History Film / TheGauntlet

* LetsGetDangerous: Minor example. Malley turns out to be a pretty good shot with Shockley's .38 at the very end, taking Blakelock out with it.

Ben Shockley (Eastwood) is a Phoenix cop whose dream of hitting "the big case" has been ruined by a few too many glasses of Jack Daniels. Which, of course, means that he's the one being chosen to escort a prostitute named Augustina "Gus" Mally (Creator/SondraLocke) across state lines to a "nothing" trial at which she is to testify. However, Mally is convinced that Shockley was only sent so they could [[UriahGambit get rid of him]], and, after a few incidents involving a racehorse bet and the destruction of Mally's own house (with them in it), Shockley learns that Mally not only has mob ties, but also has incriminating evidence against a high figure in Phoenix society. And this figure has employed Shockley's own boss, the [[DirtyCop corrupt]] Commissioner Blakelock (Creator/WilliamPrince), to ensure that neither of them return to Phoenix.

* ChaseScene: Shockley and [[TheChick Malley]] are pursued at some length by a helicopter containing some mafia mooks.

* ShowSomeLeg: [[TheChick Mally]] opens up her shirt to distract bikers from beating up [[Creator/ClintEastwood Shockley]]. Accompanied by IShallTauntYou to make them look.

Ben Shockley (Eastwood) is a Phoenix cop whose dream of hitting "the big case" has been ruined by a few too many glasses of Jack Daniels. Which, of course, means that he's the one being chosen to escort a prostitute named Augustina "Gus" Mally (Sondra Locke) across state lines to a "nothing" trial at which she is to testify. However, Mally is convinced that Shockley was only sent so they could [[UriahGambit get rid of him]], and, after a few incidents involving a racehorse bet and the destruction of Mally's own house (with them in it), Shockley learns that Mally not only has mob ties, but also has incriminating evidence against a high figure in Phoenix society. And this figure has employed Shockley's own boss, the [[DirtyCop corrupt]] Commissioner Blakelock (William Prince), to ensure that neither of them return to Phoenix.

* SimpleSolutionWontWork: Wanting to remove the witness who could bring them down, [[DirtyCop Commissioner Blakelock]] asks [[AmoralAttorney Assistant District Attorney Feyderspiel]] why not just use their Mob connections to have the prison bus the witness is being transported on blown to kingdom come whilst its on route to Phoenix. Feyderspeil bluntly points out the Mob would never agree to do so, as blowing up a bus whilst on a major public highway would attract far to much attention.

-->''Gus Mally'': [''In tears''] Ben Shockley don't you die on me! Open those fucking eyes!\\

%%* AllBikersAreHellsAngels: Played absolutely straight ... which raises an interesting question: how did Shockley himself learn to ride so well?

%%* EscortMission: The whole movie is basically one.

%%* HookerWithAHeartOfGold: Augustina "Gus" Mally.
%%* HowDareYouDieOnMe: Gus to Ben, near the very end.

* TheMafia: Blakelock is on their pocket and enjoying the fringe benefits (such as hookers and people he can send to take out someone he doesn't likes covertly), and they even run bets on Las Vegas about the odds of people appearing in court to testify against them (disguised as horse racing).

* AllBikersAreHellsAngels: Played absolutely straight ... which raises an interesting question: how did Shockley himself learn to ride so well?

* EscortMission: The whole movie is basically one.

* HookerWithAHeartOfGold: Augustina "Gus" Mally.
* HowDareYouDieOnMe: Gus to Ben, near the very end.
* ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy: ''Almost'' averted: when the bus is driving down the street, hundreds of Phoenix cops are letting loose with everything they have, from handguns to sniper rifles. Some bullets ''do'' hit the steel plating that Ben used for makeshift armor (see below), but not one hits ''the tires''.
** Earlier, a Mob sniper in a chopper (the airborne kind) is chasing Shockley and Malley on a stolen chopper (the two-wheeled kind) and never scratches either. Close to TruthInTelevision, in that a swooping helicopter is not a stable firing platform for someone with a rifle and a motorcycle is a fairly maneuverable vehicle and thus a tough target. On the other hand, he ''does'' manages to hit the fuel tank, which brings in AccidentalAimingSkills.

* TheMafia: The movie's BiggerBad. Blakelock is on their pocket and enjoying the fringe benefits (such as hookers and people he can send to take out someone he doesn't likes covertly), and they even run bets on Las Vegas about the odds of people appearing in court to testify against them (disguised as horse racing).

* ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill: The villains' attempts at killing Shockley and Malley are completely insane: of the four times they try to kill them through the film, only one sounds sane (a sniper on a helicopter) and the other three involve shooting whatever Malley and Shockley are in or assumed to be in (from smaller to bigger: a patrol car, a bus and a house) until it's falling to pieces.

* BlatantLies / ArcWords: "A nothing witness to a nothing trial".

* TheDeterminator: Shockley, in spades. Nothing, not even ''every Mob-affiliated gunman and trigger-happy patrolman on two states'' is gonna stop him from delivering his "nothing" witness to her "nothing" trial, if nothing else but out of spite to his opponents.

* ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections: Tried but defied. Blakelock [[WhyDontYouJustShootHim asks Feyderspiel about why not just request his Mob connections to blow up the bus while it's en route to Phoenix]], only for Feyderspiel to mention that blowing up a bus right in the middle of a major highway is a bit ''too'' blatant for the Mob to wish to perform. [[ZigZaggedTrope He then goes on to advice about the titular "gauntlet", which they can create with their capacity to pull rank on the local police]].

[[quoteright:310:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/thegauntlet.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:310:Ten million bullets. One man. Don't bet on the bullets. (Poster art by Creator/FrankFrazetta)]]

Compare ''Film/SixteenBlocks'', where Creator/BruceWillis must also escort a witness to trial while struggling against DirtyCops.

[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/thegauntlet.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:300:Ten million bullets. One man. Don't bet on the bullets.]]

* [[TrailersAlwaysLie Posters Always Lie]]: Subverted. The poster is pretty faithful to the movie, although Eastwood ''do'' looks like a modern FrazettaMan (bonus points for having been made ''by'' Creator/FrankFrazetta).

Ben Shockley (Eastwood) is a Phoenix cop whose dream of hitting "the big case" has been ruined by a few too many glasses of Jack Daniels. Which, of course, means that he's the one being chosen to escort a prostitute named Augustina "Gus" Mally (Sondra Locke) across state lines to a "nothing" trial at which she is to testify. However, Mally is convinced that Shockley was only sent so they could [[UriahGambit get rid of him]], and, after a few incidents involving a racehorse bet and the destruction of Mally's own house (with them in it), Shockley learns that Mally not only has mob ties, but also has incriminating evidence against a high figure in Phoenix society. And this figure has employed Shockley's own boss, the corrupt Commissioner Blakelock (William Prince), to ensure that neither of them return to Phoenix.