Open Thread Wednesday

S & W Model 29….fine firearm!!

Yeah Clint Eastwood as Dirty Harry – when men were men. I love this movie. One of the all time great movies.

I'm not so sure this movie would be made today in this atmosphere of Political Correctness.

A few words on today's poster. 'Dirty Harry' is a solid movie, from beginning to end. Clint Eastwood created one of my favorite characters, with Insp. Harry Callahan and Andy Robinson, will live forever, as one of the greatest villains ever to appear on screen.

'Dirty Harry' is also one of the many great films mentioned in a recent article, written by the one, the only, John T. Simpson. If you haven't already done so, check it out:

http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jtsimpson/2009/...

Last but not least, I would have never discovered this place called Big Hollywood, if it were not for my favorite, Dirty Harry, John Nolte. As with many others, John had one of the best websites on the planet, prior to accepting an invitation from Andrew Breitbart, to become Editor-in-Chief of Big Hollywood.

I'm sure I speak for many when I say, Thanks John for taking the gig. You'll always be Dirty Harry, to me.

'Magnum Force' is the best sequel- lot's of John Milius touches… but 'The Enforcer' is by far the funniest with classic Clint confrontations. The interview with Tyne Daly and 'Ms Gray' still busts us up…

Don't get me wrong – I enjoyed all of them but Sudden Impact was the one that stayed with me longer for some reason. I did enjoy Magnum Force, too. "A man's gotta know his limitations."

This is one of my all time favorite movies. I don't think Clint ever moves his jaw. Through the entire film he speaks with clenched teeth, showing total disgust with the crooks, the system, and his fellow officers that think he's just a loose (hand) cannon.

I just showed this movie to my 17 year old son; we contrasted it to "Gran Torino". That flash of the eyes is still there.

My favorite scene ever in a movie: Harry has shot Scorpio in the leg, the lights are on in the stadium and the fog is starting to roll in. Harry asks where the girl is buried … the one Scorpio buried alive. Scorpio is saying "I've got rights! I want a lawyer!"

Harry steps hard into Scorpio's bullet wound and presses down …. and Scorpio howls in pain. The camera pans back very far, Harry's pressing down onto Scorpio's leg and the screaming …. wouldn't we all love to do that???

I saw Andy Robinson in the unemployment office in North Hollywood in the late 70s – standing in line just like the rest of us to sign for his check.

He was in a line with some carpenters and one of them recognized him, but thought he was one of his tribe. "Are you a carpenter?" Robinson – "No. I'm an actor".

Decades earlier, an older co-worker of mine had made the regular acquaintance of Adolphe Menjou in the same manner.

Now you can't meet the elite at the fancy new name office. They mail you your unemployment check! BASTARDS!

"It was reported Obama will have Budweiser,"

Disgraceful!

Very few people I'd care to spend good beer drinking time with than Obama and Gates – two stuck up, pissed off, boring ass ,over-achieving birds of a feather.

Crowley should stand them up. The ultimate blow-off. Stay home and watch Abbott and Costello movies in your underwear. More fun and far more relaxing on a summer's afternoon.

And no chance of that rolling pin weilding witch Michelle showing up, either!

One of my favorite Eastwood movies is The Gauntlet, co-starring the very sexy Sandra Locke. If you want to see firepower, it's a must-see.

One comment of Dirty Harry too. Back then, even the criminals were tougher. If that bank robber in that immortal scene were around today, he'd sue the police department for undue physical force, racism, and mental anguish. Oh, yes, and acting stupidly.

I got myself a Ruger Redhawk, Stainless, 5.5" barrel. It's the Bee's Knees!

I'd venture to say Eastwood's Dirty Harry would be an even bigger hit today, and would definately get made. He still typifies the "fed up to the eyeballs", non-P.C. everyday "Joe" that does the heavy lifting in this country. The same guy that is under assault by the left wing dominated media and the scourge of political correctness, we NEED Dirty Harry, now more than ever.

If the Dirty Harry franchise were to be started up again… who should play the title character? Hugh Jackman, Vin Diesel, who?

Ah, but being fictional, Harry had the pleasure of always being right–he never roughed up a scumbag suspect who didn't thoroughly deserve it. In the real world…cops not always so infallible.

Does Kennedy's actions in October 1962 make him the greatest President ever? I know you can't compare apples to oranges but just for sake of discussion I say maybe so…

Give 'em Hell! L.B. Give 'em Hell!

Please, I hope they leave these movies alone. No one will ever top Eastwood. Ever. Hollywood in their PC state of mind would only botch it.

Look what happened with the last 'Superman' movie. They couldn't even include the words "…Truth, Justice and The American Way" for fear of offending someone.

Nah…leave Insp. Callahan alone.

Mark in answer to your question, I honestly don't think there's an actor in Hollywood today who COULD play Harry Callaghan. PC nitwits and media progressives have fought incredibly hard to eliminate the "macho white male" persona from the American lexicon. I'm sure I don't need to point this out, but watch any TV channel at any time of day or night, and try to find a single instance of a competent white male with an ounce of integrity. Even if it meant billions at the box office, Hollywood simply would not allow all that hard work (propaganda) to go to waste.

Why do you think Scorsesse has Leonardo DiFruitcakeo in every movie nowadays? Pretty boys over manly men, Hollywood style…

Always remember that what made "Dirty Harry" such a great film (aside from Eastwood's iconic performance) was the direction of Don Siegel (1912-1991). This guy could generate suspense filming some guy tying his shoes. His string of low-budget. high-tension thrillers from the 1950's and early 1960's (including "Riot in Cell Block 11", "Private Hell 36", "The Lineup", The Killers" and of course "Invasion of the Body Snatchers") are models of tough, intelligent and economical filmmaking. He decisively influenced a number of important directors including Sam Peckinpah and Eastwood himself (who starred in five Siegel vehicles.) In his war and crime films, Siegel's characters are always hard-bitten, smart and memorable. If all you know of his work is "Dirty Harry" and his films with Clint then do yourself a huge favor and try to find the films described above. Also throw in "Charley Varrick" which is one of the best "caper" films ever made.

I can see Nicholas Cage in the part. Good actor, sufficiently unpretty and lean like Eastwood.

Man, now there was a guy who could could write a script! Sharp, smart dialogue and plots that really move.
Must have been a great guy to have a drink with.

Good question since it's been forty years and new ideas are rather scarce on the ground in present-day Hollywood. The problem is that the role (if done right) wold require an actual grown-up and there don't seem to be too many of those around right now. Can you see someone like Viggo Mortensen or Aaron Eckhart as Dirty Harry? I'm sure some producer can. And rather than hunting a deranged sniper who merely wants money we can have Callahan chasing a neo-Nazi terrorist cell in league with Halliburton, Bank of America and Karl Rove. Wait, I think we have a movie!

Best freakin' movies EVER! Love Clint, one of THE best people in Hollywood today.

I LOVED ALL of the Dirty Harry movies, even the last one that he made years after..Dead Pool I think it was.

'Charley Varrick' is excellent. Walter Matthau is perfect as Charley. With the underrated Joe Don Baker to boot and Andrew Robinson. A nifty little crime drama.

Yeah, Don Siegel was a good one.

He was a hoot. Never had a drink with him, but used to have lunch with him at his favorite place — Cocos on Ventura Blvd. His wife — for whatever reason — kept Dean isolated from his family. Literally had to wait until she died so that contact could be re-established. By that time, Dean was pretty aged but still was full of great stories. He kept busy writing and seeing movies, to which he would comment "I don't know what the f*ck they were thinking". Loved his stories about drinking with James Dean and about his first wife, Vampira (Maila Nurmi). Dean also remarked that Walter Matthau was considered for the part of Harry Callahan, though I can't find anything to back that up.

Thanks, all, for the kind words about Dean. (We always called him "Dink", as he was once a child actor called "Dinky Dean")

Yep. That's John Conyers for you. And people wonder why our country is in trouble?

http://www.cnsnews.com/public/content/article.asp...

I found this website last night – http://scriptshadow.blogspot.com/

It's a good site if you want to find out what people are writing. Most of the scripts appear to have been written on spec; some have been purchased (lucky them). I've been reading some of the synopses – some look good, some not so much. Some of the scripts are also available for download.

The best premise I've read so far has been for a movie called Help Me Spread Goodness: "A banker who gets swindled in a Nigerian internet scam travels to Nigeria to get his money back."

The remake was doomed b/c there was no way to find an actress like Angela Lansbury who could be shot to death on a stage, but still fall off her chair with her knees together.

What a gal!

Should we list remakes that went badly/counter to the original?
Then I submit The Day the Earth Stood Still. Great original. Mr. Carpenter's final line was the best; we have peace, its not perfect. And still a reverence to God/the Spirit.

I remember SInatra being a very convincing cop in "The First Deadly Sin," but I haven't seen it in ages.

And the very distinct pleasure of not getting shot in the back of the head himself thereby qualifying for however many sequals it turned out to be. In the real world those cops are not quite so invincible. Harry certainly was quite the icon, though wasn't he? At his age, Clint could do Dirty Harry meets "No Country for Old Men." Yikes, what a thought!

Clint is awesome. Even my very crunchy parents enjoyed watching him blast away at miscreants. And since I think his mother lived well into her 90's, he should be with us for a bit more.

I love cold coffee on a hot day, but it shouldn´t be a week old. I put whipped cream and vanilla ice cream in it, italian style!

Of a lot of great lines in that movie one of my favorites is "It's important for a man to know his limitations".