News

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

Everyone knows that Hollywood loves a sequel. The industry is so enamored with milking IPs that even box office bombs often get follow-ups, like when somebody greenlit a sequel to Keanu Reeves' 2013 flop "47 Ronin" or when 2011's "Atlas Shrugged: Part I" was savaged by critics and then another one turned up a year later. Because of this, actors will frequently push back against studios' insatiable appetite for sequels and refuse to return for another go round if they think they can see the writing on the wall.

Case in point: Clint Eastwood moved on from his Sergio Leone Western era after his Dollars trilogy had wrapped up, refusing to star in Leone's "Once Upon a Time in the West" and "Duck, You Sucker!". Why was the actor-filmmaker so averse to returning? Well, after portraying the Man with No Name for three movies,...

Harry Callahan's tough cop persona delivers iconic lines that have solidified his legacy in cinematic history. Despite controversy, Dirty Harry films provide social commentary on policing issues from diverse perspectives. Memorable quotes highlight Harry's unapologetic attitude towards his job, his methods, and his adversaries.

Harry Callahan is one of Clint Eastwood's most iconic characters and there are plenty of great Dirty Harry quotes that solidify the legacy of the character. The first Dirty Harry movie came out at a time when city violence was at an all-time high and this brutal cop character who played by his own rules so long as he could take down the bad guys and see justice served was readily accepted by audiences. Along with delivering action-packed thrills, the Dirty Harry movies featured some of the most iconic lines in movie history.

Throughout the years, Dirty Harry has remained a controversial cinematic figure,...

This article contains discussion of sexual assault.

Clint Eastwood's Dirty Harry was famously uncompromising in his pursuit of justice, but there's one example of him letting a killer go free. "Dirty" Harry Callahan is arguably Eastwood's most popular character, but also one of the most controversial. The original movie was turned down by names like Paul Newman and George C Scott because they were uncomfortable playing a detective who was so willing to subvert the law to get results. Eastwood didn't have any such qualms, instead seeing Dirty Harry as a taut thriller, but while it was a major hit in 1971, many critics like Pauline Kael and Roger Ebert labeled it "fascist."

This backlash was so vocal that 1973 sequel Magnum Force attempted to soften Harry's image, and saw him pursue an actual band of vigilante police officers; the reviews weren't much better. Most of the Dirty Harry sequels...