Il braccio violento della legge N°2

Popeye Doyle is now in France to find the drug dealer. The film continues the story, this time John Frankenheimer takes the directing reins.

The film's style is not that different from the first film, it feels part of the series, not detached at all.

Gene Hackman actually gets better, he really gets more out of his acting in this one. The film is very much character driven, very little action. The Cold Turkey sequence is mindblowing. Doyle is shown as a flawed character as is Alain Charnier, this adds to the realism.

The direction is excellent, I'm glad the style didn't change too much.

The photography is less gloomy but the locations are similar to the first film.

It is no surprise that a sequel to the masterpiece "The French Connection" was commissioned. After all, the 1971 film helped to define a much more realistic kind of Hollywood movie and is in a league of its own. Gene Hackman brought so much depth to the tough cop, Popeye Doyle. In the hands of a lesser actor, the character would have become one-dimensional. Released in 1975, "French Connection 2," is actually very good on its own terms. Naturally, Gene Hackman was brought back and so was Fernando Rey as the drug dealer who eluded capture in the previous film. Aside from actor Ed Lauter, every cast member in this sequel is French apart from Hackman. It made sense to have this 1975 film, seeing as there were a few loose ends from before. Being set and filmed in Marseilles, we see a more vulnerable side to Popeye Doyle. He doesn't know any area of France, he has never been to that particular country before, so his being on alien territory makes him a target in more ways than one. There are some good action scenes which keep the viewer interested but the film suffers from overlength. If the running time had been trimmed by about 15 minutes, then the narrative would have been stronger. This is no fault of the director, John Frankenheimer. He certainly deserves more recognition as he made some very good films. The drug addiction reference makes for rather uncomfortable viewing as we see first hand, Doyle's graphic and disturbing withdrawal symptoms. I can understand why this was included in "French Connection 2," as Fernando Rey is determined to rid himself of this cop who has been a thorn in his side from day 1. He will employ any means necessary to rid himself of his adversary. However, the drug addiction took up too much screen time. Regardless, it is testament to how tough Doyle is as his fighting spirit is still there. Surviving his ordeal, only makes him that more determined to catch his man. The French police with whom Doyle works, view him with a certain degree of suspicion and concern. After all, Doyle's reputation precedes him....... There isn't so much of the humour or camaraderie that is so evident in the previous film but one scene that is quite droll is as follows: when Gene Hackman goes to a bar and he can't make himself understood very well as his French is limited and the barmans English is even worse! Then after a few drinks together, they merrily walk the streets of Marseilles after the bar is closed. That was a good scene. This isn't a classic but worth viewing all the same. There were plans by "20th Century Fox" to produce a third "French Connection" film with Gene Hackman being paired with Richard Pryor as his new partner. It was scheduled for production about 1979. That sounds interesting, a shame it didn't happen.

The movie concerns on Popeye Doyle (Gene Hackman), an unorthodox New York narcotics cop investigating the flow of drug that follows the trail of the French connection . He travels to Marsaille following the foreign connection and tries to track down the eluded evil Alain Charnier (Fernando Rey) , the smuggling ring chief , who escaped from N.Y.C. There , he joins forces to the French gendarmes (Bernard Fresson and Jean Pierre Castaldi , among others) to hunt down the ringleader . Then , Popeye getaways his French escorts and goes himself into action .

The picture is the follow-up to ¨French Connection¨(by William Friedkin) but didn't achieved the same success and was a flop at box office . However , being , nowadays , considered a very good film and highly rated . In the movie there is action , suspense , violence , intrigue and a little bit of humor in charge of Popeye Doyle , as he begins to find himself as a fish out of water in France and particularly on his relationships with the French people . The film develops a certain social critical to the French habits and there's specially a banter to the Police called Gendarmerie . The motion picture has action-packed but in the intervening period when the starring ends up being abducted by Alain Charnier's henchmen , it results to be a little bit boring , with overlong scenes ; besides , quite disagreeable as Popeye is injected heroin . Gene Hackman's interpretation as the rebel and nonconformist Popeye Doyle is top-notch as well as the previous film that's why he gained deservedly an Academy Award . Fernando Rey repeats perfectly his role as the elegant and cunning nasty and the secondary casting formed by French actors are very fine . The picture was stunningly directed by John Frankenheimer. Rating : Very good and well worth watching.

Review: French Connection II

If ever there was a character who embodied the mantra of "too much is never enough," it's Gene Hackman's Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle in French Connection II. Hackman reprises his role with an intensity that could best be described as equal parts compelling and concerning. His relentless, almost cartoonishly excessive approach to policing makes Dirty Harry look like a yoga instructor. Popeye's antics aren't just rough-and-tumble - they're bulldozer-in-a-china-shop rough. And while this gung-ho style may have paved the way for generations of gritty cop characters, it's hard not to think that Popeye could benefit from either a few anger management sessions or a permanent holiday in a padded cell. His methods make policing in a banana republic look measured by comparison.

The film itself is a curious beast. Unlike the taut, Oscar-winning original, the sequel takes a fragmented approach, peppering the narrative with moments that feel as disconnected as Doyle himself after a few too many drinks. The cold turkey subplot, while ambitious, overstays its welcome - much like a guest who insists on recounting their detox journey in excruciating detail. Yes, it's gripping at times, but also drawn out to the point of exhaustion.

Yet, despite its flaws, there's a certain charm to French Connection II. It reflects the 1970s in all its unfiltered glory: raw, experimental, and unafraid to show its dark underbelly. And let's not forget, this was a sequel - a concept still relatively novel at the time. Its boldness deserves applause, even if its execution occasionally falters.

Ultimately, French Connection II is a reflective, uneven ride through the mind of a cop who might just be too unhinged for his own good. Entertaining? Absolutely. Timeless? Not quite. But it's an enjoyable throwback to a time when sequels were rare, and heroes like Doyle were as flawed as the stories they inhabited.

The French Connection and its sequel are the Grandfather to such classics as To Live and Die in L.A., Copland, and Narc, and the anti-thesis of all of those 80's flops either far too "Hollywood" or far too "by the book". Hackman is still the "knock down, drag out", shoot first ask later 2-fisted narc that doesn't know what Miranda means that he was in part I, but with a change of scenery that takes him across the pond. The terrain has changed, but the raw unadulterated character acting of Hackman still makes it one hell of a roller coaster ride.

Rife with dirty cops, drug smugglers, and French thugs, this movies direction and writing reminds instantly that it is part of the production catalyst that would later see series like The Shield have such success in prime time TV. The 70's rarely pulled punches when it came to top billed cop movies, starting with Dirty Harry, the original French Connection and then snowballing into classics like Serpico. The French Connection II is no exception. This movie won't disappoint any fan of either the original, or anyone that wanted to see for themselves Gene Hackman carrying a lead action role almost through the screen.