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The Dead Pool

The Dead Pool

List Price: $14.98
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Hey, where's Poppy?
Review: If ever there was a light-hearted Dirty Harry flick, 'The Dead Pool' is it! Although still quite hard-hitting, there were quite a few moments that made the final DH go-round a bit sillier than usual. The unusual car chase scene, Harry's visiting a mobster in San Quentin, and our hero's improvised weapon to take out the main scumbag are just a few of the moments that make this 'Dirty Harry' more happy-go-lucky than what you've come to expect from the genre.

Oh yeah, let's not forget the future stars in this flick, something for which the DH saga is well-known. Although 'Magnum Force' probably has the greatest number of notable future TV/film stars, this one has two of the most famous (Jim Carrey before 'In Living Color' & Liam Neeson before 'Star Wars Episode I'). Strangely enough, Albert Popwell, who made appearances in the first four DH movies (each time as a different character), is nowhere to be seen here.

Like the other Dirty Harry films on DVD, this one has far superior picture quality and sound compared to its VHS predecessors. Warner Bros. did a really good job remastering the sound and the video transfer! Unfortunately, there's not that many extra features- just a trailer and brief text about the production of 'Dead Pool'. Then of course there's the packaging: WB is still putting their DVDs out in cardboard snap sleeves, rather than the plastic keep cases that most other studios use.

'Late

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: I LOVE CLINT !
Review: If I could, I would've given "the Dead Pool" SIX stars - one for each bullet in Harry's .44 Magnum!

Clint Eastwood is as cool as ever - the perfect, laconic anti-hero. I hope he returns to the Dirty Harry franchise someday.

The concept of a "dead pool" was absolutely CHILLING; anyone who would participate in such a thing is evil, so it made for a perfectly villainous plot.

Plus, this awesome action movie has a heart-stopping chase between Dirty Harry's sedan and a totally sveet R.C. car. This put it over "the Enforcer" as the best entry in the Dirty Harry saga.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Harry's still alive and killing!
Review: In order of best to worst.. this one falls smack in the middle. only because it is the least violent. {in Australia, it is the only one that didn't get an R rating} It still has enough senceless violence and one hell of a car chase {involving harry being persued by a remoted controlled car with a bomb} to keep fans interested. It also has a cameo from jim carrey and liam neeson is one of the Stars.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: "You're s*** out of luck!"
Review: That phrase replaces "Make my day" and "This is a .44 magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world..." as the new one-liner in this solid final chapter to the classic Dirty Harry series.

When one sees a sequel to a movie as great as DIRTY HARRY (1971), you can't expect it to be as good as the original. But you can expect it to further evolve Clint's classic character and provide good action and deadpan humor. THE DEAD POOL delivers on both counts.

In this movie (which SCREAM 3 seemed to borrow heavily from) a murderer obsessed with the films of Peter Swan (played convincingly by Liam Neeson of DARKMAN fame), a horror movie veteran, takes his identity and begins to commit murders similar to those in the movies. Like in THE ENFORCER, the third part in the series, Inspector 'Dirty' Harry Callahan is teamed up with a minority for a partner to "make the department's image look better. However, the partner chemistry here is far less forced than in ENFORCER and is very entertaining.

THE DEAD POOL is a movie that will make your... well, you know the rest.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: The coolest high speed chase in cinematic history
Review: That's the main highlight for me in this otherwise ho hum finale to the saga of Eastwood's best ongoing character--Inspector "Dirty Harry" Callahan. There are those who would say I'm full of it--the Man With No Name rules--but I have to admit to a bias against horse operas--they bore me. However, I'm a shameless cop show junkie. So shoot me already. The main story about Harry investigating a series of murders apparently done from a hit list is predictable--he ALWAYS went after killers who whacked multiple victims. But the chase scene is possibly a reflection of the funny side of Eastwood. No great surprise there, Schwarzenegger found out that he's BETTER at humorous that at straight. But picture Harry thundering through the streets of San Fran in his Ford LTD, bottoming out in dips almost bad enough to lose a muffler--with a toy 'Vette in hot pursuit, whirring along, flying over rises and landing with a clatter. Of course this toy is loaded with plastique and another was used in a previous hit. It puts a whole new spin on the term "cruise missile". And the thing is operated by the passenger in a real car third in line--his job probably takes more skill than that of the real driver. I was falling out laughing. I had to rewind for a replay. I tell you, I bought this film as a Dirty Harry fan, but if I'd known about that scene, I'd have still bought the flick if I hadn't given a hoot about the series.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Dip into The Dead Pool, you won't be disappointed.
Review: The Dead Pool appears to be the last Dirty Harry adventure, which is a good thing. It lets the series go out with an entertaining sleeper hit of a movie.

The death of a rock star on a low budget horror movie set seems routine until a member of the production crew is killed in an unrelated crime. Turns out that the rock star was on a betting list of sorts, whomever has guessed the most high risk celebrities to have died during production wins the pool. And Harry Callahan, thanks to his recent arrest and conviction (a series first by the way) of a high profile mafioso, is on the director's list. Harry is not amused, especially since it turns out that a psycho has decided to tilt the pool in the director's favor.

The Dead Pool is more than a bit tongue in cheek. On several occasions it comes close to making fun of itself. Still the suspense and action level is quite high and the pathology of the psycho killer is refreshing in its realism. Highly recommended.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Dead Pool's Cool
Review: The Dead Pool was the last, but not the worst of the 5 film Dirty Harry series.In my opinion, it certainly beats The Enforcer, the third of the series. However, it runs a close competition with the original Dirty Harry.Both movies include serial killers, but Harry's partner in the Dead Pool came the closest to being Harry Callahan's equal,before he was seriously injured while the duo were being pursued by a bomb-carrying toy car.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Dead Pool
Review: The Dead Pool,the final Dirty Harry movie, is a well paced action film. It involves a killer bringing a dead pool game of celebrities to life by killing the stars. Liam Neeson plays a stubborn horror film director, Jim Carrey plays a heroin addicted rock star, and Guns N' Roses make several cameos through out the movie.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: One betting pool you don't want to be a part of...
Review: The death by overdose of a rock star Johnny Squares on the set of a low budget horror movie seems routine, that is until a member of the production crew is killed in an unrelated crime. It turns out that the rock star was on a betting list of sorts, whomever has guessed the most celebrities to die during production wins the 'dead pool'. Police Inspector 'Dirty' Harry Callahan, thanks to his recent arrest and conviction of a high profile mafioso, is on the director's list and he is not amused, especially when a psychotic has decided to tilt the pool in his beloved/hated director's favor.

The Dead Pool seems to be the last Dirty Harry adventure, which is a good thing. It lets this series go out with an entertaining sleeper hit of a movie. It has its tongue lodged firmly in cheek and, on several occasions, it comes close to making fun of itself. Still the suspense and action level is quite high and the pathology of the psycho killer is refreshing in its realism. Being the shortest of the Dirty Harry movies, it does not over stay its welcome. Highly recommended.

Trivia - This is the only Dirty Harry film that was not shot in widescreen. The three film clips that are credited to director Peter Swan are From Beyond the Grave (not Time After Time as the DVD trivia states), The Pack (not Cujo as the DVD trivia states) and It's Alive III: Island of the Alive. Believe me, I have them on video and know my horror movies. This is also the only movie in the series in which Harry has actually arrested a suspect and but him behind bars.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Dirty Harry's last movie, Death Pool
Review: The Death Pool was a very good movie and will be enjoyed by any Dirty Harry fan or anybody looking for a good cop movie. Harry investigates a strange Game played by a horror film director (Liam Neeson) The object of the game, played by the director and members of his crew, is to guess what celebrity will die first. As people keep dropping from his list, Harry finds that he is on the list. He rushes to find the killer, whoever he is, before he too is a victim of the death pool. Cameo appearance by a young "James" Carey, as he is called in the credits, is as a druggy rocker.


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