MovieChat Forums > Brannigan (1975) Discussion > John Wayne plays cop one more time

John Wayne plays cop one more time

posted 21 years ago by dmittelberg
18 replies | jump to latest

After 1974 in McQ John Wayne turned cop one more time in 1975's Brannigan. A fish ut of water story. The Duke plays a Chicago cop sent to London to bring home a prisoner. Here he finds after arriving that his prisoner has been kidnapped and held for ransom. The Duke now must play allies with the cops, who don't want him there and search for his prisoner so he can take him back to the U.S. for trial. This film like McQ has a cool car chase. The chase goes through the streets of London and end on a London bridge. I like The Duke as a cop and wonder what Dirty Harry would have been like if he had accepted the role and not Clint Eastwood. In Brannigan John kicks down doors, gets into a barfight, is part of a car chase, knocks a man into water to retrieve a package he threw in and even at his age gets to flirt with a cute police woman. In the end The Duke even after getting his prisoner back must face the hitman who was hired by the prisoner for a final gunfight. Good 70's action fil. I give it 3 out of 5 stars.

[–] Crockter 21 years ago

Good 70's action fil. I give it 3 out of 5 stars.
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Oh yeah Brannigan, the duke in London, this is a fun older film.. At the same time its not that deep, but its fun to watch.

[–] nordiqueboy77 20 years ago

Yaah, very entertaining movie, even though the Duke was pretty old to be playing this kind of role. That is the chintziest toupee I ever saw!

[–] templar-prime 19 years ago

"The chintziest toupee"? Okay, it was a bit obvious, but, can we say Burt Reynolds? Can we say Sam Donaldson? Can we say Howard Cosell? <evil grin> The Duke may have commited a misdemeanor, but these guys are repeat offender felons, when it comes to hairpieces. At least the Duke had a sense of humour about it. When a reporter asked him if the hair was "real", he replied that it *was* real, <pause> it wasn't his, but it was real! ;) A shaved head just wasn't a real option back then in Hollywood; Yul Brenner (sp?) and Telly Savalas were the exceptions to the rule. These days, we've got lots of `bald is beautiful, and bald is badass' actors: Bruce Willis, Michael Chiklis, Ving Rames, Jerry Doyle, Vin Diesel, etc.

[–] RivenWinner 19 years ago

Well, I finally had the pleasure of seeing this film, and man it just left me wanting more of The Duke playing cop roles.

I really liked this film. Good old 70s cop film with the good old John Wayne. Cool music, great locations, good action, good cast and pretty decent story.

Like someone said above, I too have wondered how it would have been if The Duke had played Dirty Harry.

I really wish he had done a few more cop films.

Oh well, Brannigan is good film, and a must see for Duke fans and fans of cop films.

Come on Warner Bros, give us our Blade Runner Special Edition

[–] filmmakeracf 19 years ago

just saw 'brannigan' for the first time. i liked it alot. solid 70's cop flick. waaaaaaaaay better than the silly 'McQ'

filmmakeracf

[–] TexasRaider 17 years ago

Yeah, 'McQ' was a bit over the top, but I still liked it. If you take it for what it was when it was made, its OK. I actually saw it before I saw 'Bullitt', so I didn't get the connection until later. I thought the only thing wrong with it was there wasn't a slam-bam car chase with that green Firebird Formula...if you are going to make a 'Bullitt' clone, go ahead and crash more cars!
'Brannigan' was a better film than 'McQ' and in moments it showed that John Wayne could poke fun of his "action tough guy" image whilst simultaneously performing it flawlessly, even prompting the veiwer to say "YEAH!" The "knock knock" scene kind of brings that to mind. That is not easy to do, making light of one's persona while playing it straight, tough and right in line at the same time. The Duke could do that well. I think Eastwood did that in a few Dirty Harry movies, and perhaps Bruce Willis did so in the first two 'Die Hard' outings. Heck, Shatner is still doing it to this day!

There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.

[–] andyhen2002 17 years ago

Hi there!
Just for your interest I worked with John on the 'Knock Knock' scene, not as an actor but as the print advisor. It was my printing machinery that was used in the scene. The filming did have a couple of problems due to the age of the machine but it was great fun and its just about my only 'Claim to Fame' in my life.

Andrew

[–] drukenirishman 16 years ago

That was the slowest running press I have ever seen.

[–] allentbone 16 years ago

We can't really conclude that Brannigan is a character that isn't bald! Wayne is playing an underpaid cop who can only afford an unconvincing toupee. Brilliant!

[–] chrismartonuk-1 14 years ago

Not one of Duke's best, but I have fond memories of it since, at the time, there were so few British set films that to have none other than John Wayne starring in a tough cop thriller with guns blazing in London among so many familiar faces was a treat!

[–] Zvoni 14 years ago

Wayne is the only reason to watch this movie. He sips some whisky here and there, wrecks some doors and gets the job done. The action sequence in the very end is hilariously bad.

[–] haarfage 13 years ago

I found the film quite enjoyable when I saw it at the theater in 1973 or so. Yes, I said 1973. I've searched and searched for some written record of when this movie was filmed, but have been unable to locate any. Here's why I say it was filmed before McQ:

My family lived in Arizona until early 1974, when we moved back to Illinois. The town we lived in was called Safford and was located in Southern Arizona. Actually, not far from where John Wayne himself lived. I've always thought that John previewed this film for local audiences to see what kind of reaction it would get. My family loved it, we loved everything he did. But, that's why I say it had to be filmed in 1972 or 1973 for my family to have seen it when we did. My family went to the movies a lot, but my dad was losing business right then, which is why we moved away, and we didn't have the money to go to the movies in 1974. So, we must have seen the movie not later than 1973.

Somebody posted that their only claim to fame was providing a press machine or something used in the movie. If you see this, do you remember when the filming was taking place? I would sure like to get some confirmation on when it was filmed because I know I saw it in 1973 and not 1975.

[–] burnssidney 8 years ago

Here is some information that I hope will clarify matters for 'haarfage'.

According to Variety's production guide, "Brannigan" began filming in June 1974. It was released in the USA in March 1975.

"McQ" went into production in June 1973 and was released in the USA in January 1974.

For confirmation of these release dates, see IMDb.

[–] dalldorfw 11 years ago

Unless you're a die-hard Duke fan, I'd advise skipping 'McQ' and just sticking to 'Brannigan'. This one is slick, fun, funny and has some cool action scenes; 'McQ' is just dull, humorless and has almost no action.

[–] phillipsdan83 10 years ago

Wayne lived in Newport Beach, California, in his later years, but he did co own a cattle ranch in Arizona that he'd visit often, and chances are he did preview BRANNIGAN as a treat to the locals.

[–] WarpedRecord 10 years ago

This is a moderately entertaining film with some great scenery, but I just don't see Wayns as a credible cop here. It's not about age, it's about energy, and that seems lacking here. Still, I was never bored, just mildly amused. I gave it the same rating: 6/10 stars.

[–] norwell-services 9 years ago

I went to the cinema with my dad to see this film when it came out here in the UK ... At the time I thought it below par and was disapointed ... But looking back 40 years later I am compelled to compare this to Elvis never performing here in the UK ... In comparison at least one of the the best ... If not the best ... Actors of the 20th Century came to these shores and made a brilliant film with some of the best actors of our age ... John Wayne RIP

As a bonus .... This fim is well worth watching if just to see Tony Robinson (of Time Team fame) getting pushed into the Thames by The Duke ... A claim to fame which I would love ...

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I swallowed a bug ... River

[–] vanboom 9 years ago

norwell-services, true Duke fans, as well as The Duke himself, wish to thank you for your kind words. He always enjoyed hearing feedback from his fans, and I bet he still does.
A++++