Coogan's Bluff | | Cast : | Clint Eastwood, Lee J. Cobb | | Director : | Don Siegel | | Studio : | Universal Studios Ho | | Format : | Color, Dolby | | Released Date : | October 02, 1968 | | DVD Released Date : | June 01, 2004 | | Language : | English (Dubbed), Spanish (Subtitled), French (Subtitled) | | Audience Rating : | R (Restricted) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | June 11, 2005 | | Summary | Cowboy cop in New York | Content
 | Arizona Deputy Coogan (Clint Eastwood) is assigned to go to New York City and escort a young punk (Don Stroud) back to Arizona for trial. This is a solid, if forgettable, early pairing of Eastwood and his friend, director Don Siegel, who would go on to make the unforgettable crime classic "Dirty Harry" a few years later. "Coogan's Bluff" is mostly a fish out of water story, a cowboy lost in the urban maze of Manhatten, although he always manages to get the upper hand, and is not as dim as all the city slickers imagine him to be. Susan Clark is thrown in as a rimantic interest for Coogan, although her contribution to the plot is to be the parole officer of a girl who knows where to find Eastwood's prisoner. Eastwood is, well, Eastwood, he dosen't change much in any of his movies, always the strong, silent type. Lee J. Cobb is pretty good a the big city detective who tries to keep Coogan from interfereing with the city's efforts to get the prisoner. It was doing alright until the scene where Eastwood goes into a very hippie hash rave. It is in this one scene where Eastwood seems totally out of his depth. I know it was supposed to show Coogan's discomfort and alienation, but I still didnt care for it. Still, it's pretty cool, a good way to kill a few hours. |
| Rating | | | Date | October 05, 2004 | | Summary | On the side of the law . . . | Content
| The year 1968 was a busy one for Clint Eastwood, as Hang em High, Where Eagles Dare and Coogan's Bluff, all hit the big screen. Coogan's Bluff marks the first collaboration between Eastwood and director Don Siegel. The pair would team up in five other films, including Dirty Harry.
Deputy Sheriff Coogan (Eastwood) is an Arizona lawman sent to New York City to bring back extradited prisoner James Ringerman. A routine matter becomes complicated when Coogan is ambushed, and Ringerman escapes custody, leaving the chagrined lawman with bump on the head, and a burning desire to recapture him. Lee J. Cobb delivers a blustery performance as Lt. McElroy, the NYPD detective in charge of the case, exasperated by the out of towner's failure to follow established protocols. Employing the methods that served him well in Arizona, Coogan adapts to life in the big city as he tracks the fugitive, with a disturbed McElroy following in his wake. While not terribly deep, this is a very entertaining tale of pursuit set in the psychedelic 60's. Urban life is portrayed none too warmly, as city dwellers seem to prey on each other. The look at the clash of cultures is interesting, though brute force seems to work wherever you are. Eastwood became a star in spaghetti westerns, and while still playing a cowboy of sorts, he begins his transition to the cop roles that would become a standard for him in the 70's.
The supporting cast is terrific. Don Stroud is ideally suited to the role of Ringerman, and his performance is nearly flawless. You really want to slug the guy. Susan Clark is very good as a somewhat idealistic probation officer, smitten with the ways of the man from out west. Trisha Sterling's quirky off beat performance as Ringerman's spaced out girlfriend, "Linny Raven" is also well done. Sterling is the daughter of actress Ann Sothern. Also appearing in his first Eastwood film is Albert Popwell, the actor probably most well known for being asked at gunpoint if he "felt lucky" in Dirty Harry.
Thought of as a precursor to the TV program McCloud, Coogan's Bluff is grittier, and has a shorter time frame that compresses the action and raises the level of tension as it focuses on pursuit. The Eastwood/Siegel collaboration gets off to good start in the Big Apple. This is the also the first Eastwood film to feature a score by composer Lalo Schifrin. Highlights are his rousing opening theme, and the wacky Pigeon-Toed Orange Peel nightclub number. Ah yes, do you remember the 60's?
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| Rating | | | Date | August 27, 2004 | | Summary | Long Overdue, Finally Here | Content
| Ever since Coogan's Bluff parted from the movie theater's after 1968, it's been shown on TV and was available for a short time in VHS format.The visual as well as the audio had been severely compromised. The color was pale, dull, bland etc. and the sound was never right, thus having a negative effect with Eastwood's performance and pushing the limits of the viewer. The movie lacked the quality that you expect to see in a major movie star and from a major movie studio like Universal. Now, for the first time since 68' you can see the movie the way the Director Don Siegel wanted you to see it. Thanks to DVD, the color is restored, sharp and pleasing to the eye, the sound is clear and crisp, you can hear the actors, and let's not overlook the soundtrack by composer Lalo Schifrin. The DVD has Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1 and Dolby 2.0 Mono. Whether you've seen Coogan'Bluff before or haven't does not matter. The Top Notch restoration will give the viewing experience as if your seeing it for the first time. It's that good. Don't let this one pass you by. I've given this movie 4 Stars, the only thing that prevented it from going to 5 Stars, is that there are two scenes deleted from the film. The first is in the beginning scenes of the movie where Eastwood is with his Sheriff in the office and given an unwanted assignment to travel to New York.The other is a short exchange with Eastwood and a Doctor in the hospital. Why were these scenes left out ?
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| Rating | | | Date | August 03, 2004 | | Summary | Great Movie! | Content
| This movie showcases Eastwood's progression from the Spaghetti westerns of the 1960's to Dirty Harry in the 1970's. Eastwood is the classic, un-politically correct (very refreshing) anti-hippie hero in this movie. Great action and great one liners ("You better drop that blade, or you won't believe what happens next, even while it's happening). |
| Rating | | | Date | July 16, 2004 | | Summary | Arizona gives mighty New York a lesson in extradition | Content
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Director: Don Siegel
Format: Color
Studio: Universal Studios
Video Release Date: May 23, 1995
Cast: Clint Eastwood ... Deputy Sheriff Walt Coogan
Lee J. Cobb ... Det. Lt. McElroy, NYPD
Susan Clark ... Julie Roth (probation officer)
Tisha Sterling ... Linny Raven (Ringerman's girlfriend)
Don Stroud ... James Ringerman
Betty Field ... Mrs. Ellen Ringerman
Tom Tully ... Sheriff McCrea (Piute County, Arizona)
Melodie Johnson ... Millie (Coogan's girlfriend)
James Edwards ... Sgt. Wallace (stakeout cop)
Rudy Diaz ... Running Bear
David Doyle ... Pushie (tavern owner)
Louis Zorich ... Taxi driver
Meg Myles ... Big Red
Marjorie Bennett ... Mrs. Fowler (little old lady charging rape)
Seymour Cassel ... Joe (young hood)
John Coe ... Bellboy
Skip Battyn ... Omega (customer at Pigeon-Toed Orange Peel)
Albert Popwell ... Wonderful Digby (customer at Pigeon-Toed Orange Peel)
Conrad Bain ... Madison Avenue man
James Gavin ... Ferguson Albert Henderson ... Desk sergeant
James McCallion ... Golden Hotel room clerk
Syl Lamont ... Apartment manager
Jess Osuna ... Prison hospital guard
Jerry Summers ... Good Eyes
Antonia Rey ... Mrs. Amador
Marya Henriques ... Go-go dancer at Pigeon-Toed Orange Peel
James Dukas ... Prison hospital doctor
Larry Duran ... Zig Zag
Andy Epper ... Pool player
George Fargo ... Gay boy at Pigeon-Toed Orange Peel
Scott Hale ... Dr. Scott
Ted Jacques ... Detective
James Joyce ... Man in Pigeon-toed Orange Peel
Diki Lerner ... Gay boy at Pigeon-toed Orange Peel
James McEachin ... Man
James Oliver ... Hip typeq
Robert Osterloh ... Deputy
Clifford A. Pellow ... Waiter
Allen Pinson ... Whippy
Doug Reid ... Prison hospital guard
Al Ruban ... Detective
Don Siegel ... Elevator passenger
Kristoffer Tabori ... Elevator passenger
Clark Warren ... Plainclothesman
David Brandon ... Hippie boy
Kathleen O'Malley ... Woman
Diana Rose ... Psychedelic paint girl
Colleen Thornton ... Hippie twin
Morreen Thornton ... Hippie twin
Eve Brent ... Hooker
Constance Davis ... Mother Arizona Deputy Sheriff Coogan (Eastwood)comes to New York City to transport a prisoner, James Ringerman (Don Stroud ) back to Arizona for a suspected murder when he runs into lack of cooperation from Det. Lt. McElroy, NYPD (Lee J. Cobb), a cynical, overworked NYPD cop used to runarounds and bureaucracy. A typical provincial New Yorker who thinks New York is the center of the universe. he continually refers to
Coogan as a "cowboy", "Tex", and other diminishing names, threatening him with jail for interference, and informing him that he is "just another private citizen." It is apparent that "private citizens" get little respect in NYC from the police. Coogan takes it upon himself to give the NYPD a lesson in extradition, Arizona style. An entertaining way to spend a couple of hours. I recommend it, like almost any other Eastwood film. Joseph (Joe) Pierre
author of Handguns and Freedom...their care and maintenance
and other books. |
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