1. Bullitt
Will there ever be a better car chase on celluloid than this Steve McQueen classic? (That’s a rhetorical question. We know the answer is ‘no’.)
The chase scene in Bullitt is nine minutes and 42 seconds of muscle-car heaven that took three weeks to film. It’s impossible to watch without desperately wanting to own a 1968 Ford Mustang GT.
Unfortunately, we’re unlikely to ever have one in stock (though if we do we promise it will be cheap).
2. Ronin
This film serves up more car chases than a posh French restaurant serves courses. There are so many in the end you lose count.
Apparently, as many as 300 stunt drivers were used. The best is the final manic chase through the streets and tunnels of Paris. If you buy an Audi A8, please treat it with a bit more respect than the S8 in Ronin.
3. The Italian Job
No, not that dross with Matt Damon, the proper one. If you need to drive like a nutter through a sewer system, a Mini is the car to do it in. You’ll be humming ‘The Self Preservation Society’ for days.
4. The Bourne Identity
We can forgive Damon for the remake of The Italian Job because of The Bourne Identity. Bourne might not know his own name, but he can remember how to drive.
The Mini in Bourne might be beaten up compared with those driven by Michael Caine and his mates, but it still gets the job done.
5. The French Connection
Car versus car is the normal set up. In The French Connection, viewers are treated to
At least one of the car crashes was a genuine accident. Director William Friedkin thought it added to the sequence, so he kept it in the final cut.
6. The Blues Brothers
‘It’s 106 miles to Chicago, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it’s dark, and we’re wearing sunglasses.’
Jake and Elwood race through a shopping mall in one of cinema’s few indoor car chases.
7. Quantum of Solace
Casino Royale may be a much better film, but Quantum of Solace has a
8. The Cannonball Run
If you love car chases, what could be better than a film that’s one long car chase? Burt Reynolds, Sammy Davis Jr, Dean Martin, Farrah Fawcett and Roger Moore race across America.
9. Vanishing Point
1971’s Vanishing Point hasn’t aged well. So fast-forward through the boring bits and enjoy watching Barry Newman try to drive a Dodge Charger from San Francisco to Denver in just 15 hours. Oh, and a naked woman riding a motorbike.
10. Gone in 60 Seconds
No, not the one with Nicholas Cage. The original from 1974. Pretty much half the film is a car chase and the stunts are spectacular.
Disagree with our top 10? Leave us a comment.
We’re right and you’re wrong of course, but let us know what you think anyway.
