Sorry, this movie sucks

Sick Product of a Sick System

Nice effects though.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

The Gauntlet (1977)Plot In A Paragraph: A cop (Eastwood) is assigned to escort a prostitute (Sondra Locke) into custody from Las Vegas to Phoenix, so that she can testify in a mob trial. But a lot of people are literally betting that they won't make it into town alive.Assuming joint actor/director responsibilities for a fifth occasion, Clint Eastwood directed himself and Outlaw Josie Wales costar Sondra Locke in what essentially is a screwball comedy masquerading as an action adventure.The pacing of the movie is tight, the dialogue cracking with crude insults and snappy banter and the action is well staged too. Ben Shockley is no Harry Callaghan (even if they both share s downbeat sense of humour and a grumpy temperament) as unlike the dynamic and instinctive Harry Callaghan, who is always in control and always ready for action, Shockley is an underachieving Buffoon, slow on his feet and slow on the uptake, and blind to the corruption in the police force. Sondra Locke so cute and vulnerable in The Outlaw Josie Wales, does a complete turn around as Gus Mally is feisty and foul mouthed. Once again her character is the victim of a sexual assault. Like Dirty Harry and Kate Moore in The Enforcer, Shockley and Mally are at odds from the start, but slowly and inevitably they earn to each other during the course of the movie. After a decent sized role in The Outlaw Josey Wales, Malpaso regular Bill McKinney was back to a smaller role as a lewd constable. Pat Hingle also has a small but memorable role as Shockleys former partner and William Prince is fine as Blakelock.Once again Jerry Fielding (his third Eastwood movie in a row) does a great job of composing the score, and I need to add this movie has a great poster. The Gauntlet grossed $35 mill at the domestic Box Office to end 1977 as the 14th highest grossing movie of the year.

'The Gauntlet' is an action thriller starring Clint Eastwood and Sondra Locke. In the film, Eastwood – playing an unpopular 'Dirty Harry' kind of police officer – must escort a prostitute (Locke) to a trial, at which she is to be a witness. However, there are high- ranking officials in the police department who'd rather see Locke not make it to her trial, and so the duo soon become the county's most-wanted, and it transpires that the authorities will do anything to keep the cop and the prostitute out of court. They must tackle a number of increasingly deadly obstacles in their path, with police snipers, vengeful bikers, helicopters and drive-by shootings all serving to impede them. With these developments, it becomes apparent that 'The Gauntlet' isn't a film to be taken seriously; once this is acknowledged, the film is quite good. It isn't as nail-biting as 'Dirty Harry' or as solemn as 'In the Line of Fire', but 'The Gauntlet' still manages to entertain, albeit in a lighter, 'Mad Max' way. (I think that Eastwood attempted this with the film 'Coogan's Bluff', but I'd say that 'The Gauntlet' is the superior title.) The film is supported by some enjoyable and opportunistic cinematography, a lovable jazz score, and two surprisingly good performances. 'The Gauntlet' isn't really a title to be remembered, debated or written about, and if you approach it in consideration of what it is – a fun, 'Bullitt'-like action film with mature themes – you're likely to enjoy it.

First off, I want to make one thing clear about the movie and the title. This is not any of the Dirty Harry films, however the character Eastwood plays, Ben Shockley does have uncanny similarities, although their ethics and view towards authority are different. Now before delving into The Gauntlet, y'all should suspend your beliefs because this movie have scenes that are just totally absurd and ridiculous, although they are very fun. For example, there are scenes where there is like a ten-minute shootout by like a thousand cops, so it was hard to believe that would happen. But I certainly enjoyed watching that scene.Clint Eastwood's film is about a rugged alcoholic cop who seems to be going nowhere in life. One day, the Phoenix police commissioner gives Shockley a seemingly innocent job and that involves the transport of a key witness from Las Vegas to Phoenix. Was he ever proved wrong! The ride back turns into a ride to hell as Ben must keep himself and his prisoner alive from corrupt cops, the mafia, and gang hoodlums.Clint Eastwood does a very good job here. In sense, he always does a good job scowling and kicking butt when needed. He had excellent chemistry with Sondra Locke, the prisoner named Gus Mally who also happens to be a prostitute. She was excellent and quite smart for the ordinary hooker. We also get some good supporting turns by Pat Hingle and William Prince who was Commissioner Blakelock.Overall, the Gauntlet is an absurd, over-the-top action movie and the film will never let you forget that. There are some scenes that will just have you laughing due to the absurdness of the scenes. But I'll be darned if I said they were not fun and enjoyable. It's a crazy, action-packed movie and a film that should be enjoyed as it is. It is just Clint Eastwood having a good time, in turn giving the audience a good time. I rate this film 8/10.

Gets this high rating from me because of the excellent casting, the motorbike scene with Sondra Locke on the back, and, well, for Sondra Locke. She and Clint made an unforgettable couple. No wonder they hitched up in real life. Okay, people following my reviews (both of them) will notice my fascination with Chase movies, DIRTY MARY CRAZY LARRY, OUTLAW BLUES) involving close encounters with the leading lady during the chase. This is one of them. It is also quite likely the most implausible chase movie of the lot. Armour-plate that bus all you want, Clint, what the hell about the tyres? The entire American Police Force and their dogs await that bus, a fusillade ensues, but nobody shoots out the tyres IMMEDIATELY like it would have gone in real life. It's the most ludicrous farcical action scene committed on film and remains glaringly inexcusable, but... but it works so beautifully!The idea of the two who are so at loggerheads way into the movie, is as appealing as the gruff violence against little Gus is unappealing. In a remake of this, the conflict would surely remain verbal, or maybe a little slap or two. But this movie features another favorite theme of mine, the protagonists who are at first in opposite camps, as in THE RAVINE (1969), but then find each other, passion ensuing. It is as it is said, The War Between Men and Women, there is so much fraternization...One of your reviewers, that 339 guy, spoke about a missing scene involving the sadistic law enforcement officer and Gus. He didn't mention details, but while watching DVDs years later after having seen a movie, like decades before, I often remember stuff that then doesn't materialize, and without consulting my DVD, I do remember that perhaps this concerned rape at gunpoint with the barrel of the revolver. If this is what he referred to, he is indeed correct. DVDs are pricey enough for them to carry alternative versions on the movie's menu, which could be ignored by the more squeamish among us.All in all, a most glorious film, despite it being as plausible as the wildest science-fiction.