French Connection II

French Connection II is a 1975 crime drama film starring Gene Hackman and directed by John Frankenheimer. It is the sequel to The French Connection. Hackman and Fernando Rey are the only returning cast members. While the initial film was based on a true story, the sequel is entirely fictional and expands on the central character of Popeye Doyle by placing him in Marseilles, France, where he is attempting to track down French drug-dealer Alain Cha... more

French Connection II is a 1975 crime drama film starring Gene Hackman and directed by John Frankenheimer. It is the sequel to The French Connection. Hackman and Fernando Rey are the only returning cast members. While the initial film was based on a true story, the sequel is entirely fictional and expands on the central character of Popeye Doyle by placing him in Marseilles, France, where he is attempting to track down French drug-dealer Alain Charnier, who got away at the end of the first film. The music was composed and conducted by Don Ellis, who was returning from the original film. It is a very challenging modernistic score with many jazz elements. A CD was released by Film Score Monthly paired with the music from the first film. While not reaching the mainstream success of the original, the film has received a positive score of 80% "Fresh" rating at RottenTomatoes.com. During his withdrawal scene, Doyle rambles about his youthful ambition of being a baseball player. One of his... less