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Dirty Harry (1971)

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Plot Summary

Dirty Harry follows Harry Callahan (Clint Eastwood), a hard-edged, streetwise police inspector in San Francisco, notorious on the force for his ruthless efficiency and his complete disregard for bureaucratic limits. Known as “Dirty Harry,” Callahan operates by his own moral code, shaped by years of confronting violence head-on.

The city is gripped by fear when a rooftop sniper (Andy Robinson) begins a calculated killing spree, leaving bodies behind and taunting authorities with threats of more bloodshed. Conventional police methods prove useless against an enemy who thrives on chaos and publicity.

As pressure mounts and the body count rises, Harry is assigned to stop the killer—by any means necessary. Willing to bend, break, or ignore the rules, he becomes a controversial symbol of justice, forcing the city to confront an uncomfortable question: how far can the system go to protect its citizens without losing its soul?

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