Dirty Harry Essay

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Dirty Harry

The film "Dirty Harry" revolves around a sniper terrorizing San Francisco. Known as "Scorpio," the sniper tries to extort $100,000 from the city in return for stopping the killing of innocent people. To ensnare the sniper, SFPD Inspector Harry Callahan, also known as "Dirty Harry," is assigned to the case. His new partner is Chico Gonzales. Together, the two are locked in a cat-and-mouse game with the killer.

In the film, Eastwood's character is nicknamed "Dirty Harry" because of his unorthodox and shady handling of cases. More often than not, he uses violence to extract confessions from his victims. In the particular case involving Scorpion, he has little regard for the Bill of Rights, the legal responsibilities that go with being a police officer, and such issues as the Miranda Rights and warrants. It is not that he is not aware of these responsibilities, it is that he simply does not care, and says so in as many words. Matching Scorpio's brutality, Dirty Harry takes matters into his own hands and ensures that the culprit is brought to retribution.

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In addition, the main character, as representative of the law, is shown not to care for the rights of others. Whether it is a group of pedestrians he almost hits with his vehicle or Scorpio himself, Harry is concerned only with catching the "bad guy" and using any methods at his disposal to do so (Macklin, 2009).

As such, Harry is contrasted with the other representatives of the law. He comes into conflict with the other police officers and the Mayor, who do have regard for the rights of others and the legal requirements of arrest. As such, Harry is sketched as an individual against the world, rather than as a representative of the law as such. He is both against the establishment, the law, and criminals like Scorpio.

It remains a fact, however, that Harry is a police officer. Regardless of his actions as individual against everyone, he can still be regarded as representative of….....

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Clint Eastwood

1971 film Dirty Harry and its sequels before getting behind the camera. As a director, Clint Eastwood lacks the status of an auteur, if only because his films span too many different genres and impart so many different tones, moods, and themes. Eastwood has directed Westerns (like The Outlaw Josey Wales), thrillers (like Play Misty for Me), romances (like The Bridges of Madison County), biopics (like Bird) dramas (like Gran Torino), sports dramas (like Million Dollar Baby), action films, films about war, crime dramas, and even films about space. Eastwood’s oeuvre is… Continue Reading...

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