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The French Connection

1971 · directed by William Friedkin · 104 min
26,987 feet · Prominence
97th of 24,106 films scored
Not coveredThe 97th highest film on the mountain, and The Rewatchables has never done it.

How this film scores

Draw66

Lifetime worldwide gross $41m, re-releases included; about $336m in 2026 money.

Rank1,012 of 11,051In 19714 of 40

How Draw works

Inflation-adjusted worldwide box office, on one global curve, and nothing else. It does not know whether a film was good.

Praise98

Awards claim half the headroom above the critics' score.

Critics96 baseAwards99 signal → +2 lift

Oscars5 won Picture, Director, Actor, Adapted Screenplay, Film Editing3 nominated Supporting Actor, Cinematography, Sound
Golden Globes4 won Best Picture, Director, Actor, Screenplay2 nominated Lead acting, Screenplay
BAFTAs2 won Actor, Craft and other3 nominated Best Picture, Directing, Sound
How Praise works

Critics set the score; a tiered award record, Picture and Directing carrying the most weight, claims half the headroom above it. Praise is the verdict at the time; Legacy is the verdict since.

Legacy78

Judged directly: Best Picture, legendary car chase.

Verdict78 of 100IMDb7.7 from 149kWikipedia33k views a monthAge55 years

On the listsNational Film RegistryAFI 100evidence, not an input to the score
Scored beside it · 141 of 4,039 films judged

If it does not belong in this company, the number is wrong.

How Legacy works

Legacy is a judgment, not a formula. A film can be adored by critics and culturally quiet, or lightly reviewed and permanently lodged in the culture, and no arithmetic over IMDb numbers tells the difference. Every signal behind it keeps updating.

draw 66 praise 98 legacy 78averages 81, placing it at26,987 ft
How the three become one number

Added, not multiplied, so a film transcendent on one pillar and weak on another is not zeroed out. A compression curve then squeezes the top, because the seven greatest films ever made should not be four thousand feet apart.

In these careers — elevation for this film

Gene Hackman20,637 ftRoy Scheider19,810 ftFernando Rey18,837 ftTony Lo Bianco18,122 ftCharles McGregor17,634 ft