The French Connection 1971

In the bustling city of Marseille, a tenacious police detective sets his sights on the elusive Alain Charnier, the mastermind behind a heroin smuggling operation. However, tragedy strikes when Charnier’s ruthless hitman, Pierre Nicoli, brutally murders the detective, escalating the stakes. Charnier has his sights set on smuggling a staggering $32 million worth of heroin into the United States, ingeniously concealed within the vehicle of his unsuspecting friend, television star Henri Devereaux, who is bound for New York City via ship.

Meanwhile, in the heart of New York, detectives Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle and Buddy “Cloudy” Russo unwind at the famous Copacabana nightclub. During their outing, Popeye becomes suspicious of Salvatore “Sal” Boca and his young wife, Angie Boca, who are seen mingling with known narcotics criminals. As the case unfolds, they uncover a connection between the Bocas and shady lawyer Joel Weinstock, a key player in the drug underworld. The detectives are alerted to an imminent shipment of heroin and persuade their superior to authorize wiretaps on the Bocas’ phones. They soon team up with federal agents Mulderig and Klein, ramping up their investigation.

Upon Devereaux’s arrival in New York, the urgency escalates as Boca rushes to finalize the purchase, while Weinstock advises caution, aware of the surveillance circlet closing in. Meanwhile, Charnier deduces they’re being watched and, after spotting Popeye, makes a swift getaway on a subway shuttle. To further evade capture, he instructs Boca to rendezvous in Washington D.C., requesting a postponement due to police scrutiny, but Charnier is impatient to seal the deal. On a flight back to New York, Nicoli proposes an assassination of Popeye, yet Charnier dismisses the idea, asserting that another would simply take Popeye’s place.

In a gripping sequence, Nicoli attempts to take out Popeye, only to narrowly miss. A thrilling chase ensues as Popeye commandeers a passing vehicle, crashing through city streets to catch Nicoli, who hijacks a train, leading to an intense confrontation. During this harrowing chase, Nicoli’s actions result in chaos, and just as Popeye catches up, he shoots Nicoli dead.

The plot thickens when Popeye and his team impound Devereaux’s Lincoln and discover it suspiciously overweight, hinting at hidden contraband. After a tense examination, they uncover an extensive stash of heroin concealed within the car. To maintain their cover, the police replace the original vehicle with a lookalike, returning it to Devereaux, who hands it off to Charnier without a hint of the trap awaiting him.

Charnier, with Boca in tow, arrives at an old factory on Wards Island to finalize the drug deal with Weinstock. After confirming the quality of the drugs through a chemist’s testing, Charnier cleverly recycles the rocker panels of a second vehicle to hide the cash meant for the drug transaction. Just as the deal seems to unfold smoothly, a significant police force led by Popeye appears, culminating in a dramatic chase that results in Boca’s death amid a hail of gunfire.

The chaos continues as Charnier darts into an abandoned bakery, pursued relentlessly by Popeye and Cloudy. In a tragic misfire, a gunshot rings out, leading to the inadvertent death of their fellow officer, Mulderig, just as Popeye recklessly ventures to zero in on Charnier. As the final confrontation looms, the aftermath reveals the fates of various characters in a chilling denouement, with Charnier slipping through the cracks of justice and Popeye and Cloudy reassigned from their narcotics division.

“We’ll get him…” Popeye resolutely declares as the shadow of the city looms behind them, a stark reminder of the thin line they tread in the war against crime.