I admit I’ve undertaken an impossible task—trying to sift through dozens of terrific celluloid car chases to come up with the five all-time best. And, no doubt, some readers will take offense that some splendid car chases were omitted. I know for a fact that my rankings will generate controversy. But differences of opinion are what make movie blog discussions fun…so bring them on! To narrow the scope a little, I’ve included only car chases from action films—no comedies this time out (and I apologize to fans of movies like
It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World and W. C. Fields’
The Bank Dick ).
1.
The Seven-Ups (1973) – Philip D’Antoni¸ who produced
Bullitt (1968) and
The French Connection (1971), obviously knew a little something about car chases.
The Seven-Ups is the only film he directed and its set piece is a New York City high-speed “duel” between a Pontiac Ventura Sprint coupe (driven by good guy Roy Scheider) and a Pontiac Grand Ville (the bad guys). Like Gene Hackman in
The French Connection, Scheider does a great job of acting during the scene, pounding on the dashboard and swearing to himself. It’s a thrilling chase, but what sets it apart is the climax devised by stunt man extraordinaire Bill Hickman. Scheider’s Ventura skids under an 18-wheel truck, peeling off the top of the car…but leaving the driver (who ducks down on cue) unscathed.
2.
Bullitt (1968) – In 9 minutes and 42 seconds,
Bullitt redefined the car chase forever. It can certainly stake its claim as the most influential car chase and I suspect it ranks No. 1 on most lists. The San Francisco locale can’t be beat—helping to create iconic shots of the cars flying over the hills and careening around the tight curves. Director Peter Yates heightens the action with point-of-view and overhead shots. My only quibble: Steve McQueen and the driver of the car he's pursuing are the epitome of cool--so the scene isn’t quite as frantic and tense as the ones in
The Seven-Ups and
The French Connection. By the way, Bill Hickman drove the Charger.
3.
The French Connection (1971) – William Friedkin’s Oscar-winning film featured a chase between a Pontiac LeMans commandeered by Gene Hackman’s police detective and an elevated train containing the baddies. Hackman accents the tenseness of the scene perfectly, pounding on the horn and yelling at pedestrians as he speeds through the streets of Brooklyn, often against oncoming traffic. Friedkin makes terrific use of tracking shots, sometimes showing Hackman zooming underneath the elevated train in a single frame. In addition to reuniting producer D’Antoni and stunt driver Hickman from
Bullitt,
The French Connection co-starred Roy Scheider and Tony Lo Bianco who would later appear in
The Seven-Ups.
4.
To Live and Die in L.A. (1985) – Friedkin returned to the car chase with a revved-up sequence in this tale of unethical Treasury agents out to nab big-time counterfeiters at any cost. A young William Petersen played the federal agent who is pursued through Los Angeles. After a gripping chase through parked trucks and tight streets, Petersen finds himself surrounded on all sides but one…which leads down a one-way street. He zooms down the highway against oncoming traffic, resulting in a harrowing scene that momentarily tops a similar one in
The French Connection.
5.
Ronin (1998) – John Frankenheimer (who directed
The French Connection II…interesting how all these films connect in different ways) features a couple of car chases in this espionage thriller. The most famous one, though, pits a BMW 5 Series against a Peugeot 306 as they whisk through the narrow streets of Paris. The scene’s highlights are a nail-biting tunnel sequence and another pursuit down a one-way street.
Honorable mentions: The original
Gone in 60 Seconds,
Goldfinger (for its gadget-laden Aston-Martin),
The Road Warrior,
The Italian Job (1969),
Vanishing Point, the
Bourne movies, and
Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry.
All of my top five picks can be viewed on YouTube. So if you don’t remember
The Seven-Ups, or haven’t seen the chase scene in awhile, just click
here.
Differing opinions about my rankings and omissions are welcomed!
