» the top 11 movie car chases

» why are car chases so cool?

Nothing adds panache to a movie like a car chase. Well, a few well-placed explosions never hurt. And I still think that killer robots are cool. But we're here to talk about car chases. We don't care who chases who, or what, or even why. We don't care if the car chase adds "depth" to a character. We don't even care if it's necessary for plot development. Plot? We just want fast cars, loud engines, shredded tires, broken glass, and lots of blue smoke. A good guy. A bad guy. And some asphalt.

A good car chase makes a microcosm out of the battle between Good and Evil. Sometimes it's obvious, like in The Duel and sometimes it isn't, like in Moby Dick. Let's face it -- Moby Dick was the first car chase movie ever written. It just wasn't written as a movie. And it didn't have any cars in it. But you get the point.

We have assembled a list of the 11 best examples of car chases ever committed to celluloid. For panache, we have added a few which don't normally show up on similar lists. Why 11? Like Nigel of Spinal Tap says, when you're at ten there's no where else to go. This goes to 11. Ready?

11. Godzilla vs. Megalon (1973) 

Starring: um, Godzilla and alot of Japanese people.
Director: Jun Fukuda

Honorable Mention -- I've seen this movie many many times. I'm still not sure why there's a car chase in it. But there is. They use early-seventies JDM imports; a VW and a Fiat. If they had used donkeys it would have been more exciting. Why is this chase "cool" at all? Because they probably thought of it at the last-minute, they did it in one take, they didn't add skid-plates or roll cages to the cars -- you can actually hear the cars falling apart as they drive down concrete steps. In other words; it's a stripped-down low-budget car chase in real-time with piss-poor camera angles. Underpowered cars. Sloppy editing. It's as if Ed Wood directed it. I doubt the VW would have made it for a second shoot. But why is it in a Godzilla movie? This might be the only car chase on film with 100% air-cooled rear-engined cars. It's perplexing.

The cars: a bright orange right-hand-drive VW Type 3 (with optional full-length canvas top and no hubcaps) and a cherry-red Fiat 850 sedan (40hp / 834cc engine!) ...and they're followed by a man on a Suzuki GT750 motorbike. Strange.

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10. Phantasm II (1988) 

Starring: James LeGros, Reggie Bannister, Angus Scrimm.
Director: Don Coscarelli

Let's forget about plot altogether. Angus Scrimm plays the Tall Man, a creepy ghoul from another dimension. He keeps himself busy by turning corpses into an army of killer dwarves. What more does a gore-flick need? How about a really cool car chase featuring a hearse and a Barracuda? Yeah. That'll do it.
 
This would have ranked higher if they hadn't completely destroyed a perfectly good Plymouth Barracuda. I cried for three days. Seriously... what were they thinking? There should be laws against destroying old muscle cars.
 

The cars: Reggie drives a black-on-black 1971 Plymouth Hemicuda, the Tall Man drives a hearse. Possibly a Cadillac.

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09. Repo Man (1984) 

Starring: Emilio Estevez, a hot chick, Harry Dean Stanton, Tracey Walter, and the Circle Jerks.
Director: Alex Cox

Meet Otto (Estevez). He's a teenager who gets mixed up with repo-men, UFO investigators, a babe, mysterious government agents, and the enigmatic Rodriguez brothers. Dead aliens are hidden in the trunk of a '64 Malibu (aren't they always?). Otto and the repo-men have to find the Chevy before the Feds do. Features a punk rock soundtrack and a car chase in the LA river.
 
Okay, it isn't much of a car chase. The Impala stalls out when it gets wet (I had one; believe me, I know how uppity the Chevy distributors get with moisture) but it's a good example of old Detroit iron and the LA River, replete with hydroplaning and bouncy suspensions.
 

The cars: A gigantic 1971 Chevy Impala 4-door sedan with a Turbo-Fire 400, the Rodriguez brothers drive a Ford Falcon convertible.

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08. Mad Max (1978) 

Starring: Mel Gibson, ToeCutter, Gabriel.
Director: George Miller

The first installment of the Mad Max trilogy. Mad Max is a cop Down Undah. ToeCutter leads a band of not-so-merry men who like to push people around and cause trouble in a quasi-postnuclear Australia. It's all fun and games until Max's wife gets run over. Max gives 'em what-for with an Australian Ford.

The cars: The famous Interceptor was a highly modified 1973 XB GT Ford Hardtop with a blown 351, other cars were Ford Falcon XA sedans, Valiant coupes, and various Holdens. Nightrider was in a stolen MFP Pursuit Special - a General Motors Holden HQ Monaro Coupe. Mad Max's first car is a 1972 Holden HQ LS Monaro. I am SUCH a car nerd.

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07. The Dead Pool (1988) 

Starring: Clint Eastwood, Liam Neeson, Jim Carey, Guns'n'Roses.
Director: Buddy VanHorn

Ahhh. Nothing says action like a Dirty Harry flick. Clint returns as steely-eyed detective Harry Callahan. He packs a big, shiny gun. He drives mid-sized American sedans, like a 1987 Olds Delta 88. The bad guy drives a 1978 Monte Carlo sans hubcaps. The Dead Pool is yet another cop movie filmed in San Francisco. It features a cool chase scene. Cool because Dirty Harry gets chased by a remote control '63 Corvette loaded with explosives. And Jim Carey plays a dead rock star. Remember?

The cars: A white 1987 Olds Delta 88, a 1978 Monte Carlo, and the coolest radio-controlled 1963 Corvette ever.

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06. The French Connection (1971) 

Starring: Gene Hackman, Roy Scheider..
Director: William Friedkin

The chase scene in this movie is largely responsible for one of its Oscars (for best editing). One of the best chase scenes ever filmed! Okay, so it's not really a 'car chase' since Gene Hackman follows an elevated subway (the "B" train) from underneath in a large American sedan. All the more reason to include it.

The car: One website says it's a brown 1970 Lincoln Continental Mark III but it looks more like a 1971 Pontiac LeMans; (thanks D. Cressman & Doctor X). It's hard to tell once it gets dented. Although it isn't technically a car, Gene Hackman chases a late '60s Pullman R9 Electric subway train.

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