It's a strange thing to see a film where some scenes work rather weakly (if only in comparison to other films in its legacy), and others in a 'sub-plot' or supporting story are surprisingly provocative and strong. Sudden Impact is one of those cases, where Clint Eastwood as star/producer/director shows when he can be at his best, or at his lessor of times when dealing with a crime/mystery/detective story in his Dirty Harry fame. We get that 'make my day' line, and un-like in the first film where his 'do I feel lucky' speech was playful and cool the first time and the second time at the end tough as nails, here it's switched around. He gets into another shamble with the department, as usual, when he tries to fight crime 'his' way, in particular with a diner robbery (inspiration for Pulp Fiction?) and with a high speed pursuit with a senior citizen bus. He's told to 'take a vacation', and that's the last thing on his mind. This whole main plot isn't very convincing aside from the expectancy of the story and lines, which just adds to the frustration. But soon his story merges with the sub-plot that Eastwood develops from the start.

Enter Sandra Locke's character, Jennifer Spencer, whom we soon learn after some (appropriately) mysterious scenes that she and her shy sister were victims of a cruel, unjust sexual assault (err, outright rape), and is sleekly, undercover-like, getting revenge. Her scenes and story are the strongest parts of the film, the most intense, and finally when it goes into Callahan's storyline (he's getting facts in the same small town she's in on a murder), the film finally finds a focus between Eastwood's classic form of clearly defined good vs. evil (though sometimes blurred, to be sure). Eastwood films the flashbacks, not to say too much about them, expertly, in a fresh, experimental style; the trademark Lalo Schifrin score is totally atmospheric in these scenes and in others. It almost seems like a couple of times an art-house sensibility has crept into Eastwood's firmly straightforward storytelling style, which helps make the film watchable.

It's a shame, though, that in the end it goes more for the expectable (or maybe not expectable) points, and until the third act Callahan doesn't have much to do except his usual 'it's smith...Wesson...and me' shtick. However, with Locke he gets out of her a very good performance (more subtle and touching than the one in the Gauntlet) and an exciting climax at an amusement park. In a way I do and don't agree with Ebert's remark that it's like a 'music video' in Eastwood's style here. I admit there is comparisons with the simplicity of both, the directness, but the scenes where Eastwood does break form are superior to those of any music video. It's cheesy, it's hard-edged, it's not up to par with the first two 'Harry' pictures, but hey, there could be worse ways to spend a couple hours with the master of the .44.

Inspector "Dirty" Harry Callahan once again angers his superiors with his maverick approach to police work. Refusing to take a vacation he is given a simple case which takes him outside of San Francisco. However, he soon discovers a link between a recent murder in the city and a murder outside of the city, which leads him to the trail of a revenge killer.

As an entry in the Dirty Harry franchise the film starts with some very promising moments, including the legendary "Go ahead, make my day" line that Eastwood delivers wonderfully through clenched teeth before single handedly foiling a robbery. Very badass and it just what fans can expect from him. However, the film soon shifts gears and focuses on the mysterious revenge killer. The problem is that this killer isn't all that mysterious as she is characterized as much as Harry is. This really detracts from the presence of the main character who ruled all of his previous film appearances with, pardon the pun, Magnum Force.

On the bright side this new storyline does draw several parallels to Harry's own unorthodox methods and gives his character dramatic depth that was not there before, but fans that were looking for another badass Harry outing will more than likely be somewhat disappointed. However, a tense climax ends the film on an exciting note so if you don't mind something a little different, it is a good movie for fans. --- 7/10

Rated R for violence and a rape scene

In the first three "Dirty Harry" movies, Detective Inspector Harry Callahan (Clint Eastwood) was seen as the maverick cop whose contempt for his superiors, the justice system and the rulebook regularly got him into trouble and in "Sudden Impact" nothing has really changed. He continues to survive in his job because his unorthodox methods get results but periodically, the costs of his actions in terms of expenses, physical destruction and bad publicity become so great that he temporarily has to be taken out of the firing line for the benefit of everyone involved.

One of these situations arises again after the San Francisco cop shoots dead a whole group of criminals who were robbing a diner and then shortly after, confronts a local crime boss at his grand-daughter's wedding, in such a way that the old man suffers a fatal heart attack. Callahan, typically, is furious about being forced to take an unscheduled vacation but is left with no other choice.

Unfortunately, when he's on vacation, Callahan gets attacked by a group of the crime boss' men and kills three of them before eliminating another group of thugs who try to kill him because he'd arrested one of their number who'd recently appeared in court but had been freed on a technicality. In the circumstances, Callahan gets assigned to a murder case which takes him to San Paulo, a nearby small town where he becomes friendly with a woman called Jennifer Spencer (Sondra Locke) and also finds that the local police chief, Lester Jennings (Pat Hingle), is openly hostile to the presence of a big city cop and has no intention of providing any assistance or co-operation.

More killings (which are all carried out in the same way) follow and Callahan discovers that ten years earlier, the victims were all involved in the brutal gang-rape of Jennifer Spencer and her younger sister who'd remained in a catatonic state ever since. Callahan's methods for bringing murderers to justice are normally very simple and straight forward but, in this case, he decides that a rather different course of action is more appropriate.

"Sudden Impact" delivers its entertaining combination of action and humour at a brisk pace and features a punchy script which is full of witty one-liners and of course, the legendary catchphrase, "Go ahead. Make my day". The quality of the acting is very effective throughout with Clint Eastwood on great form. This was the only movie in the "Dirty Harry" series that Eastwood also directed and his work in relation to the action sequences and those where he makes good use of light and shadows to create the desired atmosphere are top class.

Every crime thriller needs an interesting villain and Jennifer Spencer certainly fits the bill because she's a tragic victim, a brutal serial killer and also an artist whose works express her anguish very powerfully. This traumatised woman with a blank expression had, for ten years, harboured her hatred of the rapists and her absolute despair for her sister's predicament and although she might have derived some short-term satisfaction from carrying out her killing spree, it definitely wouldn't have brought her any closer to a cure for her ills.

Audiences know exactly what they're going to get with a "Dirty Harry" film and on the evidence of the huge box office receipts for "Sudden Impact", no-one was disappointed this time around.