naked there's a girl in the back room he's like used his police
[00:36:52] badge to get sex and all that kind of stuff and you know rushhider is like you know he's he's dressed in a suit he's ready to go he's ready he's ready he's ready to work it's turn on
[00:37:00] that kind of yeah he's ready to do his thing uh and so it's it is like sort of an early example of kind of a buddy cop movie uh between the two of them the kind of like opposites that kind of
[00:37:10] come together yeah he's almost like a it's like you live like this is basically like that scene but yeah I mean it's it's the interesting thing where like Doyle is clearly a unhinged you know
[00:37:24] alcohol like abusive terrible monster of a cop uh but but uh cloudy rushhider's character is like the definition of a cab like that's what this that's what this is what we're talking about
[00:37:35] he's like put together and there's the scene in particular where they go to their lieutenant or whatever to ask for a wire after they've trailed the guy on the first time he meets up with
[00:37:44] a previous drug connection guy they've busted in the past or something I forget that it's like something like woodstock but it's not woodstock but anyway so like that's the evidence like oh this guy's
[00:37:53] connected we need to tap it we need to tap his house all this stuff and uh he turned the lieutenant turns and looks at rushhider and I forget exactly what he asked him but he says he says like do you
[00:38:05] believe all this stuff and he just says I go with my partner and it's like okay so you don't believe that you know you're on a wild use chase and this is gonna be bad but yeah
[00:38:14] I go with my partner like like this is what we're talking about uh there's that and it's fact it's you know fascinating the way that we be you know includes both include that it's one of
[00:38:22] those things where it's not critiquing necessarily this but it's also definitely not glamorizing these people and yeah and it's audience might not realize it's not glamorizing it's like one of those weird like litmus test things it's just kind of like portraying it straight like it's just
[00:38:38] like presenting it to you and it is and it is so wild that this movie feels so um I don't want to say it feels anti-cop because I don't necessarily think it doesn't go far enough to be in
[00:38:49] that camp but yeah but it definitely feels like it's it's shining a light on like the I mean by the end like it's shining a light on like the negative practices that like these two characters
[00:38:59] do yeah they literally kill an FBI each they kill an FBI agent in this movie yeah and I think it's so wild that this is based on two real life detectives who are in the movie it's crazy
[00:39:15] which is yeah wild but yeah racer player plays uh grosso in the movie or a clap cloudie is his nickname uh so what did you think of a racer in this film like yeah he's great everybody thought so
[00:39:26] I guess um but yeah it's really good it's it's intense it's it's it's it's the really calm and cool it's like it's the kind of like emergence of the racer writer that I have
[00:39:38] and maybe we have in like popular consciousness of yeah you know it's a little there and cleat but even even that his his performance include is like a little like funky you know kind of
[00:39:48] drug addict he's the whatever all this stuff uh or an a pin and here he's the you know he's got it together he's got the turtle neck he's got the cigarette hanging from his lip doing all the racer
[00:39:57] writer stuff and he's he's really good he he him and Gene Hackman together are like like gosh he has like there's such a good image the two of them you know yes absolutely I mean they play
[00:40:07] off each other so well in their chemistry is I think a day part of why this movie works um because they they do feel like they're they're like genuinely enjoying being evil pieces of shit yeah which is
[00:40:17] is very fun uh but yeah shiiter is like pretty locked in and this really feels like you know I mean this is his breakout movie like clube was kind of his breakout and then this kind of cemented
[00:40:27] but this feels like oh yeah this is the emergence of the racer writer that I know I love you know the guy who will play chief brody and jaws who will be in all that jazz and 2010 the year we
[00:40:37] may contact and so many other classic films that we all love uh yeah in the summer for 2010 on this podcast that's my that's my hope I'm down writer died for 2010 that in that uh entertainment weekly interview conversation or whatever with we're infreakin about racer writer he said that
[00:40:54] he actually didn't even have to audition which is wild somebody I don't remember if it was a producer or cast the casting director somebody was connected to somebody you know new whatever and racer
[00:41:06] I think was in uh it was in either Broadway or an off Broadway play at the time yeah like said like oh you should meet with him and he said like yeah we went we met in like met in an
[00:41:15] office for 10 minutes and I was like yeah you're in and uh racer writer is like do you want me to like read and he's like nah you're like you're the guy don't worry which is just fascinating nice
[00:41:27] yeah so yeah he's terrific in this movie it's really really great I think there's one scene of the movie too that I really wanted to kind of hone in on with his performance because I think you know he's
[00:41:36] he's a great foil to pop by from most of the movie and that's most of what he's asked to do uh there's one scene towards the end of the movie uh where they are investigating this car that
[00:41:44] they know has drugs in it like they're positive drugs are in this car somewhere and they're tearing it apart and they can't find the drugs yeah Ellen's sharing a in like the other guy are like you
[00:41:53] know in the back room and like on their waiting for like four or five hours to get their car back and all that kind of stuff and like all the cops are going through the car and trying to figure out
[00:42:02] what's going on uh and racer asks Irv which this is in our our theme song for this podcast first one the first moment our first moment here what was the weight of the car when you got it Irv
[00:42:14] and Irv tells him what the weight of the car was and then racer at her glances down at his a paper and you could see his eyes widened and he like kind of looks back he almost like does a
[00:42:23] double take like at Irv and at the paper and he's like wait a minute the car is 120 pounds over weights Popeyes right there has to be drugs in the car yeah and that's it you know and that
[00:42:35] and that's it and that's when they're able to kind of figure out like finally how like where they could possibly be hiding but I think that like one moment from racer is such a good like acting
[00:42:44] moment like it's it's just it's a good like you know he he really feels like he's almost like that's the moment where racer comes to his own as an actor almost you know yeah there's there's a
[00:42:54] lot of moments watching this movie I was just like struck by like maybe we should let actors smoke in movies again it's just it gives them all such like interesting business to be doing
[00:43:08] instead of just we're all standing here you know like everybody who's you know light and as a match or with the light whatever I don't know it's also interesting just need something to do
[00:43:16] with their hands something to do with their hands or having their like yeah it just looks cool you know I guess that's the whole problem with it but yeah this moment in particular is very
[00:43:26] intense because this is the card that they think those like guys are gonna do like a swap with or whatever but they're trying to just steal the tires and then yeah right and and they know
[00:43:35] this is the car they've been tailing them they know something is wrong and it's like an intense montage of just like them ripping carpets out and hammering stuff poppin things out of the doors and all
[00:43:46] that and they're taking the engine apart and they can't find anything and yeah he right shatter cloudy just has that but one moment like that little realization that when he like sits
[00:43:56] up when he sits upright when he like realizes that the car is overweight rice like oh baby yeah and at this point he is like you know he's starting to lose faith in papai a little bit
[00:44:06] yeah you know he's like yeah papai is off the deep end yeah papai is off the deep end like he's he's going not she's going crazy for this thing and he's losing a little bit faith in like what
[00:44:14] papai really believes that the drugs are in this car and he first shatter like do we've been we've been at this for like four hours like we got to give this up uh and then yeah he asked
[00:44:23] that question and he's he realizes like yeah holy shit the car's 120 pounds overweight that can't be there has to be drugs here and so yeah that moment is terrific how do you
[00:44:33] think this fits into the shadow rolls that we've seen so far Mike um like sort of what we were talking about this is kind of the you know I guess I'll use my stock answer the natural progression
[00:44:42] of their natural evolution and their roles we've seen so far but yeah okay wait no wait no no yeah uh uh you know obviously we talked about it and that that that being sort of the
[00:44:56] or I guess really like loving I guess was like the where it's like oh we're inter that the sort of new Hollywood kind of era even though his characters performance in that is like a little more
[00:45:05] manic and zany then we're sort of used to you from our Harry rather than uh we're used to from a rocher editor performance but that's like you know getting into that we're here it is
[00:45:13] it's 1972 we're fully we're fully in that new Hollywood mode and here it is the kind of uh naturalistic gritty uh kind of stuff we're gonna see I think at least for the next couple episodes yeah absolutely
[00:45:26] I think you're right uh so yeah there you go any other scenes or moments that stand out to you in the French action Mike anything that you feel like we haven't brought up yet no because I did
[00:45:34] really want to highlight too that that that scene at the bar where they're like going on this raid as like a pretense to meet their informant yeah right like that's the whole set up that we
[00:45:44] were talking about before there's like a comic amount of drugs in the bar like you know he's like everybody I think you're fucking split up and they're like underneath the thing on the lip on
[00:45:54] the bar like so much and yeah it's just it's it's really just uh for them to like terrorize this community and this bar the people in this bar just so they can go talk to their
[00:46:05] their informant or their undercover whoever it is uh in in private in the back and you know with that's that's the persona and he even says like that's right papai's here and they all know
[00:46:14] like oh fuck and they all get out like they've done he's done this a million times yeah that's that's really interesting scene yeah absolutely and you know I do want to highlight I think I mentioned
[00:46:22] this off Mike but I think it's so funny that the first time you see papai Doyle he is dressed like Santa Claus uh undercover it's it's so so funny that that's that that's your first glimpse of
[00:46:32] this character uh and then he's immediately like a Tim and Roy Shider chasing down this guy and yeah then they're like sort of doing a good cop bad cop routine but it's mostly like bad cop or scop
[00:46:42] yeah yeah yeah like that's sort of the thing and it has the line like you have a pick you feet and the kipsy sun uh as somebody who grew up near for kipsy I was like hey kipsy
[00:46:50] uh yeah I know where that is and yeah that whole sequence I think is it is really wild and it's one of the things like oh had they like come up with that turns out uh that's something
[00:47:01] that Eddie you can the cop used to do he used to dress up like Santa to uh to ambush people basically amazing uh which yeah that's like that must have been part of the book which I think
[00:47:10] it's so funny that like so much of this movie is fictionalized but that's not that like that yeah he's dressed up as Santa Claus yeah uh he's not a fictional thing which is pretty
[00:47:21] wild sometimes it's uh you know truth is strange in the fiction or whatever so why not put that in there yeah absolutely um but yeah other scenes I had we already mentioned the Shider kind of
[00:47:31] checking it on pop by at home and I did like his kind of like snidly he picks up the girls panties that are like next to him and he's like these yours darling yeah and the shootout at the end when
[00:47:42] they finally get to the like you know uh ambush the exchange the drop with the drugs finally and yeah and it's like you were like watching it you're like oh yeah William Freak and movies are like
[00:47:56] surprisingly violent when like when there is violence and there's like giant juicy squids going off as people are getting blown away don'ts yeah that whole that whole shootout is great I do
[00:48:06] like um what Shider does to with that those like final couple of moments when pop by does shoot the FBI agent uh because he shoots the FBI agent because he thinks it's the guy it's Ellie and Sharon yeah
[00:48:16] he thinks it's the guy that's chasing this whole time uh and Shiders like wait don't do it like he he realizes before pop by shoots him that that's who he's shooting uh and pop by shoots him anyway
[00:48:26] and then Shiders like like Shider has this moment where he realizes how deep of shit they are in yeah he realizes what's gone on like he's got over yeah uh and he can't like believe that this
[00:48:38] is happened and he's so like his world has just come crashing down around him and Hackman meanwhile it's just like so laser focused on catching this guy he's like it's fine people get killed all the
[00:48:48] time let's move and just uh you know and there he's looking around for him and yeah they never find the guy he escapes until French next and two when Hackman gets his revenge well it's even so
[00:48:58] interesting too the very ending of the movie right or the very end of that scene right he's like he's in the next room or whatever and he like charges out through the door uh and then it frees frames
[00:49:07] but you hear a single gunshot before you start getting the text of like and then this person was no it's said you know whatever charges dropped so it's like the movie's sort of is a big
[00:49:16] US of did pop by get shot did the the the the French being get shot like what's happening you know I think yeah until until it gets to their title cards you're not wondering yeah
[00:49:27] and it is just yeah all of the cards are just like oh yeah this guy they were following they got two months in jail uh this guy he got sentenced but he got a reduced sentence and he's out now
[00:49:36] like yeah you know these these guys were acquitted they told like you know all that kind of stuff and it is just like this completely deflating ending forget it pop on it's the French connection
[00:49:46] yeah exactly it's classic 70s new Hollywood ending yes now that uh you know I mentioned this it might have been an earlier Roy Shatter episode but earlier this year I did read uh Tarantino's a cinema speculation uh book and uh since since reading his essay about Rocky
[00:50:03] and uh how people were so so needed some kind of movie that has like a movie where the hero sort of wins at the end like can't get him a full win but he can't get him to full he still loses
[00:50:14] at the end of Rocky but it feels like a win uh and just because every other movie in the 70s has such a downer ending anytime I'm watching a movie from the 70s uh like I think about that now
[00:50:25] because it's like oh yeah yeah it's a classic 70s move to everyone's gonna be dead or on heroin or some shit like it's like it could just be the worst version yeah the guy gets away and the
[00:50:34] people you've been following they got reassigns there they're they're in fact pretty bad dudes and also I did want to mention just a nice like you know a moment that showcases their chemistry
[00:50:46] I think very well as when they are doing the wiretap and there's a moment where they're just kind of like listening to the wiretap and crack it up like somebody's like trying to order pizza or
[00:50:53] something and they're just laughing at them or whatever uh and they're like dancing with each other like at the end of like all that stuff it's you know all that stuff is fun yeah and then I think
[00:51:01] that's the little moments that make that fun and interesting where it's not just bad stuff happening or like them failing all the time you know there's little moments like that yeah all throughout
[00:51:11] absolutely absolutely uh any other uh scenes or moments in this movie that you wanted to give a shout out to my form of on letterbox reviews no we could go to letterbox reviews I mean I'm interested
[00:51:20] I should have looked beforehand how many people we've been tracking that a little bit with the earlier movies where you know there was 500 people or whatever then have watched uh it was a
[00:51:30] paper line I think uh yeah I think it was paper line that had a very small amount of people uh I think Curse of Living Corps also had a pretty pretty small yeah so I'm interested I'm gonna
[00:51:40] see there look that up while uh well I'm reading one yes go okay all right I'm gonna go ahead and read a letterbox review for the French connection uh this is a five star review from Will Sloan
[00:51:52] tough ugly and mean like it's protagonist love the movies refusal to give you anything more about papai doil a real piece of shit than what's in front of you love it it's one of the rare
[00:52:02] movies that shows New York City as it actually looks wonder if the safeties drew any inspiration from this love the gut punch ending crazy that this one best picture and with a ready-made
[00:52:11] best picture winner like the last picture show right next to it on the balance I'm glad Freak didn't kill anyone while filming the car yes and it's it's been logged by 177,000 people which
[00:52:24] is surprisingly less than I thought but a lot it's still a lot of people but yeah I think for a non-new release movie that's a good point yeah that feels pretty good that's that's solid here's
[00:52:35] a four star review from James Doug Field man I hate all the CGI bullshit these days more movie should attach cameras to the front of cars and illegally drive them down major roads at 90 miles an
[00:52:45] hour that's a image that's a huge perfect yeah uh here's one from just in the liberty this is a five star review Freak can often tends to be hailed for his technical skills a filmmaker which the
[00:52:59] car chase is almost always the highlight here but his work with actors is just as essential always pulling out history on it often borderline hysterical performances from those in front of his camera
[00:53:09] the best of which may very well be Jean Hackman as Popeye Doyle you can see elements of Freak can shining through in the way Hackman plays it his stubbornness palpable vitriol and desire
[00:53:19] to win at any cost but Freak in to his credit allows Popeye to exist a brutal racist booze up cop and there goes through any lengths to temper that nothing is remat the size and the
[00:53:29] heroes the story are in many ways as easy to despise as the villains yeah just a nose what's up absolutely here's actually that just the pop-back made this moment that I want to highlight that I thought
[00:53:40] is like uh the movies baby uh where they have tailed uh the the the French the Frenchies uh and they go to this like beautiful steak house and they're having this like i don't know how
[00:53:51] many course meal and all this stuff and did you just see through the window in the background that's Popeye just like angerly with his arms crossed like watching them and he's like he's like
[00:54:02] there's a moment where I think he's like he's like he's like he's like he's like he's doing something like he's eating or drinking or whatever and like a car goes by and like it clearly jumps time
[00:54:10] and now he's like he's like disgusted by whatever he has in his hand and I don't know that was it's really interesting like the way you know visually to show they've been here so long like his
[00:54:20] cup of coffee has gone right or whatever it is um that's great yes absolutely I got one last review here Mike it's a four and a half star of you from Brens and O'Hare I once chased an elevated
[00:54:31] subway train with my car like Gene Hackman uh going way over the speed limit hitting other cars running into things etc because I thought I saw Jerry Seinfeld right against turn's out
[00:54:43] it was just an ad for Seinfeld my god live in Lair that guy must have the person must have wrote that review before the last two weeks I would imagine so yeah oh well uh yes and there you go
[00:54:59] the French connection Mike what a picture yes indeed the movies the movies baby uh and yeah I think from here on out I mean there's gonna be some obscurities of course uh you know there always is especially
[00:55:10] kind of going back this far into a film history but we're gonna have a lot more big hits coming up in the next few weeks so pretty excited about that is this next movie jaws no no not even close
[00:55:23] oh yeah uh no I'll tell you what the 75 right okay yeah that's 75 there's four years of movies before we get to my god alright Mike D where can we find your online this week you can
[00:55:34] find me at md foam blog on twitter and letterbox and blease guy and if you'd like to donate to support show you can see that on our co-fee page which is cofee.com slash Mike and Mike Pods
[00:55:44] and if you want merch we have merch available on our red bubble which is Mike and Mike Pods. Redbubble.com that's right you can find me online at msmithfilm blog on twitter Mike Smith film on
[00:55:53] letterbox and radio Mike sandwich Instagram thanks much listen to complete works I Mike Smith it's my degree show don't forget to rate interview the show on apple podcast or any other podcast
[00:56:02] app and if you want to contact us you can tweet at us at complete works pod that's WRKS no oh in the word works and you can find the rest of our podcast and rapture press alongside many
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[00:56:18] of gmail.com and our logo was designed by Mac Vee or at fearless guard on twitter uh next week this is gonna get a little confusing uh we're talking a racerid movie that is unrelated to the
[00:56:29] French connection but it has a similar title oh that's right uh the French conspiracy is the next movie in the racerid movie again unrelated to French connection although there is another movie
[00:56:41] coming up that is related to French connection uh and in fact involves many of the same actors however not it's not the same character that is playing uh and it's different uh uh to movie called
[00:56:51] the 7-ups which will get to uh later yes uh which is also kind of the i i read a thing uh where's like oh yeah jeen hack been uh got to return for French connection too as pop by Doyle so continuing
[00:57:02] the saga of a character based on Eddie Egan and then racerid or played another character based on sunny growso right after french connection like they they like split off in a two different
[00:57:11] directions wild that's so weird yes uh very very strange and so yeah we'll be talking more about French connection I'm sure in a relation to uh that movie and possibly to this movie uh the
[00:57:21] French conspiracy uh but as far as I know unrelated to French connection uh i believe there's like just like two movies back to back where racerid or was like hanging out in France and made two
[00:57:29] movies uh and this is one of them that because i believe i mean i'm sure we'll get into it next episode but it's like got a different title in France and that definitely has big well we'll trick people
[00:57:39] into thinking it's a French connection movie what we released it in America like just Nicole at that yes absolutely I'm gonna double check what is the name of that movie uh in France in France
[00:57:51] is it like let attack or something that i don't think that's right but uh it's the French yeah uh let let in tats uh which does translate to via attack so yeah you got it Mike it's also called
[00:58:03] the assassination he so has a couple of different titles uh but it was released in the US under the title the French conspiracy uh a year after the French connection came out so it does seem like they
[00:58:12] were really trying to capitalize on yeah that movie ripping off his own movie good for me yes absolutely alright there you go thanks so much for listening oh and also uh check out Mike and Mike out of the
[00:58:22] movies for uh all kinds of other movie related stuff including recent releases ranked list general discussions and a lot more were released in those as bonus episodes to the complete works
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[00:58:57] i've put a lot of sauce on the word French I like it got the French connection out