Quote:
Originally Posted by KJS
Steve McQueen in BULLIT
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Without a doubt. The Best.
There are so many elements to the car chase sequence that are done right.
For starters, a good part of the 'chase' is done a BELOW legal speed limits, as McQueen, and the Hit Men in the Charger R/T kind of spar with each other, like two prize fighters, feeling each other out. The music by Lalo Schiffrin is a perfect accompanyment to all this, building tension. Everybody in the audience knows the cars are fast, just by listening to their exhaust notes. But, the drivers are just in a state of tension, and when McQueen looses them, and double backs on their tail, the look on the Charger Driver's face is perfect. He does a nervious double-take at McQueen on his tail. The hunter is now the prey...
When the Charger (finally) nails it, pulling an illegal left turn from the right lane, sailing away up the hill in a cloud of tire smoke, it's just great. Bill Hickman, BTW, was the driver of the Charger. A hollywood stunt driver for years, he was the first to arrive at James Deans wrecked Porsche. Cary Loftin, did most of the driving in the Mustang GT.
They left all the 'mistakes' in the final cut, which adds to the chase. McQueen missing the turn, and backing up amidst clouds of tire smoke and a hopping rear end, plus the Charger running wide on a turn and taking out a car and a camera mounted on the front of a parked car, are plus elements.
The chase transpires nicely from city to highway, when they (finally) get a chance to really open up. McQueen's avoidance of the motorcyclist (ridden by Bud Eakins) is realistic. The look on the Hit Man's face, looking in the rear view mirror at McQueen spinning out, is precious. How many times in today's chase sequences do we get a chance to see the CONSIQUENCES of all this high speed driving on public roads? Never. This chase sequence WORKS, in great part, due to the shots of the Driver's reactions to all this mayhem. They don't do this well in today's movies.
It ends, of course, with the Charger in a fireball, and McQueen ground looping the Mustang.
If Hollywood ever redid "Bullitt", it wouldn't be half as good. Today, they would be flying thru the air 60 feet off the ground, with all sorts of rediculous digital chicanery. It would disapoint everybody except 10 year olds.
LJB