The Gauntlet

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The Gauntlet

R

1977

1h 49m

Crime

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

75%

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28 Reviews

54%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

A cop who has seen better days, hard-living Ben Shockley (Clint Eastwood) is recruited to escort Augustina "Gus" Mally (Sondra Locke), a key witness in a mob trial, from Las Vegas to Phoenix. Gus is a beautiful but coarse call-girl who claims to have information that makes the two highly expendable targets. Ben starts to believe her after numerous attempts are made to kill them as they travel across the unforgiving desert, pursued by angry bikers and corrupt police officers.

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Critics Consensus

Eastwood has a good time playing a dolt in the surprisingly funny The Gauntlet, which otherwise has the typical Clint trappings.

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Kat Sachs

Chicago Reader

Aug 15, 2025

Here one finds Eastwood interrogating the institution just as much as he’s seemingly upholding it by being committed to his onetime ideals of law enforcement.

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Dave Kehr

Chicago Reader

Aug 5, 2020

The subject is the redemption of the pop hero, and Eastwood accomplishes his purgation with wit, intelligence, and a complete disregard for the prevailing standards of realism.

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Gary Arnold

Washington Post

May 9, 2018

Vicious and hypocritical as it is, "The Gauntlet" remains an entertaining sort of disreputable show, considerably more proficient and interesting than junk melodramas in a dogged vein...

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Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

Sep 5, 2023

4/5

…while not quite as thunderously epic as that poster suggests, The Gauntlet is some peak Eastwood machismo, all the better because it sets the star against a smart, angry female character…

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Alan Jones

Radio Times

Aug 5, 2020

3/5

Eastwood... blurs the line between law enforcement and the way the Mob conducts its business to provide extra food for thought in a compelling and well-paced tale.

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Kaspars Dzeguze

Maclean's Magazine

Aug 5, 2020

There's too little action to let Eastwood show himself to advantage as the fine, stylized screen fighter he is. Instead, there's talk and psychology, which he can handle only by gritting his teeth.

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Claudio C

@Claudio666 Sep 7, 2026

The Gauntlet (1977) Flawed, Absurd, but Highly Entertaining (12,671 – 10 Sep 2012 / 07 Sep 2026 – Claudio Carvalho) "The Gauntlet" is a highly entertaining movie with a flawed and absurd story. There is no press representative or judge from the tribunal to question the reason for the shooting to stop the bus. The helicopter chasing the motorcycle with the sniper failing in his shots is funny. The situation of the gauntlet in Phoenix is hilarious, and the police force is incapable to shoot the bus tires or engine to stop the vehicle. Sondra Locke is very beautiful in the role of a smart prostitute, and this is the type of movie that the viewer must shut down his or her brain and have lots of fun. My vote is seven. Title (Brazil): "Rota Suicida" ("Suicide Route")

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thiago S

@Thiagostone May 10, 2026

Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom

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Jerod S

@jeroduptown Apr 18, 2026

The Gauntlet's story gets stalled by ridiculous shootouts that last minutes and make no sense at all. Otherwise its regular Eastwood fodder.

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Aun M

@AunMohammad Dec 26, 2025

Lagendary Clint Eastwood did brilliant job, the film is awesome best story best thrills nice action. Film show the corrupt police chief who sat Ben Shockey to get the Mally in court and that chief also sat some killers to kill them both. Film has less action but nice chasing but helicopter scene is illogical gunman continuously shooting on Ben & Mally but no bullet could even wound them.

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j F.

@LiberteBurrows Nov 15, 2025

Sondra Locke is a total babe!

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Rehan T

@RT81460504 Jul 4, 2025

The first half of the movie was really great. But after that it all went downhill. Train scene was really unnecessary. And the end was horrible. The chief openly killing the lawyer and the entire city's PD just watching. And then Malley killed the chief...

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Clint Eastwood

Director

Clint Eastwood

Ben Shockley

Sondra Locke

Gus Mally

Pat Hingle

Josephson

William Prince

Blakelock

Bill McKinney

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Synopsis

A cop who has seen better days, hard-living Ben Shockley (Clint Eastwood) is recruited to escort Augustina "Gus" Mally (Sondra Locke), a key witness in a mob trial, from Las Vegas to Phoenix. Gus is a beautiful but coarse call-girl who claims to have information that makes the two highly expendable targets. Ben starts to believe her after numerous attempts are made to kill them as they travel across the unforgiving desert, pursued by angry bikers and corrupt police officers.

Director: Clint Eastwood
Producer: Robert Daley
Screenwriter: Michael Butler, Dennis Shryack
Production Co: Warner Bros., Malpaso Company
Rating: R
Genre: Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2009
Runtime: 1h 49m

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