If a movie doesn’t have stakes then it doesn’t have a reason for people to sit around for 2 hours watching it. That’s why the risk of death is a common element in movies – it’s just about the ultimate stake, short of a giant portal opening up and destroying the world or some other form of global catastrophe.
Once a script has its stakes, the next step for the writer is to capitalize on them. There’s no simpler way to let viewers know that things have gotten real than having a chase sequence. The results of a chase sequence are straightforward. If Person A catches Person B, bad things are going to happen for Person B. It’s about the least complicated way to get the audience’s heart rate up. Of course, that’s the easy part. The hard part is actually filming the chase scene so that it delivers on the heart-pumping action while also not killing anybody in real life. Below is a list of some examples of movies that had chase scenes that delivered.
The fifth movie of the Fast and the Furious franchise introduced 2 things to the series – Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and the directional shift that the series would become about ridiculous and zany heists with cars rather than street racing. In this one, the gang of speedy and agitated individuals plan to steal a bunch of money from a drug lord in Rio de Janeiro in order to make new lives for themselves. They hatch a convoluted plan for the heist that involves, among other things, Gal Gadot’s character, who after being established as the best driver of the group earlier in the film, has the sole contribution to the plan be getting her butt touched (to get fingerprints). The plan goes pear-shaped before it really starts and the quick and angry group calls an audible and decide to just rip the safe right out of a police station, thus rendering most of the movie’s buildup pointless.
From there begins the climactic chase scene, which involves Vin Diesel and Paul Walker tag-teaming their cars to drag the safe through a bustling city, using it like a giant, improbable wrecking ball the whole way. Untold levels of wanton destruction happen as a result, and the safe crashes into countless cars and buildings. It’s a ludicrous action scene in a ludicrous movie that also happens to feature the acting chops of Ludacris. The movie instructed viewers to turn their brains off and enjoy the ride in the first 10 minutes and then embraced getting as zany as possible, something which helped propel the series into one of the most successful film franchises of all time.
James Cameron’s even more successful follow-up to the influential first in what would eventually be a decade-spanning franchise, Terminator 2 won awards in sound, makeup, and visual effects, among other accolades. The at-times downright terrifying sequel features the T-800, played by Arnold Schwarzenegger, back as the hero this time around, as well as two chase sequences that show off James Cameron’s directing chops.
The first chase in the movie features Arnold Schwarzenegger coming to the rescue of 10-year-old John Connor, who is being chased down on his dirt bike by a semi-truck driven by killing machine the T-1000. John Connor remains just out of the truck’s reach while speeding through the city’s canal system. Schwarzenegger’s character shoots locks off of fences and at the evil Terminator with a Winchester shotgun while cocking the shells in the most badass-looking way possible, spinning it by its lever-action, a move that’s been dubbed the “flip cock”.
The second chase scene is worth mentioning because of the fact that making it happen was blatantly risky. Once again on its undeterred pursuit of the Connors, the T-1000 takes control of a police helicopter as it tails our heroes, who are making their getaway in an armored truck. Hot on their heels, the T-1000 pilots the helicopter underneath a highway overpass with barely any space above or below to spare. This was done without CGI or miniatures, meaning somebody was courageous enough to fly an actual helicopter through the tight spot and talented enough to pull it off. Reportedly, the camera crew originally tasked with shooting the breathtakingly dangerous stunt refused to be party to such a risky endeavor, so James Cameron filmed the shot himself.
In this gritty Netflix original, Extraction follows Chris Hemsworth as he attempts to rescue a kidnapped child in Bangladesh, played by Rudhraksh Jaiswal. It was released earlier this year and became Netflix’s most watched original film, and a sequel is reportedly in the works.
In this chase scene, Hemsworth’s and Jaiswal’s characters get into a car as they are being fired on and doggedly pursued by tactical units and crooked police officers who are working for a rival drug lord or the child’s father. They speed down the dusty streets of a small Bangladesh town, narrowly missing pedestrians and other obstacles as bullets whiz by, the action making sure not to let viewers have even a moment to breathe. How Hemsworth’s character is able to drive so quickly and hold conversation can only be explained as movie magic. The scene is high-tensity, well-shot, fast-paced, and, most impressively, it’s edited to look like it’s all one take.
Rhythm Section, released at the beginning of this year, stars Blake Lively as a she goes on a quest for revenge after learning the tragic accident that killed her family was not so accidental after all. The film itself was not very well received and it didn’t make back much of its budget, but it does feature a chase sequence that does well to convey the urgency and terror of the situation. It’s short and sweet, and like Extraction’s chase scene, is done as a one take.
In the sequence, Lively’s character Stephanie Patrick is being chased by gangsters who, in a coordinated attack, attempt to snuff out her character. What ensues is a frantic drive down the streets of Morocco as her character is fired on and her car is forced against walls and down gravel embankments. While usually chase sequences will show multiple points of view to let the viewer know what cars are involved in the chase and where they are, this scene is filmed entirely in the cabin of the car, placing viewers in the passenger seat to enhance the feeling of being just as at risk in teh chase as Stephanie Patrick. Blake Lively’s character, who is not accustomed to being in such scenarios like a lot of the other characters featured in the scenes on this list, is understandably freaked out during the whole affair. It’s a scene that’s not about flashy driving or cool moments, but rather one that conveys a moment of extreme panic in this character’s journey.
The Town is a heist movie co-written, directed, and starring Ben Affleck. It’s a movie so chock-full of fun and folksy Boston accents and phrases it could be considered a Massploitation film, and that’s before getting to the fact that the plan is to rob Fenway Park In the film, the characters, who have found that life has set them up to resort to lives of crime to eke out a living, decide to attempt one final heist to finally break free of the cycle.
The chase scene begins with the gang robbing an armored car full of cash dressed in creepy nun masks. It’s a quick smash-n-grab operation, but things still go bad. Once the cops get on their tail, a claustrophobic car chase happens, winding down small side streets and alleyways that are just wide enough for a single car going one direction. It’s a cat-and-mouse chase, with them trying to weave around tiny streets, getting the cops to lose sight of them, and trying to distract them for long enough to make a getaway once things get hairy. There’s no driving at speeds above 40 miles an hour, but it’s an interesting take on how a car chase can be structured, making good use of the city’s layout.
The Blues Brothers is one of the most successful Saturday Night Live spinoff movies and featured incredible musical cameos from James Brown, Ray Charles, Cab Calloway, and Aretha Franklin, may they all rest in peace. It also had two chase scenes that are wonderfully destructive while serving as thrilling bookends and highlights to the film.
In the first chase scene, Jake and Elwood Blues are pursued by state troopers after it’s discovered they are driving on a suspended license. The chase scene becomes almost instantly memorable when the eponymous Blue Brothers lead the troopers inside a mall, where capitalism really gets the crap knocked out of it by all the cars involved and the police eventually find themselves outmaneuvered, upside down, and spun out.
The second car chase involves the Blues Brothers, what feels like entire state’s police departments, a country band they made enemies with earlier in the film, and Illinois Nazis. The chase features plenty of physics-defying stunt driving, all while Jake and Elwood remain cool as cucumbers on their determined mission from God. By the end of the scene, copious amounts of cop cars have smashed into each other, the brothers are being descended upon by various branches of law enforcement in a single building, and the Illinois Nazis have driven off an unfinished stretch of highway to their deaths because f*** those guys.
The original Gone In 60 Seconds was, it’s safe to say, a passion project for producer, director, writer, stunt driver, and lead actor H. B. Halicki, who ran an impound and towing business and owned an antique car collection before making the film. The film itself damaged or completely destroyed 127 cars, 93 of which happened during the films climactic 40-minute chase scene. The film also features a customized 1971 Ford Mustang named “Eleanor”, which H. B. Halicki owned the copyright to. All cars used in the chase sequence were owned by Halicki himself and were bought at a city auction for an average of $200 a pop.
In the chase sequence, Maindrian Pace, played by Halicki, is attempting to steal the final car, the aforementioned Eleanor Mustang, but the police have been tipped off to the theft and descend on his position. Thus begins a chase sequence that takes them across multiple highways, through 6 California cities, and wrecks what would be an untold number of cars the statistic hadn’t just been revealed in the prior paragraph. Halfway through the chase, the Eleanor that Pace is driving gets tail spun and the car crashes violently into a pole, a shot that was not a stunt or planned but was, in fact, an actual accident that knocked Halicki unconscious and delayed filming for almost a month. The scene ends with a jump that sends the car flying 128 feet without the help of anything but the car’s own engine, which compacted 10 of Halicki’s vertebrae.
Halicki attempted to shoot a follow-up to the film 15 years later, having purchased over 400 cars to, once again, smash up in another wildly destructive chase scene that probably would have comprised the entire movie’s length. However, during filming, a water tower that was supposed to topple to the ground had its support cable unexpectedly snap, knocking over a telephone pole that fell on and crushed Halicki, killing him instantly. His widow, Denice Shakarian Halicki, would see his dream through, and after years of court case, eventually was able to license and produce the 2000 remake starring Nicholas Cage with Disney and Jerry Bruckheimer, the Eleanor Mustang once again being featured prominently in the film. It took 11 years, but the late H. B. Halicki’s dream was fulfilled, and the Eleanor Mustang saw a new rise in popularity following the film’s release.
This film contains one of the most famous chase scenes of all time. In this film, Steve McQueen plays Lt. Frank Bullitt, who chases down some hitmen after an assassination of a witness for a hearing on organized crime. The chase scene happens about an hour into the movie and lasts 10 minutes and was lauded for its realism. The creators of the film credited the film’s editor, Frank P. Keller, with having made the scene work as well as it did, and Keller ended up winning the 1968 Oscar for editing.
The chase begins when McQueen, driving a fancy Ford Mustang, realizes he’s being followed by a Dodge Charger. He loses the car through some side streets, only to reappear moments later behind the car that was following him, replacing them as the role of pursuer. Thus begins a high speed, weaving chase up and down the sloping hills of San Francisco, dodging cars and obstacles along the way as they deftly maneuver and muscle for rank. At times, the cars hit speeds of over 110 MPH, all before the scene’s fiery conclusion. During filming, the remote-driven car manned by dummies tripped the explosives too early, but the moment was corrected with the help of Frank P. Keller’s editing decisions. This scene is also notable for featuring no dialogue or music, just the distinct sound of the two cars’ engines roaring as they change speeds and shift gears. Youtube videos have tried mashing the scene up with thematic music, but somehow all adding music does to the scene is just diffuse the tension, showing how important such decisions can be for the tone of a film.
Point Break is the weirdest bromance movie. In the movie, Keanu Reeves’ character Johnny Utaho goes undercover to infiltrate a group of thrill-seeking surfers led by the charismatic and forward-thinking Patrick Swayze character Bodhi in order to catch a group of serial bank-robbers after a wild conclusion made by Gary Busey’s character. During his time with the surfers, Johnny Utah becomes enamored with Bodhi, the lifestyle of constantly chasing adrenaline highs, and even a little with Bodhi’s philosophy that somehow the act of robbing banks was reminding people that they are alive. Oh, he also kind of likes this one girl that hangs out with the surfers too, but that take a backseat to Utah’s love for Bodhi.
In this chase scene, Gary Busey is about to eat a delicious-looking meatball sub when they witness the robbers, all wearing their trademark creepy rubber masks of previous United States presidents, leaving the bank they’d been staking out. Thus follows a series of highly-unethical maneuvers by Keanu Reeves’ character, including firing on the car in the middle of a busy city street. They give chase, but the car is quickly ditched when its tires are punctured by a spike strip. Reeves then starts chasing the robber wearing a Ronald Reagan mask, who is implied to be Patrick Swayze’s character. They sprint through a series of back alleys and even the homes of people who don’t seem to grasp the concept of door locks, though when Swayze shows that he does know about this new-fangled invention Reeves quickly powers through the glass door using a potted plant. On top of that, when Bodhi literally throws a pitbull at Johnny Utah to stop him, Utah not only throws the dog off himself but goes as far as to punt the dog like a football in an unnecessary act of animal cruelty. The chase ends with a classic moment where Utah finds himself unable to fire on the suspect, emptying his clip into the air and screaming in conflicted rage as Bodhi struts off, setting the stage for an utterly ridiculous, unrealistic, and fantastic skydiving scene later in the film.
Who says every chase scene needs to involve cars at all? They’re of course a natural choice since cars can go a tad faster than a human can, and a chase scene with vehicles can have them bump into each other with really intense metallic crunch sounds.
The 2004 movie District B13 is one of the films released around the time that helped popularize and establish the knowledge of parkour in the public. The main character in the movie is played by David Belle, who is considered the founder of the sport (at least in the official sense, as people were climbing over things long before 1988 when it was established and named). District B13 depicts a dystopian future in a populous slum that is at the forefront of a government conspiracy.
In the scene, the main character is being chased by gangsters (a frequent through-line in a lot of these chase scenes) around their apartment complex. Showcasing parkour’s enduring allure, his path obscured, he jumps and swings and more, climbing up, around, and down a number of obstacles without ever seeming to lose momentum. Despite all his flashy running and jumping, the gangsters never seem to be more than an arms-length behind him, but he does manage to lose a few gangsters who fall victim to gravity’s sweet embrace along the way before he manages to finally outfox the squad. It’s one of many scenes in the movie that feature parkour, but it’s one that definitely gives the character an immediate motivation to use it instead of walking normally down a hallway.
Kung Fu Hustle is a wuxia film produced, written, and directed by lead actor Stephen Chow. Equal parts action and comedy, it’s visually striking and well-choreographed. The film is unique in that it completely drops any pretense of being realistic, with the inclusion of Looney Tunes visuals and physics to enhance the flavor of everything. It’s heartfelt, goofy, even spiritual in just the right spots, and is worth a watch for anybody who hasn’t taken the opportunity to do so yet.
Chow’s character Sing and his friend Bone are small-time thieves who have ambitions of joining the notorious Axe Gang, causing all sorts of trouble for them and a slum called Pigsty Alley, which is run by a hard-boiled landlord and her lecherous drunkard of a husband, named simply Landlady and Landlord, respectively. After being a thoroughly unlikeable person for some time (with an explanation for why he’s become this way illustrated in flashbacks), Sing returns with Bone to Pigsty Alley in an attempt to kill Landlady with throwing knives. After their attempt goes hilariously awry, Landlady gives Sing chase in a fashion that can be best described as “Roadrunner-esque”. It looks ridiculous but it’s so much fun to watch. It’s a shame that the humorous conclusion takes place a little over a minute later. It could have gone on for another 3 to 5 minutes without losing any of its novelty, but perhaps some things are at their best when they leave people wanting more. Speaking of which, over 16 years late, a sequel of the movie is reportedly in the works.
Buster Keaton’s Sherlock Jr features a chase scene that showcases just why Buster Keaton was a master of physical comedy for the silent film era. In this film, a projectionist named The Projectionist falls asleep in the booth and imagines himself as the lead character in the movie he’s supposed to be swapping the reels for, and he begins to try and track down a criminal ring that has kidnapped a woman he saw right before falling asleep, known simply as The Girl. It deserves to be noted that, during filming, Keaton actually broke his neck during one of the stunts. After taking the rest of the day off he continued on with shooting the movie, only to have a doctor inform him of his injury 9 years later.
At one point in the film, The Projectionist as Sherlock Jr. attempts to give chase, first on foot before being assisted by a passing motorcycle cop. Sherlock Jr. sits on the bike’s handlebars as they speed off in pursuit, but the cop is shortly knocked off the bike, leaving Keaton’s character unaware that he’s riding on the handlebars of a bike with no pilot. The scene becomes an ever-escalating series of visual gags about what ridiculous scenarios the motorcycle Sherlock Jr. is ghost-riding can miraculously pilot its way through. The scene exemplifies exactly the kind of humor a movie without sound can pull off, and why Buster Keaton was such a venerated icon of the genre.
![\"IT電腦補習](\"http://itteacheritfreelance.hk/test/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/logo2-2.png\"){kind=logo}
www.itsec.hk
www.itsec.vip
www.itseceu.uk
Leave a Reply