Bullit

Cool movie poster, ain't it?

 

Today, after some doing nothing time I decided it would be nice to post another review about a great movie. The problem was, I didn't really have lots of options to choose from, mostly because I haven't watched any classic movie lately. So, to find inspiration I thought about a friend who fell in love with a Dodge Charger R/T 1968 he saw in a certain movie when he was seventeen years old. Lucky bastard! later he got to buy the car for himself, and now in 2012 he's a proud Dodge Charger owner. Anyways, that movie was not only a source of inspiration for my friend, but also to a lot of film makers and movie freaks around the world, let's cut the talk and enter today's main course: Bullit, a film that seems to be remembered mostly for the central car chase, which was state-of-the-art for its time and still works extremely well. But this signature film of the late '60s was way more than screeching tires and muscle cars flying down the beatiful hills of San Francisco. Besides, this movie warped the muscle cars euphoria at light speed rate. It was 1968, the year of the wonderful Dodge Charger R/T and the amazing Ford Mustang GT.

Bullit, is named after the main character's name Frank Bullit played by Steve McQueen. Frank is a tough cop who's more action and less talking. His character has a certain amount of coolness within, in fact that special something turned his character into a legend, and eventually turned McQueen himself into an actor that would live under the shadow of a character stronger than the real actor, and I don't blame him. Take Scharzwenneger's Terminator, Ford's Han Solo/Indiana Jones, Stallone's Rambo/Rocky as an example of characters larger than life.

I just love the vintage look of this poster.

The Mustang GT drawing looks weird.

Jacqueline Bisset. A shame she never made a nude scene.

The 1968 Dodge Charger R/T.

Frank Bullitt was meant to be impersonated by Steve McQueen because he was, for the first time, playing an actual authority figure, a respected police detective, but one still caught up in the intrigues of the establishment, personified by a politically ambitious district attorney known as Chalmers (played by Robert Vaughan). When our guy fails to protect the DA's mob witness and one of his own men is badly shot up, the detective sets out to find out the truth of the situation and ultimately discovers that the DA has been conned. It's interesting, in this pre-Watergate film, that there's no hint of criminality or corruption about Vaughan's character or any of Bullitt's San Francisco police superiors. Bullitt's ultimate contempt for Chalmers stems both from an innate distrust of politicians (who are willing to compromise standards of professionalism for political gain, yep reality bites once more) as well as the the DA's sheer incompetence in dealing with the Mob.

The now world famous 68' Ford Mustang GT.

Doesn't he look like James Bond?

I'm just doing my job y'know.

Jacqueline Bisset is here to add some beauty.

The plot requires close attention; so you don't want to go to your fridge for a tasty beer, unless you have paused the DVD/Blu-Ray player. But if you don't get the whole plot at first sight, Bullit rewards repeat viewings with new wrinkles and insights. The film also benefits from the great location photography and from a superb cast of character actors. Bullitt's fellow detectives (Don Gordon and Carl Reindel) are likewise dedicated professionals; his boss (Simon Oakland) is also a pro, sympathetic to Bullitt but wary of the political pressures on the police department. Norman Fell is downright scary as a police captain allied with the smooth, oily Chalmers; and Robert Duvall stands out in a rather small role. The locations and supporting actors lend a realism to Bullit that also make it satisfying after multiple viewings. Besides, when a film is classified as classic, you don't really need to go to the internet to check for reviews of the movie, so watch it and enjoy it even if you're not reading my unprofessional but, heartfelt review.

Overall, Bullitt is not about the car chase and shoot-outs, but about a person trying to maintain his humanity and self-respect while doing a violent, sordid job that society demands and in which he obviously believes. At one point, Bullitt's luscious girlfriend happens on a crime scene and realizes the true nature of her lover's work. "You're living in a sewer, Frank!" she cries. And it is a very expensive place to live. Bullitt shows humane instincts and flashes of warmth and humor, but his attitude toward life is one of suspicion and skepticism. He's constantly on his guard, on edge, seldom able to relax, even with his girl. The film ends ambiguously, as Bullitt quietly contemplates the emotional price he pays for his authority and for doing a soul-grinding job at which he has become quite adept. It's this deeper layer of character and emotion, not the car chase, that make this film a classic. Besides, if you want to find the original source for lots of movies like Dirty Harry and the many exploitation car chase/police action films, look no further, Bullit is the original source.


I so recommend it to fans of classic american muscle cars, car chases fans of all kinds, tough cops heroes fans, retro action lovers, Steve McQueen followers and to every single human being who likes good movies over the shit we're being sold since the late 90's.

 

Here's the movie trailer: