Movies: "Point Blank" vs. "Dirty Harry"

[UncleEd]

In 1971, Clint Eastwood made much of his S&W
Model 29 and that "marketing" started a huge
demand for the big magnum. The gun and
character were forever linked.

But in 1967, Lee Marvin made extensive use of
a 4-inch Model 29 but no speeches were made
of its mighty power. "Point Blank" by the way
was remade as "Payback" with Mel Gibson, who
also used a Model 29.

Makes me wonder if in "Point Blank" a big deal
was made of the S&W, would then "Dirty Harry"
have ever achieved such fame.

But such is the power of promotion in movies
and credit writer/director John Milius for that.
Just saying "most powerful handgun in the world"
whether true or not was enough.

[venomballistics]

At the time, it pretty much was the most powerful before stepping into some of the more exotic custom and rifle caliber handguns.

Clint Eastwood sold a lot of 44's, but Elmer Keith set us straight.

[Onomea]

Here ya go:

Point Blank: A Jack Reacher in a Double-Breasted Suit

Picture this: Walker. Not one of my Reacher ilk, mind you, but cut from the same weathered cloth. Scarred like a roadmap, eyes like chips of ice reflecting a sun gone cold. Lee Marvin plays him, Walker, in Point Blank – a movie that's equal parts nitro and grit, a hard-boiled tale spun of betrayal and retribution.

Forget your fancy gadgets and high-tech heroics. Walker fights with steel, brains, and a fist honed on years of scraping by in the underbelly. He's got a plan, sharp as a switchblade, to reclaim what was taken from him – a double-cross, a bullet in the gut, and a dame left for dead.

The story? Tight as a drum. Walker walks out of the morgue, vengeance simmering in his gut. He hooks up with Lynne, a dame with fire in her eyes and a score to settle of her own. They're two halves of a whole, a walking Molotov cocktail on a collision course with the *******s who screwed them over.

Marvin owns the screen. He's not Reacher, no sir. He's older, slower, the scars deeper. But there's a simmering fury, a feral cunning that chills you to the bone. He can crack a wise with a smirk, then turn lethal in a heartbeat. You believe every punch, every growl, every bullet that whizzes by his ear.

The setting? San Francisco, not some backwater burg. But it ain't the tourist postcard. This is the city's dark underbelly, where shadows crawl and deals are struck in smoke-filled rooms. The camera lingers on grimy sidewalks, dive bars reeking of stale beer and cheap whiskey, and dames with hearts as hard as the diamonds they pawn.

The pace? It doesn't dawdle. Every scene slams like a shot of bad bourbon, sharp and potent. Shootouts erupt in tight spaces, fists fly like hammers, and double-crosses twist the plot like a pretzel dipped in betrayal. You find yourself leaning forward, knuckles white, desperate to see what dirty trick Walker pulls next.

Is it perfect? Hell no. The dames ain't as fleshed out as they could be, the villains lack the teeth of a Reacher villain, and the ending ain't exactly sunshine and rainbows. But that's the point, ain't it? This ain't a fairy tale. This is life in the gutter, where revenge comes with a price and redemption, if it exists at all, tastes like a shot of regret chaser with regret chaser.

So, would I recommend it? You bet your bottom dollar. If you like your heroes flawed, your plots twisty, and your action raw and brutal, then Point Blank is your shot of hard liquor. Just remember, this ain't a Reacher story. This is Walker's dance with the devil, and you're invited to watch him two-step to the brink.

Just don't blink. You might miss the bullet meant for you.

Lee Child review. (With apologies, yet another one from my pal Bard.)

[SPEEDGUNNER]

I have always liked Lee Marvin, I will have to try to find that movie to watch...

[WardenRoss]

Ummm....Guess when you make one of the leading roles (stars) of the film a 6.5 inch revolver and combine that with a heart-throb....you get what you got.

Thank God!

It was meant to be.



,

[Grayfox]

I remember seeing "Point Blank" many years ago. Good movie. Made enough of an impression on me that I remembered it as soon as I saw the title.
"Payback" was also a very good, but under rated movie. Gibson was at his best in that one. IIRC, the tag line for that movie was something like "You'll be rooting for the bad guy."

[Rustyt1953]

YouTube

[Rudi]

It was a .44 mag. but Clint told us he shoots a "light special load".

[sheepdawg]

Originally Posted by Rudi

It was a .44 mag. but Clint told us he shoots a "light special load".

But it'll blow your head clean off.

[Hair Trigger]

Originally Posted by SPEEDGUNNER

I have always liked Lee Marvin, I will have to try to find that movie to watch...

Originally Posted by Grayfox

I remember seeing "Point Blank" many years ago. Good movie. Made enough of an impression on me that I remembered it as soon as I saw the title.
"Payback" was also a very good, but under rated movie. Gibson was at his best in that one. IIRC, the tag line for that movie was something like "You'll be rooting for the bad guy."

I actually like the Gibson remake better than the original. Don't get me wrong, Lee Marvin is one of my all-time favorites. The original was great when it was first released, it and the Dirty Harry early films, and Bullitt, were cutting edge crime dramas in days when profanity was very unusual and lots of times censored, no nudity allowed beyond an almost bare buttock, and gunplay was much more watered down than it is today. You didn't see the scenes like the sadism scenes with Resnick and the Chinese girl. beating each other for fun and gratification.
Payback doesn't hold nearly as much back as Point Blank.

It's odd how some of the characters (Stegman, Carter) keep the same name in the film, but others were changed. And Walker's half was $93,000, which for the day was a ton of money. Porter's half was only $70K, and given the inflation, would have been about $30,000 in 1967 dollars. Hardly worth getting shot over, much less causing all the mayhem to get back.

I think it is an homage to "Point Blank" that Porter (Gibson) and the cops were carrying revolvers instead of semiauto's. "Payback" was filmed in 1999, and wheel guns were passe by then for the most part unless it was a cheap Saturday Night Special.

[pantannojack]

[QUOTE=WardenRoss;141908952]Ummm....Guess when you make one of the leading roles (stars) of the film a 6.5 inch revolver and combine that with a heart-throb....you get what you got.

Thank God!

It was meant to be.

Heart-Throb?
I liked Brenda Vacarro in Hit Lady, or Susan Lucci in Lady Mobster much better. Some names may have been changed to protect the innocent.

[bk42261]

IMO don't bother- It' terrible! Def not one of his best films

[S-W4EVER]

Originally Posted by UncleEd

... credit writer/director John Milius for that.
Just saying "most powerful handgun in the world" whether true or not was enough.

My favorite Director, and he made some great movies (like “Red Dawn”, “The Wind and the Lion”, et. al.)

[Model 19 6"]

Graduated H S in 71. Myself and a life long friend, watched Dirty Harry 3 times in one week. Harry sold me on a smith 44 mag.

[kozmic]

By this point in history, if you don't own a Model 29 you should give thought to retiring your man card!

[NFrameFred]

Originally Posted by Rudi

It was a .44 mag. but Clint told us he shoots a "light special load".

Open to interpretation and disagreement as to context. I've argued this for years - that statement was made in the conversation with the bad cops (unknown at the time) Harry was having discussing the upcoming department pistol competition. I took it as he was saying his 'competition' loading was a "light special (as in 44 special) load", not his duty load. That would make more sense than a movie built around "the most powerful handgun" line but using powder puff loads while on duty.
There are so many FALSE myths and assumptions about that movie, the context of such lines, and even the idea that model 25 45 colt and or model 57 41 magnums were actually used in the filming . . . but such drivel refuses to die and can be heard loudly repeated ad nauseum by gun shop "experts" holding down the counter with an elbow . . . . These statements are so pervasive I suppose they'll never die. I discussed the subject and encouraged one of our members here who is an author several years ago about writing a book setting down the actual facts about these things availing himself of his acquaintances in the film industry and people who actually were involved on the sets. He agreed it was a worthy idea but lamented at the time a lot of folks who would know were passing away and the time and financing required to do the leg work/research would be daunting. Seems the project was not to be. A pity.

[Kinman]

Originally Posted by kozmic

By this point in history, if you don't own a Model 29 you should give thought to retiring your man card!

I have a cousin that "borrowed" his Dad's pre-29 five screw .44 magnum in its black box one night we cousins were out driving around in his '69 Cougar, beer drinking road trip. We had stopped for a leak, he pulled the .44 out and exclaimed "Watch this." Pulled the trigger and deafened all of us in the car while blinding us with the muzzle flash...Impressive? FYah! We all shot it and one of the things that I found impressive were the little red check marks left on my hand from the hardly used Cokes. When I finally got a .44 magnum it was after shooting a buddies Ruger Super Blackhawk. I preferred the way the barrel flipped with recoil, taking quite a bit away from the hand and wrist. Later I had to have a Model 29 and still own it, its a 4" four screw and I will admit I much prefer shooting my .44 special revolvers and modified Ruger Super Blackhawk.

[CAJUNLAWYER]

Dirty Harry had a longer barrel...chicks like that

[UncleEd]

Originally Posted by CAJUNLAWYER

Dirty Harry had a longer barrel...chicks like that

And Dirty Harry was basically a sensitive sort
with a kind heart while Walker had no
sentiment left in him.

[Brian Parrish]

Originally Posted by UncleEd

In 1971, Clint Eastwood made much of his S&W
Model 29 and that "marketing" started a huge
demand for the big magnum. The gun and
character were forever linked.

But in 1967, Lee Marvin made extensive use of
a 4-inch Model 29 but no speeches were made
of its mighty power. "Point Blank" by the way
was remade as "Payback" with Mel Gibson, who
also used a Model 29.

Makes me wonder if in "Point Blank" a big deal
was made of the S&W, would then "Dirty Harry"
have ever achieved such fame.

But such is the power of promotion in movies
and credit writer/director John Milius for that.
Just saying "most powerful handgun in the world"
whether true or not was enough.

Points of comparison between the two movies require certain assumptions which may be legitimate, but the real question is why the "Dirty Harry" movie was as significant as it was in our thinking as gun people and firearm enthusiasts.

TIFWIW, it is only one man's opinion when I say that the idea of equipment choice as decisive was beginning to take hold among us at that time. The question at the time was, what equipment would do the trick?

-The "officer survival movement" dates from the Newhall Massacre in 1970.
-Actual police and police trainers believed that the answer lay in training, skills, tactics and procedures. We believe in carrying a Glock.
-In this movie the 44 Magnum revolver is the sword of Excalibur or the wand of Merlin, which is happily available for purchase at your local Western Auto.
- Eastwood's shooting technique is abominable in the movie, utterly unrealistic.

I remember seeing an advertisement for Ked's sneakers. I asked my Momma, and she got me a pair so I could run really, really fast like the kids in the commercial. Similarly, since I already knew how to sneer at the idiotic 1968 liberals as Harry Callahan did, so my getting a 44 in a shoulder holster completed the picture.

"Skills, not gear."
"A gunfight is more fight than gun."

Kind Regards!
BrianD