I watched a lot of films. I am trying to become better writing and making films. So I also have to spend a lot of time watching films. I call it “study time”. I have to find out what works in order to make my work better.
I just want to start out by saying that I have always been interested in mythology. I like trying to understand it though movies. I am very much interested in not just a good character but also in the circumstances and the action involved too. I think too many people think that mythology was something written by ancient cultures hundreds of years ago. The reality is mankind is always writing and rewriting mythology. This is what Joseph Campbell says is, “The hero’s journey.” If you are interested in a study of mythology as written throughout history then read his book The Hero With a Thousand Faces.
I am interested in what makes a good film character whether it is a hero or villain. And there is always a list of them somewhere. Another idea is what characters seem to really grab the public’s interest. I cannot pass up the chance to add a good movie to my collection. A few weeks ago, I had to pick up the 25th Anniversary Edition of Dirty Harry. The character of Inspector “Dirty” Harry Callahan (played by Clint Eastwood) has been immortalized into American pop culture. Even if you have never seen the movie you know who I am talking about.
I just want to say some of the following comments and observations have come from The Long Shadow of Dirty Harry segment that is part of the extras on the DVD.
The first part is that this character seems to become popular at a time in which he should not have done so. This movie was made in 1973 during the Vietnam War time in America. There were protests and a rally to end the war for violence was not the answer. And yet this is one of the most famous movie characters from that time. Today, Dirty Harry is an iconic image of American culture. It seems Americans were at odds with themselves too. Society was screaming one thing but turn the lights off and this was the movie they were lining up to see. Just like today still. We hate and fear crime. Yet we make serial killers into celebrities People are always protesting the police it seems but cop movies are still very popular. We want peace but the man with the gun is still the hero on the screen. It maybe after all of this time mankind still cannot come to terms that violence does have some place within the world. Always has and always will.
Paraphrasing actor Michael Madsen in the special said the character was “decisive and dealt with the problem”. What captures the public’s attention here was not necessary the violence but the fact he faced the problem head on. This is what deep down this country’s psyche wanted. The reason this film after 25 years is still relevant is we still are searching for decisive and determined characters. Dirty Harry was always at odds with those in charge of the bureaucracy of the city. It was always making excuses and interfering with solutions to the problem. In other words, explain it away. Dirty Harry saw the problem and knew the system was broken but that was not going to stop him from doing what he knew was right. He saw the problem he walked right straight at it and dealt with it. This is the type of person we are still looking for in today’s society. We hate to admit to it but we need people like him. This is the classic anti-hero persona that is found throughout American movies. It is most noticeable in Westerns. In this case, Clint Eastwood has brought the sheriff of the westerns into the modern city.
The other thing I find to be a paradox. America seems to cheer on people who fight the system in order to somehow save society. However, there seems to be a disconnect with the populace. Every four years, I keep hearing Presidential candidates say that our system of government is “broken and needs to change and brought back in line.” So they always propose that we need more government officials to monitor the government. In other words, the system (in this case government) needs more system to keep it in check. We all hate big, slow and inefficient bureaucracies. As the Primus song says, “How do spell hell? D.M.V.” And still the masses want more government every fourth year. We are a very schizophrenic to say the least. The disease and the cure seem to be the same thing here. Another paradox with the election is that we seem to confuse rhetoric with action. The sad fact is the overload of rhetoric has lead to indecision which has lead to inaction. We have two sides doing nothing but arguing about everything. This will lead to nothing to being done. How this is going to unite us as country? I have no idea. If this country ever truly unites again it is because the aliens have landed. But now back to the movie. Dirty Harry never gave long speeches about what he was about to do. He did it. He did it because the bureaucrats would not. It comes back to the idea people want to see decisive men in action. We rarely see them on newscast. And why what is being called “men at work” entertainment is becoming more popular.
Another idea that this movie tackles is that of the victim of crime rights versus that of the criminal. A line we still cannot define even in the “war on terror”. Dirty Harry was willing to fight for the victim. He was the advocate. At the same time, the system seemed to be stacked in the criminals favored. The system fought him and tries to keep him back. But at the same time, they were always giving him the tough jobs. As he says in the movie, “I got my nickname because I am willing to do the tough jobs no one else wants to do”. There is an undertone to the movies that if Dirty Harry is stopped in doing his job then the there is no reason for the criminal to exist. The criminal is not that noble. He will always exist in some form. And that is where Dirty Harry exists and it is the only reason for him to exist. He is monster that fights the real monsters. He sacrifices any chance for a normal life for himself in order be that person. He is once again the anti-hero.
I think we create mythology to face the questions of life in another form. We cannot deal with them directly. And we do subconsciously. Maybe the “heroes” we want only do exist in the movies. That is where we seem to end up looking for them.
Dirty Harry would go on to give us another phrase in 1980’s that became a part of the culture. This is the scene that probably made sure he was cemented into American culture.
