I saw this film prior to viewing any episodes of the TV series. With hindsight, one can identify ways in which this adaptation falls short of it's source material - however, taken on it's own merit, this is an excellent, slow burn thriller.
It has one undeniable advantage over the TV show. It is shot on film on location and therefore the grimy, low-rent milieu Callan occupies is rendered credibly. One of the strengths of the TV version is it's relentlessly downbeat tone, but this was somewhat mitigated by the stagey, shot on video aesthetic, which gave the material intimacy. On film the effect is far more cold and alienating. In some ways the film reminded me of an English 'Taxi Driver', with long scenes of Edward Woodward in a grubby bedsit practising his quick-draw.
I'd advise all viewers to give this fine film a look, and for Callan purists to give it a chance on it's own terms.
It would be interesting to know more about the circumstances that led to the making of this film. Would there have been sequels? Was it an opportunity to bring Woodward's excellent performance as the character to a wider, potentially international, audience?
In some ways, the later series The Equalizer feels like an americanised variation on Callan, wherein he has quit government work and become a freelance troubleshooter on behalf of private citizens. But Robert McCall is a much more straightfoward, palatable character for the US than the complex David Callan and his shades-of-grey world. Let me tell you, Brit 70s TV was really something!
It has one undeniable advantage over the TV show. It is shot on film on location and therefore the grimy, low-rent milieu Callan occupies is rendered credibly. One of the strengths of the TV version is it's relentlessly downbeat tone, but this was somewhat mitigated by the stagey, shot on video aesthetic, which gave the material intimacy. On film the effect is far more cold and alienating. In some ways the film reminded me of an English 'Taxi Driver', with long scenes of Edward Woodward in a grubby bedsit practising his quick-draw.
I'd advise all viewers to give this fine film a look, and for Callan purists to give it a chance on it's own terms.
It would be interesting to know more about the circumstances that led to the making of this film. Would there have been sequels? Was it an opportunity to bring Woodward's excellent performance as the character to a wider, potentially international, audience?
In some ways, the later series The Equalizer feels like an americanised variation on Callan, wherein he has quit government work and become a freelance troubleshooter on behalf of private citizens. But Robert McCall is a much more straightfoward, palatable character for the US than the complex David Callan and his shades-of-grey world. Let me tell you, Brit 70s TV was really something!