"Bullitt" question - spoiler warning
Jeff Duncanson
Jeff
Jim
things that don't make a heck of a lot of sense. Taking the chain off the
door is one of them. I think it had something to do with the fact that
"Johnny Ross" thought Walter Chalmers (Robert Vaughn) was coming
upstairs...and that's why he unchained the door. Whatever. The point
is..."Bullitt" is a classic flick!
Jeff Duncanson <jeffdu...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:479070fb.0308...@posting.google.com...
MarcColten
Spoiler space
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The guy in the hotel room was hired by Ross to take his place. Only he didn't
know he'd be taking his place in the morgue. He was expecting someone to come
and get him out of there so he could join his wife and leave the country. He
was a moron.
Mike O'Sullivan
"Jim" <outoftow...@NOSPAMyahoo.com> wrote in message
news:JuZXa.89324$0v4.6...@bgtnsc04-news.ops.worldnet.att.net...
> I LOVE this film. I LOVE Steve McQueen...but "Bullitt" is filled with
> things that don't make a heck of a lot of sense. Taking the chain off the
> door is one of them.
Another one is - Why didn't Bullitt immediately take the witness away from
the obviously inadequate "safe house" to better protected accomodation? he
obviously had the rank to do it.
Kerry Duvall
would stop someone from breaking in? I love the movie .. as a matter of fact
I recently vacationed in San Francisco and purposely went to the corner of
Clay St. and Taylor and found the little grocery store, across from where
his apartment was in the movie. The store amazingly still looks the same,
with the same awning on it! I talked to the store owner and his brother
owned the store when the filming was done there in 1968. It was the scene
where Steve went inside and bought all those frozen TV dinners.
Kerry
"Jeff Duncanson" <jeffdu...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:479070fb.0308...@posting.google.com...
Jeff Duncanson
I also thought that those were the 2 sloppiest hit men I had seen.
They shoot their target and don't kill him immediately , and they
shoot the cop...in the leg , enabling him to give Bullitt a
description.
Mike O'Sullivan
"Kerry Duvall" <kdu...@charter.net> wrote in message
news:vj1n99d...@corp.supernews.com...
> Not only that .. but why would they think a little thing like a door chain
> would stop someone from breaking in? I love the movie .. as a matter of
fact
> I recently vacationed in San Francisco and purposely went to the corner of
> Clay St. and Taylor and found the little grocery store, across from where
> his apartment was in the movie. The store amazingly still looks the same,
> with the same awning on it! I talked to the store owner and his brother
> owned the store when the filming was done there in 1968. It was the scene
> where Steve went inside and bought all those frozen TV dinners.
I was told that the car McQueen drove in the car chase sequence ended up
over here in England. Bought by a collector I believe and currently resides
in Surrey.
MarcColten
>They shoot their target and don't kill him immediately , and they
>shoot the cop...in the leg , enabling him to give Bullitt a
>description.
True, one more shell and the job's done.
GrapeApe
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Steve McQueen is driving around in a 2 hour car chase. A hub cap comes off. He
has a stupid name.
Burt Reynolds conceives of the Smokey and Cannonball franchise.
Kevin FilmNutBoy
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>Steve McQueen is driving around in a 2 hour car chase. A hub cap comes off.
"A" hucap? I think the Charger loses about 6 or 7 hubcaps.
--Kevin
MarcColten
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>>Steve McQueen is driving around in a 2 hour car chase. A hub cap comes off.
>
>"A" hucap? I think the Charger loses about 6 or 7 hubcaps.
They just don't make cars like that anymore :-)
rande...@rogers.com
On top of that, I think both the Mustang and Charger models used came
with rims, no hubcaps.
-Rich
MarcColten
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>>>>Steve McQueen is driving around in a 2 hour car chase. A hub cap comes
>off.
>>>
>>>"A" hucap? I think the Charger loses about 6 or 7 hubcaps.
>>
>>They just don't make cars like that anymore :-)
>
>On top of that, I think both the Mustang and Charger models used came
>with rims, no hubcaps.
I have to say that I'm fortunate enough to know nothing about so many things.
There have been entire books written dismissing movies with comments like "The
movie took place in 1954 but that car had a mirror that didn't come out until
1956."
GrapeApe
>
>There have been entire books written dismissing movies with comments like
>"The
>movie took place in 1954 but that car had a mirror that didn't come out
>until
>1956."
You don't have to know that the car ( a four wheel vehicle) threw five hubcaps,
whether it had them or not, to know that the movie sucked. What you need to
know to know the movie sucked is, is that it was nothing but a 2 hour car
chase.
MarcColten
>hubcaps,
>whether it had them or not, to know that the movie sucked. What you need to
>know to know the movie sucked is, is that it was nothing but a 2 hour car
>chase.
I know someone in the Bay Area and they tell me you can't connect up the
streets they drove through on the big chase :-) True or not?
Still one of my favorite movies.
Mike O'Sullivan
"GrapeApe" <grap...@aol.comjunk> wrote in message
news:20030810021003...@mb-m27.aol.com...
> What you need to know to know the movie sucked is, is that it was nothing
but a 2 hour car
> chase.
Try actually watching the movie, then report back!
GrapeApe
> What you need to know to know the movie sucked is, is that it was nothing
but a 2 hour car
> chase.
Try actually watching the movie, then report back! >><BR><BR>
Do you get Dukes of Hazzard over there? I think you would dig that.
Mike O'Sullivan
"GrapeApe" <grap...@aol.comjunk> wrote in message
Used to. My teenage kids watched it.
Bob Tiernan
Marc Colten wrote:
> Someone wrote:
But the witness was the one the hitmen really needed
to get rid of, and killing any cops with his wasn't
necessary unless he was shooting back or capable of
doing so.
Bob t
Bob Tiernan
Marc Colten wrote:
> I have to say that I'm fortunate enough to know nothing about so many
> things. There have been entire books written dismissing movies with
> comments like "The movie took place in 1954 but that car had a mirror
> that didn't come out until 1956."
I agree, although I appreciate accuracy. I've seen
a number of westerns involving the cavalry and
see the 1880's saddle bags (three straps) instead
of the earlier one-strap models for films
taking place in the 1860s-70s. I just accept that
although there are people who'd point it out
as if it as as bad as seeing an airplane flying
in the background.
Bob T
Bob Tiernan
GrapeApe wrote:
> What you need to know to know the movie sucked is, is
> that it was nothing but a 2 hour car chase.
Well, we already know you're trolling and that
you're typing while the other hand is under the
table. Have you ever timed the car chase?
Bob T
Bob Tiernan
Ape Shit wrote:
> He has a stupid name.
It's not exactly a "John Smith " kind of name,
but it has popped up at least twice so far.
In a 1954 film called "The Maverick", a
character named Frank Bullitt was played by
Richard Reeves. Reeves, by the way, is the
guy who played the guy found with his
lady friend in the bar in TARGET EARTH (1954).
Bob T
Doug
> >You don't have to know that the car ( a four wheel vehicle) threw five
> >hubcaps,
> >whether it had them or not, to know that the movie sucked. What you need to
> >know to know the movie sucked is, is that it was nothing but a 2 hour car
> >chase.
Spoken by someone who's obviously never seen the movie.
That rearview mirror shot of the Mustang during the car chase is one
of the coolest shots in fim history.
> I know someone in the Bay Area and they tell me you can't connect up the
> streets they drove through on the big chase :-) True or not?
True. Also, notice the amazing teleporting VW Bug and Pontiac
Firebird, both of which appear and reappear throughout the chase.
In the likewise San Francisco-based Eddie Murphy film METRO, the
cable-car sequence seems to take place along miles of road, but in
reality it's just a couple of blocks.
As my girlfriend once asked while we were in SF: "How do they have car
chases in this city? The traffic is terrible."
Doug
Daniel Haude
MarcColten <marcc...@aol.com> wrote
in Msg. <20030805232204...@mb-m05.aol.com>
> The guy in the hotel room was hired by Ross to take his place. Only he didn't
> know he'd be taking his place in the morgue. He was expecting someone to come
> and get him out of there so he could join his wife and leave the country. He
> was a moron.
I think he was in fact hired by Chalmers (?), who wanted to get his
syndicate buddy Ross safely out of the country, while at the same time
pretending to be going to present him as a witness. Chalmers planned from
the beginning to have the fake Ross knocked off so there would be -- much
to Chalmers regret -- no witness, and he could blame it on the cops and
come out clean.
Although it's feasible that it was the real Ross who staged all this, to
me Chalmers appears to be much too interested in Ross' death rather than
his well-being. Chalmers is depicted much too corrupt and fishy to not be
the real string-puller behind everything.
Bullitt is a great film with great music. My favorite thing about the
chase scene is not how lovingly it is staged (remember the belt buckle
shot when the music goes out), the number of gears the cars have (about
100 each, or the quantity of falling-off hubcaps, but the fact that it is
entirely pointless. Bad guys crash into gas station, end of story, nothing
gained. Which of course parallels the plot of the entire movie.
One of my favorite scenes in Bullitt is the moment when they take the
wounded "Ross" to the ambulance and find that someone must have closed one
of the rear doors by accident. In a modern film this tiny scene, which
could happen just this way about 100 times a day, would attach a huge
meaning to that door -- there's probably someone lurking behind it, or the
guy who attached a bomb to the vehicle closed it. In Bullitt there's
nothing, and it really took me a few seconds to get my mind off that
damned door. Beautiful.
--Daniel
--
"With me is nothing wrong! And with you?" (from r.a.m.p)
Dean Eaton
Pratt's first edition of "The Laser Video Disc Companion":
" 'Bullitt' takes place over a Mother's Day weekend.... it is the
relationship Bullitt maintains between the father figure (Robert Vaughan,
who actually threatens to castrate him at one point) and the mother figure
(Jacqueline Bisset) which clearly cements a young viewer's identification
with therebellious hero."
I always thought that Simon Oakland was the father figure, but if you think
about it this theory has some credence.
Dean
"Daniel Haude" <ha...@physnet.uni-hamburg.de> wrote in message
news:slrnbjfd7b...@kir.physnet.uni-hamburg.de...
Mike O'Sullivan
"Doug" <tr...@cinci.rr.com> wrote in message
news:db01bae.03081...@posting.google.com...
> Firebird, both of which appear and reappear throughout the chase.
And notice how fast a pedestrian is walking in this sequence. Like someone
in a Keystone Cops movie.
MarcColten
>
>
>But the witness was the one the hitmen really needed
>to get rid of, and killing any cops with his wasn't
>necessary unless he was shooting back or capable of
>doing so.
I guess I wasn't clear - I meant one more shot into the witness.
MarcColten
>
>
>It's not exactly a "John Smith " kind of name,
>but it has popped up at least twice so far.
>In a 1954 film called "The Maverick", a
They always have such great names - "Rick Granite", "Buck Hardslab" (okay got
those from MST3K). Still where is - "Evan Goldblatt - Secret Agent" :-)
MarcColten
>didn't
>> know he'd be taking his place in the morgue. He was expecting someone to
>come
>> and get him out of there so he could join his wife and leave the country.
>He
>> was a moron.
>
>I think he was in fact hired by Chalmers (?), who wanted to get his
>syndicate buddy Ross safely out of the country, while at the same time
>pretending to be going to present him as a witness. Chalmers planned from
>the beginning to have the fake Ross knocked off so there would be -- much
>to Chalmers regret -- no witness, and he could blame it on the cops and
>come out clean.
>
Sorry, but I think you're reading too much into it.
>One of my favorite scenes in Bullitt is the moment when they take the
>wounded "Ross" to the ambulance and find that someone must have closed one
>of the rear doors by accident. In a modern film this tiny scene, which
>could happen just this way about 100 times a day, would attach a huge
>meaning to that door -- there's probably someone lurking behind it, or the
>guy who attached a bomb to the vehicle closed it. In Bullitt there's
>nothing, and it really took me a few seconds to get my mind off that
>damned door. Beautiful.
>
True. A very real moment that movies don't seem to have time for anymore.
Bob Tiernan
"Doug" wrote:
> Also, notice the amazing teleporting VW Bug and Pontiac
> Firebird, both of which appear and reappear throughout
> the chase.
The only real good I noticed in the chase sequence
was an editing goof: Scene were the cars go by
a parked car after rounding a turn, and one of the
two cars in the chase actually collides - the
sides strike each other - with the parked car.
The editor left in a couple of frames too many.
The hit is obvious.
Bob T
Arocketship7
>
>> Also, notice the amazing teleporting VW Bug and Pontiac
>> Firebird, both of which appear and reappear throughout
>> the chase.
The VW Bug is so laughable. It's barely moving down the street but yet it seems
it's always ahead of the cars in the chase.
Then again at the time the movie was made VW Beetles were everywhere. Of course
this was the same Beetle.
MarcColten
Check out the Futurama episode where Bender becomes a folk singer on tour with
Beck. They spoof the chase exactly, including a green hover-VW
Doug Krause
how...@brazee.net
On 11-Aug-2003, arocke...@aol.com (Arocketship7) wrote:
> The VW Bug is so laughable. It's barely moving down the street but yet it
> seems
> it's always ahead of the cars in the chase.
> Then again at the time the movie was made VW Beetles were everywhere. Of
> course this was the same Beetle.
Of course, with San Francisco car chases, I like the VW van in _What's Up
Doc_.
GrapeApe
>
>That rearview mirror shot of the Mustang during the car chase is one
>of the coolest shots in fim history.
I liked the one in "What's Up, Doc". There was a window pane being carried
across the street. Were there any Fruit Carts?
Oh, and Mad Mad Mad Mad World? Two hour car chase. The Great Race? Two Hour
Car chase. So it's not all movies that are car chases that suck, just the ones
that think its macho. Bullitt. Burt Reynolds Vs. The World.
ANIM8Rfsk
<< The Great Race? Two Hour
Car chase. >>
More like 3 hours, and I love every minute and mile of it!
___________
NATIONAL DO NOT CALL REGISTRY
<A HREF="http://www.donotcall.gov/">http://www.donotcall.gov/</A>
Most telemarketers cannot call your telephone number
if it is in the National Do Not Call Registry.
Vince
anim...@aol.comNOSPAM (ANIM8Rfsk) writes:
>
>More like 3 hours, and I love every minute and mile of it!
>
>
Great grand scale comedy, its in my collection (letterboxed), its a wonder Jack
didn't lose his voice with all the yelling his character did.
Vince
-------------------------------------------------------
Check out my listings on E-Bay
New ITEMS after LABOR DAY
Look under "BOOKMAGS"
ANIM8Rfsk
<< Great grand scale comedy, its in my collection (letterboxed), its a wonder
Jack
didn't lose his voice with all the yelling his character did. >>
YOU rise and YOU shine!
val....@gmail.com
Off notes:
I definitely think Chalmers wanted to kill who he thought was Ross. That's how the hitmen knew his whereabouts, that's why Chalmers wanted the doctor replaced (other than possible racism), that's why the real Ross didn't trust Chalmers, and that's why Bullitt didn't like Chalmers; he pegged for a crook.
Yes, Bullitt should have moved his witness. Probably why (guilt) he became so consumed with the case (other than the shooting of his partner).
I hated that Bullitt's girlfriend had a realization that their world's are different. What did she think the job of a cop was before she saw the body?
Very cool for the movie to show Bullitt out at a social club. He's immediately framed as more lively, looser, funnier... Most of us are different personalities when at work.
The portion of the raised freeway seen outside the hotel window is the one which collapsed and never rebuilt during the 89 earthquake.
Halmyre
> You can. Often similar looking streets are used nearby if the one they really wanted wasn't available, but those particular streets are replicas of each other... I don't think it matters much of the exact streets the used don't connect. In general, that's a real area in SF (end of Columbus st., near the Bay), and all the blocks are rectangles with parallel avenues. They then drive out to the marina and should have seen the golden gate bridge from their passenger windows.
>
> Off notes:
>
> I definitely think Chalmers wanted to kill who he thought was Ross. That's how the hitmen knew his whereabouts, that's why Chalmers wanted the doctor replaced (other than possible racism), that's why the real Ross didn't trust Chalmers, and that's why Bullitt didn't like Chalmers; he pegged for a crook.
>