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Top 10 Movie Car Chases

By Nguyen Le · January 24, 2014

Tires screeching, metal crunching, engines roaring, property smashing, endless gear shifting and “how the heck” maneuvering – car chases are exhilarating when they are done right. As a result, if you google “best car chases” you’ll see The Blues Brothers, Gone in 60 Seconds (1974), The French Connection, Vanishing Point, Ronin, Matrix Reloaded, Bourne Identity and, generally at #1, Bullitt coming up very often. Though times have changed, these chases are still revered because they all contain excitement, tension and fantastic driving. However, I believe there are others that deserve close, if not the same, level of recognition. Click on to find out!

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfYC_CBNtiM]

10. Quantum of Solace (2008)

“It’s like a ballet”, I remember telling myself seeing this sequence in theaters. There’s a magnificent emphasis on sounds here, every crash felt and every cylinder in the Aston heard. From the beautiful tunnels by Lake Garda to the sun-kissed quarry close by, the chase sequence does not fail in hooking viewers right away. And that finish! Whoa. Nevertheless, this kind of editing does not belong in a Bond movie. Also, I have presented the best part of this disappointing movie.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xDGTkJEOT8]

9. Jackie Chan’s Who Am I? (1998)

I still remember being in awe seeing this chase when I was young. Being a Jackie Chan movie, expect jaw-dropping practical stunts to move the simple plot along. Featuring one of my most favorite cars, the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV, the chase offsets the impression that this is a product placement (which it is) with outstanding driving, inventiveness and a mighty fine parking job.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJhlD6q71YA]

8. The Fifth Element (1997)

With this chase, the film’s tone is set up nicely – serious… but fun (sometimes borderline cheesy too). Like another chase in the list that will come up very soon, the music nicely amplifies the rush of the chase. While I try to avoid computerized car chases because of the CGI abuse (looking at you, R.I.P.D., Total Recall remake and G.I. Joe), there’s no sign of that here. A flying car chase through futuristic New York? Count me in.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xg5AypnkqSg]

7. Lethal Weapon 4 (1998)

The Lethal Weapon series has two things that ensure my attention to the television: the awesome Gibson-Glover chemistry and the car chases. The 4th installment’s Pontiac vs. Mercedes sequence is, hands-down, one of the most sensational sequences I’ve ever seen. Kudos to the stunt team for making the sense of danger very tangible every minute in this chase. Think you’re safe in a building? Think again.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQEYQ2ccY6c]

6. The Town (2010)

The French Connection’s chase is famous for its guerilla nature – there is no set and an actual unplanned crash is seen on-screen. It’s a classic sequence because of imperfections in the driving that provides scary realism. The Town reminds me of that with the van of our robbers smashing into cops and struggling to make clean turns around Boston’s alleys. Safer than Connection? Absolutely. Level of tension like Connection? Another “absolutely”, please.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzfSLgWkTlY]

5. The Bourne Supremacy (2004)

Speaking of a three-act chase, The Bourne Supremacy’s Mercedes vs. Volga has to be mentioned. From the moment our hero’s tiny Volga is sideswiped by the villain’s sturdy Mercedes-Benz, we know this is going to be one grueling, captivating and suspense-filled situation. Now let’s add FSB vehicles and the madhouse traffic of Moscow into the mix. Try not to crush your seat handles.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1AAhZZpT6PE]

4. The Island (2005)

Michael Bay’s best movie? Debatable. Michael Bay’s best chase sequence? Is that even a question?. Yes, The Rock’s Ferrari vs. Hummer sequence is something else but only the mayhem aspect is worth noting. For The Island, there’s that, plus brilliant choreography, choice of angles, music and sound design – you get to see a combo of all these elements in the Hummer-Magnum double-flip. A chase that has three clear acts, with the next more exciting than the last, culminating in an armored car end-over-end that is truly breathtaking. It’s Bayhem at its best.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0_SJEkjQxY]

3. Death Proof (2007)

Sure, it’s not Tarantino’s best film (even the man admits so in an interview) but this chase showcase two things – fantastic stunt work of the human and automotive kinds. Keep in mind that it is actually Zoe Bell hanging on for dear life on the white Challenger while the Charger keeps hitting it. The photographer, which is also Quentin Tarantino, captures the danger and the speed brilliantly, making this sequence alone worth the price of admission.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4md0_uwdWjg]

2. Drive (2011)

Compare to other chases, this is the least fancy sequence with only interior and low-angle cameras are used. But wait, that is why it deserves to be in the list in the first place! The getaway sequence, with Chromatics’s song Tick of The Clock accompanying it, provides much nail-biting suspense and the concept of ‘the car is only as good as its driver’. While a lot of people wish that there’d been more chases in this brilliant thriller, in its opening minutes Nicolas Wending Refn has made Los Angeles, or playground for cinematic car chases, looked cool again.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WE-wCw5Lf3I]

1. Jack Reacher (2012)

Christopher McQuarrie, the director, notes that he tries everything to show that Tom Cruise, and not a stunt double is driving the car. Besides the brilliant control of the red ’70 Chevelle SS, the old-school cinematography by DP Caleb Deschanel never lets you lose track of the car, who is driving it and the main stunts, thus keeping you on your toes at all times. Not really far fetch to say it’s this generation’s Bullitt and also the best chase on this list.