The French Connection was made in 1971 by the Director William Friedkin and the Cinematographer Owen Roizman. It is in top 100 the best films in the last century- Twentieth Century. The French Connection still remains an electrifying achievement. Especially, the climatic car chase scene in The French Connection is still jaw-dropping in its suspense and execution. Through this paper, I would like to analyze about the Cinematography and Editing in The French Connection.
The plot of the movie is that follows a truculent `bad-boy' police officer Popeye Doyle and his slightly kinder partner (Roy Schneider) in their journey to bust a drug-smuggling ring of French origin. The movie itself is basically one big chase scene, following Popeye on his cat and mouse game of catch …show more content…
Characteristic of films made pre-computer based editing, shots are held for longer periods of time, and not as many cuts are used. The editing is almost unnoticeable, because it seems to pass by so soft, especially during dialog. It uses effectivelly what is called parallel montage (also known as cross-cutting) to keep the viewer aware of the variables in the scene. Whether it is cop Popeye Doyle driving furiously and looking up at the train above on which the sniper he is trying to catch is on, or showing the point of view of the buffer as the train crashes into it, the film constantly puts us in the most privileged position to understand exactly what is at stake in the scene. However, conversely, it cuts much more often (but never frantically) during action sequences, like the bar roust or the car chase under the train tracks. But still, drama is tensed out by holding shots long during action sequences, and it works. But this never comes to fault. The few times when quick cuts are needed, they are used, such as the train crash. In general though, the editing satisfies the mood of the
The plot of the movie is that follows a truculent `bad-boy' police officer Popeye Doyle and his slightly kinder partner (Roy Schneider) in their journey to bust a drug-smuggling ring of French origin. The movie itself is basically one big chase scene, following Popeye on his cat and mouse game of catch …show more content…
Characteristic of films made pre-computer based editing, shots are held for longer periods of time, and not as many cuts are used. The editing is almost unnoticeable, because it seems to pass by so soft, especially during dialog. It uses effectivelly what is called parallel montage (also known as cross-cutting) to keep the viewer aware of the variables in the scene. Whether it is cop Popeye Doyle driving furiously and looking up at the train above on which the sniper he is trying to catch is on, or showing the point of view of the buffer as the train crashes into it, the film constantly puts us in the most privileged position to understand exactly what is at stake in the scene. However, conversely, it cuts much more often (but never frantically) during action sequences, like the bar roust or the car chase under the train tracks. But still, drama is tensed out by holding shots long during action sequences, and it works. But this never comes to fault. The few times when quick cuts are needed, they are used, such as the train crash. In general though, the editing satisfies the mood of the