Rating of
2.5/4
"The Gauntlet" by Yojimbo
Yojimbo - wrote on 03/20/12
Burnt out cop Clint Eastwood is sent to extradite a federal witness and finds himself targeted by both the mob and his own police force. After the success of Dirt Harry, Clint made the tough guy cop thriller his bread and butter and The Gauntlet is a Harry sequel in all but name only. He is the typical laconic booze hound and the witness is the usual mouthy, street savvy hooker with a heart as they brave a constant hail of bullets. The plot is a little thin, the story being essentially one long chase sequence and Sondra Locke (who was always kind of like Clint's own Yoko) is not the best actress and actually comes across as kind of annoying. You can always rely on Eastwood however and this is his show all the way. His direction is rather workman like but efficient enough and it all reaches a suitable lead riddled climax. Hardly Eastwood's best but still a solid 70s action thriller that will appeal to his fans.
