Speed Thrills

 

Speed Thrills

Elaine Viets

I like fast cars.

I can blame the Midwest. When I was growing up, there was no mass transportation in St. Louis. Passenger trains were little more than rusty cattle cars. Planes were expensive. Lumbering buses were our main mode of travel. Those metal relics didn’t race between far-flung towns like greyhounds.

In the middle of the country, when faced with square-wheeled trains and battered buses, cars were the only way to go.

I can also blame my not-so-sainted daddy. When he got a snootful, Dad would fire up his Pontiac Bonneville and hit Deadman’s Curve at a hundred miles an hour. I’d ride along. For reasons known only to god and the highway patrol, the cops never caught him on those daredevil DUIs.

Deadman’s Curve was a lethal section of Lindbergh Boulevard in St. Louis County. It is long gone. So is my father. I managed to survive my upbringing. I never drive drunk. In fact, I don’t drink at all. But I do love fast cars.

As some TLC readers know, I had a gorgeous 1986 Jaguar XJ6 named Ralph for more than twenty years. Last year, Ralph rusted through after 175,000 faithful miles and had to retire. I mourned his loss. A mechanic friend knew a collector who had to sell his ’86 Jag in a hurry (we’re talking used Neon cheap). The deal was cash, no questions asked. I didn’t ask. I bought.

That’s Black Beauty in the photo. His interior is red leather.

Blackie and I travel at sensible speeds (honest, officer) but I enjoy watching high-speed driving. Call it vehicular voyeurism, if you want. My two main sources are movies and television.

Television is a giant time suck for a writer. I limit my TV watching to workouts in the condo gym, combining fitness with fast-lane fantasy. I watch truTV, especially the shows where real cops catch real speeders. http://www.trutv.com/video/ These shows appeal to my inner redneck.

I like watching a well-executed PIT maneuver. That’s a kind of tactical ramming. The initials stand for, among other things, Precision Immobilization Technique. You’ll see plenty of PIT maneuvers on truTV, as well as this sequence on YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4g4CIYR7lIk

There are also the classic car chase movies. James Bond has wrecked fleets of hot cars – from Ferraris to Matadors – on film. The car-boat chase in "Live and Let Die" has the ultimate stereotypical Southern sheriff, JW Pepper. You can watch it at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bq2OyWrFxS0

Blond Bond fans can brood over the Aston Martin chase in "Quantum of Silence."

"The Italian Job" leaves Bond’s car chases in the dust. The 2003 remake didn’t have Michael Caine, but those MINI Coopers were hopelessly cute. In the movie, Quincy Jones’ music is better than Strauss’ "Blue Danube Waltz" used for this video. But the driving is awesome. Watch this incredible auto-ballet. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82BjhIs9m8k

The ultimate chick car chase is the stunning 18-minute scene in "Death Proof." Quentin Tarantino, the mind behind "Pulp Fiction," directed this movie. Kurt Russell plays the serial killer stuntman who stalks young women in his "death proof" stunt car, a Dodge Charger – until he tangles with three stunt-driving women. That’s Zoe Bell splayed on the hood of a Dodge Challenger holding onto two seatbelt straps. Supposedly the three women did their own stunt work in this amazing car chase.

The "Death Proof" dialogue is crude as Texas oil, but these women really rip the road. If you don’t like blood and serial killers, skip the rest of the movie and cut to the chase.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pACrButogFo

What are your favorite car chase movies, TLC readers? Do you like "Cannonball Run"? "Mad Max II"? "The Fast and Furious?" Or do you stick with the stodgy classics like "Bullitt"?

Comments

[Gayle Carline]

Call me crazy (no, go on, I've heard worse), but I'm afraid my need for speed has to have a dash of comedy thrown in - I guess to calm my nerves. I love the scene in Foul Play, where Chevy and Goldie are trying to get to the opera before the assassination attempt. Ditto the chase scene in What's Up, Doc? where everybody ends up in the Bay (SF must be THE place for a car chase). And my favorite speed-demon? Tommy Lee Jones, upside down in the tunnel, in Men in Black.

Gayle Carline
http://gaylecarline.blogspot.com

[Tom]

Do you count races as chases?

'Grand Prix' was heady stuff for a 12-year-old.

[Josh]

I love Bullitt, but if you watch it a hundred times on video with your three-year old, you see that the director used the same action sequence, shot with lots of cameras, five or six times. And I like Road Warrior.

That Blue Danube waltz scene is not actually in the movie. It is in the extras on the dvd. I have no idea why they filmed it, as it has no place in the movie. It isn't a deleted scene.

[Josh]

Oh, and Deathproof just goes on for-ev-er, plotlessly. Would like the "missing reel" footage back, though.

[Harley]

Nope, no movie car chases for me. (Their pod races--deathly borning!) But I love getting behind the wheel myself. The BMW salesman says I need to take the speed racing course that BMW offers. If I could do it without my husband finding out, I'd go in a heartbeat!

Elaine, don't you watch the races at Daytona? I'd think they'd be right up your--er---alley.

[Nancy Martin]

No! Wait! That was me--Nancy! I forgot Harley used this computer last! Although I could have blamed that their/they're typo on her, huh?

[William Simon]

Elaine, re: the photo of you and BB: Emma Peel is Alive and Well and living in South Florida...:)

BULLITT and FRENCH CONNECTION remain the standard of car chases.

An adaptation of an obscure Alistair MacLean novel, PUPPET ON A CHAIN, features a speedboat chase through the Amsterdam canals that would make Mr. Bond run for cover. This has to be seen to be believed, and it's more impressive considering it was done back in 1971; no CGI, no special effects, no cheating, the stuntmen actually jumped into the boats and DID this. Mesmerizing on the first viewing on a theater screen, it still catches the attention after all these years....

[Josh]

William, the original Italian Job had a chase where they drove over the roof of an arena in Turin. Apparently, due to a miscommunication with the authorities, they did not have permission to do it, but it was done before anyone could complain.

Same thing happened with the second Italian Job and the authorities in Venice. They had a powerboat chase in the Venice canals, complete with a boat flying into a vegetable stand barge (vegetable stands are a favorite of mine). Powerboats going fast is absolutely non grata in Venice, and the authorities vowed that they would never again grant a movie permit for a powerboat [chase] scene.

I was wondering about that husband comment by "Harley." I said, "What husband?" Glad Nancy corrected that.

[Elaine Viets]

Vegetable stands are a favorite, Josh. Fish are also good. In "The Out of Towners" Goldie Hawn drives into the Fulton fish market. The director could have made more of the scene.

[William Simon]

Josh, ironically, I've never seen the original "Italian Job", but now you've got me curious. I'll have to track that one down....

[Karen in Ohio]

Chase scenes must not be much of a big deal to me, because I honestly can't recall any. Oh, wait, I do remember one, the scene in one of the Star Wars movies when Hans Solo and Luke are flying through the big mothership doohickey, being chased by the little spaceships. That was cool.

But I loved The Italian Job. Jason Statham is so hot. My youngest daughter had posters on her bedroom wall of only him and Story Musgrave, one of the first astronauts in space (she had his autographed photo in a frame).

[peach]

Cars are not really my thing, but oddly one of my favorite shows lately has been Top Gear on BBC America. The three "Presenters" make this show a must on Monday nights. Crazy races, weird competitions, car football (soccer), and short journey films, all combine to make this a show not to missed in our household. Unfortunately the show just concluded it's run of new shows. It probably won't have any new ones until late summer or early fall.

[JanetLynn13]

Don't laugh at me, but I love the chase scenes in xXx with Vin Diesel. In the first half of the movie, he ends up on a motorcycle being chased by a helicopter in South America (I think). He goes up and over a pitched roof on the bike that I just love to watch! The movie tries to be so hard-core cool that it's just not, but Elaine, there are some great cars in the Europe part later on. And more chases, but I just love the first part.

And then there's the chase on the road through the Keys in the movie True Lies. Something about that part makes me want to catch a plane to Miami and drive all the way to Margaritaville! Which is really the opposite effect the movie should have, since they are blowing up those bridges in the movie.

And the all time best all time chase scene is on foot. It's in the Casino Royale with the Parkour (free running) at the beginning. Parkour an underground culture all to itself. (Check out youtube sometime.) Highlighting it at the beginning of the first Blond Bond movie was just an amazing way of using this odd sport. I think it really helped set the new Bond apart from the rest.

[Laurie King]

Ronin. The wrong-way-through-Paris-in-a-small-car chase (those same tubes in which Princess Diana died) is just wow. Hurtling against the stream, a piece that's been copied several times since then but never as well. The whole movie is just flat-out great, especially the dynamic between DeNiro and Reno (and Sean Bean--what a brilliant piece of reverse casting!)

[kris]

HIJACK!

For those who love Passover & Facebook, I give you: the Facebook Haggadah.
http://9a4440c5.fb.joyent.us/haggadah/ultraModern2.php

[Karen in Ohio]

Love that word, "hurtling".

[KarinNH]

Movie car chases don't do much for me, but I love to drive. My son introduced me to YouTube clips of rally car racing and there is a big part of me that would be thrilled to try it!

Peach, my son (can you tell he is a car fanatic?) also introduced me to Top Gear. I always end up laughing at the absurdity of some of their stunts. Adam built a projection tv from an old computer, spare parts, a projector and magic just so he could watch Top Gear at college.

[Elaine Viets]

Top Gear? Looks like I'll have to work out more in the condo gym -- next season.
I agree, Josh, that the plot to "Death Proof" is bloody boring, in both senses of the word. Skip the movie and watch the car chase.
Must check out "Ronin," Laurie. I love car chases with little cars.
I should get "Puppet on a Chain," too. So much to think about here.

[Pam aka SisterZip]

The motorcycle sequences in The Great Escape are some of my favorite movie shots. Steve McQueen was sooooo cool.

I happened to catch James Garner talking about his career on Turner Movie Classics last night. It was an old interview, maybe 3 or 4 years old, but it was interesting to hear his take on his career.

He loved making Grand Prix because of all of the actual driving he got to do. He also mentioned The Great Escape. He said Steve McQueen insisted that the motorcycle sequences be put in the movie because he just go a new bike & wanted to show off his skills. He was ticked by the German police so many times they took away his drivers license & he had to be driven everywhere when not on set.

How cool it is to listen to the older actors!

[Pam aka SisterZip]

That is ticketed...

shees, more coffee.

[Tom]

Finally thought of a chase movie sequence I like - in 'To Live And Die In LA,' back when Peterson was still a Chicago home-town hero.

[gaylin in vancouver]

I agree with JanetLynn, the running scene at the beginning of Casino Royale - wow.
I love the car chase scenes and crashed in the original Blues Brothers movies. The sheer amount of crashing and wrecking of vehicles was hilarious! Also when he did the high-speed U-turn and slid into the parallel parking space - sweet.
Loved the racing Mini's in the Italian Job, mostly because my dad and sisters had Mini's back in the day and yep, we did some speeding in them.
I loved some of the driving in The Transporter, Jason Statham can drive my Honda Civic any day!

[ArkansasCyndi]

Slept VERY late this morning so I'm late getting here. I loved The Italian Job. I understand that Fast and Furious made a fortune this weekend, so speeding car movies are holding their own.

Wow. Elaine. You do look like Emma Peel standing there!

[Nancy Martin]

Can I admit that I watched The Italian Job the day before my colonoscopy, which meant that I took the meds and immediately began to--well, let's just say I associate that movie with an out-of-control bodily function that . . . . oh, nevermind. Mostly, I listened to the movie from the bathroom.

[Josh]

Nancy, if it was the Mark Walhberg version, you could have skipped it. The Michael Caine version is much more fun. Skip the Marky Mark version of Charade, too. He is solid B-list, looks good in underwear, but he isn't a young Michael Caine nor a mid-career Cary Grant.

[Elaine Viets]

Michael Caine is amazing, Josh. But I still liked those cute little cars in the remake.

[Marie]

Hi, Elaine! Love your mysteries and your blogs. The most memorable car chase I experienced was the filming of the original 1974 version of "Gone in Sixty Seconds". My husband and I were involved with radio control model airplanes in Carson Ca. and all of a sudden speeding cars went by as they were being filmed for the movie. Talk about surprise and excitement. Loads of details are available on IMD site.

[mary alice at mystery lovers bookshop]

Top Gear rocks!
Go straight to BBC America......it's addicting.

[Tom]

Hey, Josh? The Marky Mark version of 'Charade' wasn't bad at all on its own terms - and Thandie Newton was rather believable, I thought.

That said, no one will ever have the Audrey/Cary thang goin' for them.

[storyteller Mary]

The condo offer went elsewhere. Shall I bury a third St. Joseph statue?

[Cinema Dave]

"Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry" had some great car chases and humor.

Remember a Kirk Douglas flick titled "The Master Touch?" Besides a clever heist scene, there were two car chases that were worthy of Wyle Coyote and the Road Runner.

"Death Proof" worked because Tarantino played homage to 1970s stunts. I'll take that kind of camerawork over a "Bourne" car chase any day.

[Karen in Ohio]

Oh, no, Mary. I'm so sorry about that.

[SusanCo]

I hope it doesnt have to be just auto chases we can vote for. I vote for the flying chases in Iron Eagle.
SusanCo

[storyteller Mary]

Thanks, Karen. Meanwhile, if any of you know someone looking for a sweet little condo in St. Peters (just west of St. Louis County), let me know . ..

[Tom]

Mary, arrrrgghhhhh.

Forget a third statue. Try a mallet and a carpenter's square.

[Lisa Daily]

I LOVED the car chase scene in Bourne Identity.

I'm not even a car chase kind of girl...

XO,

Lisa

[Leisa Dreps]

Your dad had a sweet ride! What year was its model? Was it the third generation Bonneville that's built in 1965? Or was it something else?