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Moriarty’s One Thing I Love Today! Special Father’s Day Edition! DIRTY HARRY Versus RAMBO, Round One!

First by biffy88	Jun 15th, 2008 06:57:04 AM
Oh yeah. Shame we arent getting another dirty harry movie!! Would it work though?
NONE! by DamnMichaelBay	Jun 15th, 2008 07:01:16 AM
NONE!
Dirty Harry vs Rambo vs John Matrix by messi	Jun 15th, 2008 07:08:16 AM
if you can call anything going up against John Matrix a fight. John Matrix is the baddest motherfucker ever.
Damn You Michael Bay by MCMLXXVI	Jun 15th, 2008 07:13:31 AM
Damn You Michael Bay
Mori, where's your HAPPENING review? by JackIsLost	Jun 15th, 2008 07:37:14 AM
Can't wait to read it. Just wished they had used the tagline, "On Friday the 13th... Shit Happens."
Haven't Seen It... by TheRealMoriarty	Jun 15th, 2008 07:40:02 AM
... but I'm sure I'll catch up with it this week, JackIsLost.
Happy Fathers' Day Drew et al by Iowa Snot Client	Jun 15th, 2008 07:55:04 AM
My dad took me to see Star Wars, Close Encounters, Moonraker, Octopussy, Spy Who Loved Me, Bakshi's Lord of the Rings, Star Trek 1, all the geeky stuff. And now I'm taking my otaku daughter to Death Note and Bleach. Geek family bonding rules.
Hard to compare the two by Ironmuskrat	Jun 15th, 2008 07:57:23 AM
Both movies are still very watchable to this day and created perhaps two of the most iconic characters in movie history. However Dirty Harry is heads above First Blood. Dirty Harry changed all the rules for how a action film good guy could be portrayed, Harry was a complete bastard who reveled in committing violence in the name of the law. There was no way a guy like Callahan should have been a hero in a Hollywood movie, but there he was doing things to bad guys that most criminals could only dream of and getting away with(for the most part). Of course now a days asshole good guys that break the rules are pretty standard, but back in the early 70's when Dirty Harry opened it was mind blowing. John Rambo on the other hand was a master of violence and mayhem that was trying to avoid doing the things he was good at, until pushed. The difference between First Blood and Rambo sequels is pretty striking in terms of the John Rambo character. When the violence starts in First Blood it is a little more satisfying knowing John did everything he could to avoid a physical confrontation with the police, like watching a bunch idiots poke of hornets nest with a stick until the hornets jump out and kick their ass. Dirty Harry's shoot first ask question later way of dealing with bad guys is cool at first, but it is hard to develop any sympathize for Harry as a character when bad things happen to him. All that rambling aside, First Blood was a great action film, but Dirty Harry was one of the great films of all time for me.
nice article, dirty harry definitely deserved winner by couP	Jun 15th, 2008 08:02:41 AM

STALLONE vs EASTWOOD -- too hard to pick! by ABking	Jun 15th, 2008 08:10:40 AM
Everyone knows me for being a HUGE Sly and Arnold fan, but EASTWOOD is a god as well. FIRST BLOOD and DIRTY HARRY are classics and I will leave it at that:)
First Blood kinda...sucks by Nasty In The Pasty	Jun 15th, 2008 08:10:43 AM
Watched all three Rambo films recently, and First Blood is pretty cartoonish and one-sided. Like Mori said, the National Gurad scene where they have Rambo pinned down in the mine is laughable (one actually shouts "BULLSEYE!" when they blow up the entrance with a bazooka!), and the final, "anguished" Stallone monologue is completely incomprehensible and unintentionally funny. Jerry Goldsmith's music was the best thing to come out of the whole trilogy.
Ironmuskrat... by TheRealMoriarty	Jun 15th, 2008 08:11:18 AM
... actually, Rambo did almost everything to avoid the confrontation. He did walk back over the bridge after Dennehey drove him out of town at the start. If he hadn't done that, none of it would have happened. He was provoked, but he had a chance to walk away. Still... that's a compelling difference between the two, I'll agree.
Well punk, do ya? by lucky slevin	Jun 15th, 2008 08:14:45 AM

Still loving "Copland" - Stallone's best performance by Behemoth	Jun 15th, 2008 08:23:00 AM
I realize this piece is comparing icon to icon, and Stallone's character in Copland is far from iconic. But I can't let the moment pass and not give that film and Stallone's performance in it some love. That was an incredibly moving piece of work to me. The scene where Stallone is listening to "Stolen Car" from Springsteen's The River album with the girl...just beautiful. And the horrendous ass kicking he unleashed at the end...just beautiful. Dirty Harry rules all...but Copland is more than worthy to lick Callahan's blood encrusted boots.
Still loving "Copeland" - Rock's best drummer by Iowa Snot Client	Jun 15th, 2008 08:27:49 AM
Way to hijack a thread, self.
I sure hope... by Kurgan	Jun 15th, 2008 08:46:27 AM
...that's not a complete cartridge coming out of the .44, with the bullet still in the casing (in the Dirty Harry disc sleeve)
The Destroyer Rules! by Remo_Williams	Jun 15th, 2008 08:59:24 AM
That is all. (I knew I liked you for some reason Mori).
HAPPY FATHER'S DAY MORIARTY!!! by ABking	Jun 15th, 2008 09:02:38 AM
From your old friend AB ;)
I never had a dad. by Annie The Pod Racer	Jun 15th, 2008 09:31:02 AM
Supposedly, I was made by midichlorians.
Wouldn't say Harry Callahan by Shoegeezer	Jun 15th, 2008 10:04:37 AM
exactly revelled in the violence, Ironmuskrat, he'd mete it out without guilt or feeling that his actions were wrong, not the same as enjoying it. It's the economy and ambiguity of that film that still strikes me. Clint was a big star and placing him in a tough cop drama was as close to today's action movies as the 70's got. Scenes like him discussing the death of his wife, with an almost dismissive "no real reason for it" would never find a home in mainstream commercial cinema now - we'd get flashbacks of Clint holding his dead wife's body, he'd probably be crying too. It's because they didn't fill in the blanks, respecting the audience's intelligence, that DH can be such a different and separate experience for anyone watching it, to this day. Oh, I remember having to rely on MAD for info on movies, the first issue I got was because I'd been mesmerized by the poster for Rollerball and had no other way of finding out anything about it. MAD's version was called Rollerbrawl.
Mad Magazine parodies by MartinBlank	Jun 15th, 2008 10:13:44 AM
I know Mori mentioned 'em as a throwaway reference, but damn, I used to feel the same way back when I wasn't old enough to see the R-rated flicks. I always had the Mad parodies to read. The Ecchorcist. A Crockwork Lemon. And so on. Back before video, I actually couldn't wait to read the parodies of movies I had seen, and it would take months. In the '70s they really got it down to an art. The Godfather parodies (I and II, not so much III) were probably the pinnacle of that particular craft. Mort Drucker got right down and drew every last supporting character in those Godfather movies. Then there were the musicals by Frank Jacobs, like the Lord of the Rings musical (before there was even the Bakshi movie) and the Star Wars musical. Maybe it's just because that was the era I grew up with, but the '70s felt like a real vintage era for Mad. God knows I can't read whatever's calling itself Mad these days.
Great Father's Day films: Field of Dreams and by chrth	Jun 15th, 2008 10:25:11 AM
Rocky IV.
Tough Call by rogueleader66	Jun 15th, 2008 10:31:33 AM
But I have to go with Inspector Callahan, because I just like the overall character better. Rambo is an awesome character to be sure, but there is something about Harry Callahan, he is instantly likeable, just a normal guy trying to make a difference, working in a system he despises. Rambo, to me, is someone you can sympathize with, feel sorry for, and is very likeable as well, but I really can't say exactly why I like DH better, I just do.
behemoth by Philo	Jun 15th, 2008 10:53:31 AM
totally agree with you about Copland. By far Stallones best performance. And a bloody good movie too.
Did somebody say Brian Dennehey? by Series7	Jun 15th, 2008 11:40:34 AM
Man I walked Rambo: First Blood right before I saw Rambo and i didn't think it held up very well. Plus I didn't understand why this town just hated him. I could understand like some hippie town but not some biker town in the woods, those towns are always filled with vets.
Happy Father's day to all the great pops! by T-Dog	Jun 15th, 2008 11:46:58 AM
My dad took me to see Star Wars, Superman(1978, Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Rescuers, The Empire Strikes Back, E.T: The Extra Terrestrial, Return of the Jedi, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, The Goonies and Gremlins...all before I reached the age of 10. Thanks dad!
Here's to my dad. by Harry Weinstein	Jun 15th, 2008 11:59:11 AM
The man whose remarkably, beautifully inconsistent taste in cinema made me who I am today. You can't have your Kurosawa without your PORKY'S, and why the hell would you want to live in a world that forced you to make such a choice? Better to embrace them both for what they are.
Great Father's Day films: The Empire Strikes Back by Iowa Snot Client	Jun 15th, 2008 12:00:03 PM
And Frailty.
Hope you all know Harry Callahan was real by messi	Jun 15th, 2008 12:09:53 PM
and the character Mark Ruffalo played in Zodiac is the guy Dirty Harry is based off, so effectively Clint Eastwood worked on the Zodiac case.
I can't be w/ my father today. by Nice Marmot	Jun 15th, 2008 12:43:51 PM
But we are both watching Streets of Fire and talking on the phone during our favorite scenes. One of our faves from the 80s!
I like the second half more than you did... by grungies	Jun 15th, 2008 12:45:02 PM
In some strange way, my issue is with the ending. I'm not sure whether the original ending should have been kept or not. It seems like a crime for Rambo to kill himself, yet, it kinda fits with the character of the first film. I'm just not sure... Anyway, Dirty Harry is better, but I love both movies.
My father let me watched R rated movies as a kid by moviemaniac-7	Jun 15th, 2008 12:49:58 PM
Nothing wrong with that, I guess. But in this battle, it depends where the contest is held. In an urban environment Harry wins hands down, but in the jungle... I am sorry to say, but then Rambo will win.
What about a Wall-E review? by Fat and Curious	Jun 15th, 2008 12:53:47 PM
What'd you and your kid think of it?
"WHAT ABOUT THE RIGHTS OF THAT LITTLE GIRL?!! by Tacom	Jun 15th, 2008 01:11:45 PM

Let me guess... by The Dum Guy	Jun 15th, 2008 02:05:21 PM
Rambo will beat Sudden Impact.
And the jackass of this thread makes shows up by Tacom	Jun 15th, 2008 02:23:31 PM
Welcome, I am Batman!
Pandering? by Literarywanderer	Jun 15th, 2008 02:44:41 PM
Batman, I would point out why you're wrong, but you are clearly trying to get attention so why bother.
What's the hi-def transfer like for FIRST BLOOD?! by RealDoubleJ	Jun 15th, 2008 03:38:24 PM
Glad to hear of the quality enhancement for Dirty Harry but does First Blood bring anything new to the visceral quality in the glory that is 1080p? Happy Father's Day to all who's sons & daughters couldn't make it but I hope they at least sent a card!
Dirty Harry all the way by PumpyMcAss	Jun 15th, 2008 03:50:20 PM
Dirty Harry is one of Eastwood's best, and out of a career that includes Play Misty For Me, Unforgiven, The Outlaw Josey Wales, The Man With No Name Trilogy, Mystic River, Bird, and a fistful of others, that is higher than high praise. The Rambo movies are cool and all and to a generation that grew up with them they might hold a certain nostalgia, but even the shittiest of the Harry Callahan movies are better than any Rambo movie, for my money. Though I have yet to see the lamely titled Rambo (what the fuck? Why not just admit that Rocky Balboa and Rambo are sequels? ADMIT THAT YOU ARE BEATING A DEAD HORSE!) and hear that if anything it is super violent, I'd take an Eastwood movie over a Stallone movie in a heartbeat. Can't wait to hear Mori's assessment of Magnum Force, the very John Milius-y John Milius Dirty Harry movie.
messi by wash	Jun 15th, 2008 03:54:30 PM
haha, no. I mean Toschi was the inspiration for Callahan for sure, but Dirty Harry was only very loosely based on the real facts of the Zodiac case. Anyone who as at least seen the movie Zodiac would already know this. Hell, the Zodiac film and book have their own problems with reality as well.
RealDoubleJ by TheRealMoriarty	Jun 15th, 2008 03:57:03 PM
Sorry... in posting this before bed, I forgot to talk about the FIRST BLOOD transfer. It's okay, but nothing special, and there were video noise issues in a few parts of the film that seem to indicate a less-than-reverent handling of the movie when putting this disc together.
1 Dirty Harry Packaging Complaint by Gweedo	Jun 15th, 2008 05:21:29 PM
Great Collection, I had forgotten just how great the cinematography on first film was. One issue though, on the jacket for the first two movies there is a large spread showing a .44 Magnum firing a round WITH THE CASING STILL ON! I mean I understand that not everyone knows guns, but still you'd think someone in the production process would have fired a gun, or seen one fired, or had a grasp of basic mechanics.
Gweedo shoots first! by Iowa Snot Client	Jun 15th, 2008 06:43:26 PM
A lot of "war correspondents" make that mistake too. I remember an AP photo last year of a woman holding a handful of bullets that she claims hit her house...apparently when someone threw them, 'cause they all had their casings intact. The reporter ate it up, though.
Got the Dirty Harry set for my Dad by James Westfall	Jun 15th, 2008 07:03:33 PM
Went over to the folks' house and he and I watched the first two movies together, which we haven't done in almost twenty years. Good times.
Dirty Harry.. by nolan bautista	Jun 15th, 2008 08:35:46 PM
..the opening scene w/ the eerie song (ahhh-huuuahhh-ahhhhh)and the scope and the girl on the pool getting plugged..hooked me right away..and then the jazzy score kicks in..then you see Clint with his cool shades..good times!!
Awesome! I did a Rambo marathon today by Turd Furgeson	Jun 15th, 2008 09:14:38 PM
For fathers day!! That's funny Mori.. Said all I wanted for Fathers Day was to be left alone to sleep in, and watch whatever I wanted. So I went last night and rented all the blu-ray Rambo movies for a marathon. They are excellent in Blu-Ray. The amazing setting of the pacific northwest in Blu-Ray is breath taking. Cool write up Mori, keep em coming.
Dirty Harry game? Hell bring on a Rambo game by KongMonkey	Jun 15th, 2008 09:27:24 PM
delve into his years in Nam as Rambo is drafted and made into the psychological soldier-of-slaughter. Sandbox style stalking thru the jungle, slitting and blasting VC, etc.
Monster.. by nolan bautista	Jun 15th, 2008 10:14:41 PM
..Yes! those were the actual lyrics! Which Steve Martin character are you referring to?
Dirty Harry videogame was cancelled. by Its a LION	Jun 15th, 2008 11:38:28 PM
Bummer... maybe.
Along these lines... by Somerichs	Jun 15th, 2008 11:45:08 PM
Back in college (early 90's) my friends and I used to argue who was the manliest man between Captain James Tiberius Kirk, Sam "Mayday" Malone, and Thomas Sullivan Magnum, IV. Yes, we were kind of dorks, but it made for a good argument. Feel free to post your selection and reasons why... :)
PWNED BY STALLONE by Motoko Kusanagi	Jun 16th, 2008 12:45:34 AM
nuff said
It's really not fair by Abominable Snowcone	Jun 16th, 2008 07:29:24 AM
to compare and contrast the originals (and their sequels). They were different ass-kicking characters from different times (70s vs. 80s) striking different kinds of nerves--albeit each with a primal thirst for justice at all costs. I for one love both franchises but cannot say that I like "X" Dirty Harry flick over "X" Rambo movie.
Rambo never killed people while eating a hot dog by CuervoJones	Jun 16th, 2008 08:16:24 AM
Callahan is a bad ass. Rambo is a brainless monkey.
Check out Sudden Impact by Abominable Snowcone	Jun 16th, 2008 08:39:00 AM
when Callahan's buddy sneaks up on him at the shooting range. You can see the cameraman reflected in the window of a car. And what's funnier is, the cameraman has a shit-eating grin.
Thanks Mori! by RealDoubleJ	Jun 16th, 2008 09:13:56 AM
By the sounds of it I'll wait for the super-duper-deluxe blu-ray box set of RAMBO films I'm sure they'll release a couple of years down the line.
Harry Bolzonnia by PumpyMcAss	Jun 16th, 2008 12:11:37 PM
If you had read beyond the subject line of my post you would have noticed that I praised a bunch of cgi-less films. I think your assumption that people who don't like the Rambo films are the reason behind all the "cgi shitfests" making tons of money is puzzling. I don't think anyone would honestly argue that the films of Clint Eastwood are more in line with summer blockbusters than the Rambo films. Sweaty muscular dude who blows shit up real good or vigilante film with an actual story and genuinely interesting questions to raise? Is the former or the latter more in line with your hated cgi shitfests?
Oh sure, in the city, Callahan would thrash Rambo by moondoggy2u	Jun 16th, 2008 02:25:32 PM
"But out here, I'm the law," as Rambo said. If Callahan foolishly tried to pursue Rambo into the nearest forest, well, all I can say is that Rambo will have himself a nice Dirty Harry skin to keep him warm...
Dirty Harry is definitely one of the top 3 movies ever by Toby___Wong	Jun 22nd, 2008 10:51:38 AM
The movie has it all. A great good guy, a badder bad guy, the great score, San Francisco in the 70s and a great atmosphere. Andrew Robinson is one of the greatest bad guys in the history of cinema. It's a crime that he doesn't get more work.

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Moriarty’s One Thing I Love Today! Special Father’s Day Edition! DIRTY HARRY Versus RAMBO, Round One!

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