Bullitt

[JR]

The sinister jazzy music only plays until the chase starts.

I never noticed that before.

Awesome link, Stormbringer!

JR

[LarryG]

YEAH! That's the stuff, right there. Awesome. Classic.

Reviewing the thread, I appreciated fully Dan's question for the first time (i.e., what makes this chase and the one in "The French Connection" so great). For me, I think it's simply that you can believe they actually could have happened. There's none of the silly, over-the-top crap that litters most chase sequences these days (the principal and most tiresome offender being those vehicles that ram into the back of another at high speed and somehow get launched fifty feet into the air).

One slight gripe about this clip: it starts about five seconds too late. In the movie, as McQueen gets into his Mustang, he glances across the way and spots the Charger, parked, silent, waiting. And suddenly you, the viewer, know that he knows, just by the look in his eyes.

Great link, Greg. Think I'll go watch it again, 'cause that just doesn't get old!

[Popeye]

Maybe Ya'll are just too young.... but THE BEST car chase movie was "Vanishing Point". Pat

[JR]

For me, I think it's simply that you can believe they actually could have happened.

How about the clinically dispassionate demeanor of the clearly professional hit men? No trite dialog. Just motoring with a purpose.

The film has a sort of home-made look to it. Very immediate and approachable. You are in the car and it's in a real place and dangerous things are happening.

Awesome.

JR

[gsmittle]

Count the number of wheel covers that come off. I believe the charger throws 5 (!?).

Don't forget the spare....

g.

[padboy]

Bullitt

My vote is for The Italian Job(the original one using Mini-Minors); then I guess my next fave is The French Connection; followed by the Bourne series.

[ironhat]

Don't forget the spare....

g.

Wise acre! LOL!! Yes, I forgot about the VW but as soon as I read that I can see that thing several times.

[LarryG]

How about the clinically dispassionate demeanor of the clearly professional hit men?

I'd probably seen the movie three or four times before it finally hit me what was so brilliant about the hit men. Neither is anyone you'd give a second look to if you passed them on the street. Shotgun is almost grandfatherly. Driver wears glasses, for pete's sake. A refreshing change from the usual black shirts and matching skinny ties. Truly inspired casting and costuming.

The film has a sort of home-made look to it. Very immediate and approachable.

You might recall that a similar flavor was apparent in another Peter Yates film with which I'll bet you're familiar: "Breaking Away."

[JR]

You might recall that a similar flavor was apparent in another Peter Yates film with which I'll bet you're familiar: "Breaking Away."

Ooooh, good catch. I wasnt' aware these movies were made by the same guy.

JR

[Pappy]

I'm less enamored with McQueen, although the motorcycle scene in The Great Escape qualifies him in the pantheon of the greats! He was surely a good actor, understated and complete. But he never showed me the ability to overpower a strong movie, the way Wayne could. Admittedly, he didn't appear in as much junk as Wayne, either.

JR

If you can find it, check out a movie called "Soldier in the Rain" with McQueen and Gleason. Very moving film and, I think, one of Gleasons last.

[JR]

If you can find it, check out a movie called "Soldier in the Rain" with McQueen and Gleason. Very moving film and, I think, one of Gleasons last.

Was that the one where Gleason's character envisioned retirement to a Pacific island, "Where the girls' breasts pointed (swooping hand gesture) up!"?

JR

[radhak]

Whew! Finished watching Bullit first time just now.

Whattarush! I sat down just to catch a car chase (have not visited the link above yet), and saw an all time classic movie. One of the 'where were you all my life' genre.

Somehow I had missed the 'buckle' comment above earlier, but when it happened, I got the goosebumps - right on cue, just knowing what's coming...Now I can appreciate all your other comments as well.

I believe the sparse background music, even sparser dialogue and intimate photography ( the camera almost caresses faces at times) - makes it a Wow.

I need to watch it again, tomorrow.

[SHADOWFOX]

You guys should check out RONIN. It has one of most amazing car chase scene.

[gwyneth]

It's been years since I saw the Bullitt chase, but I think it resonates so deeply with viewers because it triggers some subconscious activities that set off actual bodily reactions.

Part of it is the San Fransisco topology, which is so extreme that seeing it even in two dimensions starts the neural gravity calculations.

The intensity of another set of neural calculations and the resulting physical sensations, and how they react with the visual input, depends on how experienced the viewer is with driving/riding in cars of that era.

Even brand new, and even in performance models, their suspensions, steering, seats and seat belts felt distinctly different from today. "Loose" isn't exactly the right way to describe it, but this visceral effect would definitely have amplified the visual signals and how the brain processes them.

BTW, all kinds of movies have paid tribute to the Bullitt chase, sometimes very briefly and unexpectedly--such as the driving/trolley scene in The Princess Diaries, of all things.