Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Moderate
- sardonic
- propulsive
- confrontational
- action movie night
- clint eastwood marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly regard the film as a well-made, well-acted, highly influential but formulaic tough-cop thriller.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Coogan arrives from Arizona and must pursue an escaped prisoner through New York while city authorities resist his methods.
After being ordered home, Coogan continues tracking Ringerman because he refuses to return without his prisoner.
Coogan is an Arizona deputy sheriff mistaken for a Texan and treated as an outsider in New York City.
The escaped James Ringerman remains Coogan’s central objective, organizing the investigation, confrontations, and chase.
Films like Coogan's Bluff, and why
Dirty Harry
shares a macho lawman protagonist, crime-thriller momentum, and a hard-edged urban pursuit structure
Bullitt
combines a fish-out-of-water lawman, urban crime, sardonic toughness, and motorcycle-chase energy
The French Connection
shares new hollywood crime filmmaking, abrasive masculine policing, and an outsider pursuing a fugitive through a city
The Last Detail
blends western-coded individualism with a contemporary police thriller and a morally rough protagonist
Movie Details
- Director
- Don Siegel
- Release Date
- 1968-10-02
- Runtime
- 94 min
- Rating
- 6.3 / 10 (389)
Cast
- Clint Eastwood
- Lee J. Cobb
- Susan Clark
- Tisha Sterling
- Don Stroud
- Betty Field
- Tom Tully
- Melodie Johnson
- James Edwards
- Rudy Diaz
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Coogan's Bluff about?
- An Arizona deputy’s stubborn hunt for an escaped prisoner turns New York City into an arena for western bravado, police friction, and kinetic pursuit.
- What is Coogan's Bluff like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Coogan's Bluff as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Coogan's Bluff violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Coogan's Bluff as moderate.
- What did critics think of Coogan's Bluff?
- Critics broadly regard the film as a well-made, well-acted, highly influential but formulaic tough-cop thriller.
- Which films are like Coogan's Bluff?
- Films with a similar feel include Dirty Harry, Bullitt, The French Connection, and The Last Detail.
- How long is Coogan's Bluff?
- Coogan's Bluff runs 94 minutes.
- Where can I watch Coogan's Bluff?
- In United States, Coogan's Bluff streams on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads.
