THE FRENCH CONNECTION was good enough to stand alone- and not just because it was a great movie, but because the Real Life "Charnier," a war hero who helped the Resistance against the Nazis in World War II, was never held accountable for his drug dealing(s) by the French government. He got away with it. End of story. But, Hollywood being Hollywood, there had to be a sequel to such a successful movie- thus, FRENCH CONNECTION II. Despite the inevitable ending- which undercuts the irony of the original film's ending-, there IS a long, drawn out sequence that makes the whole thing worthwhile: Doyle's addiction and "rehabilitation." Unfortunately, even THIS sequence isn't original in its conception: it's a rehash (if you will) of a similar scene in MURDER, MY SWEET, wherein the hero, Marlowe, is kidnapped and hooked on drugs. He, too, undergoes painful withdrawal- but, for my money, it was done better in MURDER, MY SWEET than in FRENCH CONNECTION II. Not a complete waste of time, but a far cry from the original.
Review of French Connection II
