Coogan's Bluff

"The man with no fear... takes on a killer with no pity... in a city with no heart."

1968 1h 34m EN

😐

6.3

MID

★6.3TMDB · 391

ActionCrimeDramaThriller

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Coogan, an Arizona deputy sheriff goes to New York to pick up a prisoner. While escorting the prisoner to the airport, he escapes and Coogan heads into the city to recapture him.

“The man with no fear... takes on a killer with no pity... in a city with no heart.”

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Cast

Clint Eastwood
Coogan
Lee J. Cobb
Lt. McElroy
Susan Clark
Julie Roth
Tisha Sterling
Linny Raven
Don Stroud
James Ringerman
Betty Field
Ellen Ringerman
Tom Tully
Sheriff McCrea
Melodie Johnson
Millie

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Don Siegel
Writers: Herman Miller, Howard A. Rodman, Dean Riesner
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $1.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

58 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Don Siegel, shot by Robert Surtees. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Lalo Schifrin. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Sam E. Waxman shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Clint Eastwood and Lee J. Cobb and Susan Clark carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The man with no fear... takes on a killer with no pity... in a city with no heart.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0062824 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Don Siegel directs. Robert Surtees behind the camera. Lalo Schifrin scores. Sam E. Waxman cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $1.5M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
258 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Directed by Don Siegel, shot by Robert Surtees. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Lalo Schifrin. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Sam E. Waxman shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Clint Eastwood and Lee J. Cobb and Susan Clark carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "The man with no fear... takes on a killer with no pity... in a city with no heart.".
8IMDB entry: tt0062824 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 9 themes, including "new york city", "escape", "fish out of water", "chrysler building".

The technical file

Cinematography: Robert Surtees
Original score: Lalo Schifrin
Editing: Sam E. Waxman
Costume design: Helen Colvig
Makeup / hair: Bud Westmore
Stunt coordinator: Paul Baxley
Runtime: 94 min · 1h 34m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $1,500,000
Box office: $3,110,000
Return: 207% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Coogan's Bluff (1968)

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Don Siegel

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Community reviews

What people are saying

talisencrw2016-05-02
★ 8/10
Early American Clint Eastwood performances, as he was testing the cinematic waters after his huge success in Leone's highly influential 'The Man with No Name' trilogy of great spaghetti westerns, are such fun to watch, as he experiments and tries out different genres, deciding what direction he wants to take his career. There are such unexpected gems to behold, both acting and directing, like 'Two Mules for Sister Sara', 'Breezy', 'The Beguiled', 'Play Misty for Me', 'Where Eagles Dare' and this, where he plays the proverbial 'fish out of water', in way over his head, as a deputy sheriff from the sticks, having to find an escaped prisoner in the megalopolis of New York City, no less. The great variety of this time is such a cinematic luxury to peruse and discover for oneself. Mine came in the humongous '35 Years 35 Films', and there have been even larger compendiums more recently. They all offer fine value to the discerning cinephile. It's great fun seeing Lee J. Cobb and Susan Clark (when she was really irresistible), and you can never go wrong with director Siegel, who, along with the aforementioned Leone, were the greatest influences on the American icon who at that time was blossoming into his own, the San Franciscan-born Eastwood. Definitely worth owning and rewatching.
John Chard2019-03-05
★ 7/10
A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do! Arizona cop Walt Coogan is sent to New York to pick up an extradited prisoner. After losing him in the city he vows to bring him in anyway he can, he may be out of his jurisdiction, he may be patronised by the big city cops, but Coogan has his own way of doing things. Often thought of as the precursor to Dirty Harry, Coogan's Bluff is a crucial entry in the genre pantheon of tough cop pictures. The fish out of water routine will forever be done to death it would seem, but back here in 1968 it still held its salt and delivers an admirably tight fusion of the big city colliding with the Western genre. In the more than capable hands of director Don Siegel, and starring Clint Eastwood in the lead, Coogan's Bluff is fully aware of the time frame and the changes occurring in late 1960s America. Witness a marvellous scene as Coogan trawls through a dayglow orange psychedelia club. Meeting pimps, crooks and hippies are all par for the course for Coogan, and of course the women find the cowboy dapper Coogan worthy of further inspection, all that and a cigar chomping Lee J. Cobb as tough Det. Lt. McElroy help to make Coogan's Bluff a very enjoyable picture. Now about those boots Walt? 7/10
r96sk2020-11-26
★ 4/10
So boring. <em>'Coogan’s Bluff'</em> is a terrible film. Not even Clint Eastwood can elevate it. I'm not necessarily quick to call a film sexist, but this is pretty overtly so; especially at the beginning with women at the end of the 'jokes' - whether it be sexual assault, domestic violence or even rape. Even after all that, you're left with a seriously dull plot. Nothing of note happens for the opening chunk of the film, then when something finally does it fails to build upon it. That's the case for the whole 93 minutes, the only scene I'll remember will be the admittedly good chase scene. Eastwood is fine in the lead role, if a little cringey. His 'duck out of water' schtick gets tiresome, as do the running jokes. I can't think of any of the other performers who stand out... at a push, Lee J. Cobb perhaps? Not recommended.