History YMMV / DirtyHarry

* HarsherInHindsight: In ''Magnum Force'', a pimp kills one of his prostitutes in a taxicab with a bottle of drain cleaner. Reportedly, the men who committed the infamous Hi-Fi murders had watched this scene numerous times, although when they actually tried it all they managed to do was cause an allergic reaction in their victims.

** The torture scene described as "downright horrific" on the main page can just as easily be seen as a tad silly due to Scorpy's [[EvilIsHammy hysterical, overdone blubbering]]. Also, his [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONZrE-BjFVI scream when stabbed]] is ''hilarious''.

** In an early scene in ''The Enforcer'', when a criminal gang demands a getaway car, Harry gets in his squad car and rams the shop front where the criminals are holed up, taking them utterly off guard. In a later scene, Harry is chasing an assassin on foot across rooftops, who accidentally falls through a roof window - right into a porn film shoot. Harry also uses a toilet plunger on an underworld figure's face to extract information from him.

* {{Sequelitis}}: General consensus seems to be that each film is successively worse than the last, although there are some who argue that ''Sudden Impact'' is better than ''The Enforcer'' was.

* HarsherInHindsight: In ''Magnum Force'', a pimp kills one of his prostitutes in a taxicab with a bottle of drain cleaner. Reportedly, the men who committed the infamous Hi-Fi murders had watched this scene numerous times.

* AntiHero: Dirty Harry himself, though YMMV on whether he belongs in type [[GoodIsNotNice 3]] or [[PayEvilUntoEvil 4]]. From the words of Don Siegel himself:
-->"''I was telling the story of a hard-nosed cop and a dangerous killer. What my liberal friends did not grasp was that the cop is almost as evil, in his way, as the sniper.''"

** In ''[[DirtyHarry The Dead Pool]]'', the celebrity killer attempts to blow up Harry Callahan's car with a modified [=RC=] car infused with [=C4=]. However, the attempt fails when some kid playing with his own [=RC=] car interferes with the bomb-car's radio frequency. Instead of waiting for another opportunity, the killer starts a downright hilarious [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4zARMxqbkI RC car chase]] across SanFrancisco.

* CompleteMonster: The Scorpio Killer, so much so that the actor who played him (Andrew Robinson) reportedly received ''death threats'' after the movie came out.

* CrowningMomentOfFunny: The candidates for detective evaluation scene in ''TheEnforcer''.

** Honorable mention goes to Mick from ''Sudden Impact'', who seems to enjoy hurting others too damn much to pass for human, and the pimp from ''Magnum Force'', whose brutal killing of one of his hookers inspired the stomach-turning RealLife "Hi-Fi Murders."

* CompleteMonster: Scorpio Killer, so much so that the actor who played him (Andrew Robinson) reportedly received ''death threats'' after the movie came out.

* CrowningMusicOfAwesome: The ''Magnum Force'' [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3roS8cJRGEk title theme]], which was [[CoveredUp remixed]] into ''TeamFortress2'''s "Meet the Sniper" video soundtrack.

-->"''I was telling the story of a hard-nosed cop and a dangerous killer. What my liberal friends did not grasp was that the cop is just as evil, in his way, as the sniper.''"
* CompleteMonster: Scorpio Killer, so much so that the actor, Andrew Robinson, reportedly received ''death threats'' after the movie came out.

* CharacterAlignment
** NeutralEvil: Scorpio. Chaotic enough to murder random victims ForTheEvulz, lawful enough to help himself get away with it by exploiting loopholes in the system.
** ChaoticGood: Harry Callahan
-->'''Rothko''': This rifle might make a nice souvenir. But it's inadmissible as evidence.
-->'''Callahan''': Who says that?
-->'''Rothko''': It's the law.
-->'''Callahan''': Well, then, the law is crazy.
** LawfulNeutral: Most of the police and the justice system, at least in the first movie. They might have good intentions, but whatever the case, it is clearly overshadowed by their fanaticism about adhering to the law despite the grim consequences of doing this.
** NeutralGood: Chico does not seem to be as openly rebellious as Harry, but is quite motivated to help out.

* CompleteMonster: (Scorpio Killer) So much so that the actor, Andrew Robinson, reportedly received ''death threats'' after the movie came out.

* {{Sequelitis}}: General consensus seems to be that each film is successively worst than the last, although there are some who argue that ''Sudden Impact'' is better than ''The Enforcer'' was.

** NeutralGood: Chico does not seem to be as openly rebellious as Harry.

** ChaoticEvil: Scorpio

* ChaoticGood: Harry Callahan