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Plot – Politican Walter Chambers (Vaughn) assigns Detective Lieutenant Frank Bullitt (McQueen) and his team to protect Johnny Ross, an informant against The Organisation. When Ross is the subject of a professional hit that leaves him clinging to life, Chambers threatens to destroy Bullitt's career. When the hitman attempts to kill Ross at the hospital Bullitt chases him off, and vows to catch him and whoever hired him. Though not all is as it seems
Coming into this the one thing that I really knew about and associated with this film was its cars and the chase that they take part in. And it certainly lives up to its billing as one of the great screen chases of all time. With slick, energetic editing and the use of POV shots it really puts you right in the middle of it all, and its an exhilarating burst of action as we see the cars, dripping with menace and cool, barrel up and down those famous hills. It's one of the few occasions were we really feel the extreme speed and danger of a car chase. It feels spectacularly real as opposed to the often constructed and choreographed feel that plagues many a chase scene. It really is a spectacular 10 or so minutes as the cars slam into each other and surrounding objects, bounce up and over the hills and survive a series of near-misses that really put you on the edge of your seat. And as I said the cars themselves just have so much character.
As far as many cop films go, in comparison Bullitt actually delivers quite a complicated, intricate plot but always keeps control of it, making it easy for the viewer to follow. The script also features some strong, realistic dialogue. And the action is captured by some taut direction from Peter Yates. While it pales in the shadow of the earlier car chase the conclusion of the film on a runway and then inside the airport is a bit different from the norm and succeeds in being a tense closer for the film.
As for flaws it feels a little bit more slow moving than it needs to be at times, spending time on Bullitt's personal life when it feels the investigation should be taking precedent. Though perhaps that's just as a result of me being raised on more pulse-pounding, small minded action flicks. And outside of McQueen and Vaughn most of the supporting cast don't offer much. Jacqueline Bisset in particular offers absolutely nothing other than to annoy us with a cringingly clichéd speech to McQueen at one point about the effects his job is having on him.
Conclusion – Despite being a touch slow moving at times (do we really need to see Bullitt buying groceries or his personal moments with Bisset?) McQueen and the car chase alone make it a good watch, even if the rest of the film never really lives up to said car chase.
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Year of release
1968
1968
Directed by
Peter Yates
Peter Yates
Written by
Harry Kleiner (script)
Alan Trustman (script)
Robert L. Fish (novel)
Harry Kleiner (script)
Alan Trustman (script)
Robert L. Fish (novel)
Starring
Steve McQueen
Robert Vaughn
Jacqueline Bisset
Steve McQueen
Robert Vaughn
Jacqueline Bisset
Bullitt
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Plot – Politican Walter Chambers (Vaughn) assigns Detective Lieutenant Frank Bullitt (McQueen) and his team to protect Johnny Ross, an informant against The Organisation. When Ross is the subject of a professional hit that leaves him clinging to life, Chambers threatens to destroy Bullitt's career. When the hitman attempts to kill Ross at the hospital Bullitt chases him off, and vows to catch him and whoever hired him. Though not all is as it seems
I have to say that I was actually expecting a more action-packed affair that I found. Instead it's a much more measured and methodical offering, a film that seems more interested in striving for an authentic air than just playing for cheap thrills. That is especially noticeable when it comes to presenting a deep, detailed account of policing and medical procedures. The fact that all of the nurses and doctors were actually 'real' people, as opposed to actors, just goes to show how realistic the makers of the film wanted it to feel. In addition the fact that McQueen performs all of the driving and the stunts featuring planes at its climax just reinforces its aims for a factual demeanour.
The film felt very reminiscent of Dirty Harry to me, sharing a lot of the same DNA. Along with the film's San Francisco setting and placing in the cop thriller genre you have a big star delivering an iconic performance in quite an understated 'cool' manner, playing a bit of a maverick character who does things their way meaning they clash with the bureaucratic figures. Undoubtedly this is a much less sensationilist effort than Dirty Harry in terms of its tone, and the amounts of violence and sex. And while McQueen's Bullitt may not be as monosyllabic or as suspect in his actions as Harry Callahan there are definite similarities.
Coming into this the one thing that I really knew about and associated with this film was its cars and the chase that they take part in. And it certainly lives up to its billing as one of the great screen chases of all time. With slick, energetic editing and the use of POV shots it really puts you right in the middle of it all, and its an exhilarating burst of action as we see the cars, dripping with menace and cool, barrel up and down those famous hills. It's one of the few occasions were we really feel the extreme speed and danger of a car chase. It feels spectacularly real as opposed to the often constructed and choreographed feel that plagues many a chase scene. It really is a spectacular 10 or so minutes as the cars slam into each other and surrounding objects, bounce up and over the hills and survive a series of near-misses that really put you on the edge of your seat. And as I said the cars themselves just have so much character.
I've always found San Francisco to be a fantastic movie city. With its trademark hilly streets, distinctive and beautiful architecture, artistic atmosphere and seemingly eternal sunshine its a location with a lot of character. For me personally it's a city that is just as recognisable and evocative, if not even more so, than New York. And Bullitt; like Dirty Harry, Star Trek IV, Zodiac, Invasion of the Body Snatchers and Vertigo before and after it, makes great use of the city. Indeed it's almost as much of a star as McQueen. The film is well photographed and delivers a finely stylized, naturalistic look that captures the beauty of the city while still maintaining quite a gritty, urban tone.
Much of the film's success clearly lies on the strong performance of Steve McQueen. Though its perhaps not so much a piece of acting as it is just his personal presence that makes such an impact. His icy character just oozes a steely charisma and an ineffable cool. Up against him Robert Vaughn provides a suitably sleezy bureaucrat in the form of his ambitious politician. It may not be a stunningly original character but Vaughn plays him with the right amount of smarm that just makes you constantly root for McQueen to punch him. Their verbal duels are highly entertaining and one of the film's highlights.
As far as many cop films go, in comparison Bullitt actually delivers quite a complicated, intricate plot but always keeps control of it, making it easy for the viewer to follow. The script also features some strong, realistic dialogue. And the action is captured by some taut direction from Peter Yates. While it pales in the shadow of the earlier car chase the conclusion of the film on a runway and then inside the airport is a bit different from the norm and succeeds in being a tense closer for the film.
As for flaws it feels a little bit more slow moving than it needs to be at times, spending time on Bullitt's personal life when it feels the investigation should be taking precedent. Though perhaps that's just as a result of me being raised on more pulse-pounding, small minded action flicks. And outside of McQueen and Vaughn most of the supporting cast don't offer much. Jacqueline Bisset in particular offers absolutely nothing other than to annoy us with a cringingly clichéd speech to McQueen at one point about the effects his job is having on him.
Conclusion – Despite being a touch slow moving at times (do we really need to see Bullitt buying groceries or his personal moments with Bisset?) McQueen and the car chase alone make it a good watch, even if the rest of the film never really lives up to said car chase.