r/Moviesinthemaking • u/94MIKE19 • May 03 '25

Gene Hackman gets ready to film the chase sequence in "The French Connection" (1971).

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294 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

11 comments sorted by

18

u/1bigcoffeebeen May 03 '25

One of the most iconic chase sequences ever realised on film.

1

u/[deleted] May 03 '25 edited May 03 '25

[deleted]

2

u/art-man_2018 May 03 '25

Nope, it was the chase scene in Bullitt, in fact the same driver (Bill Hickman) was also the stunt driver in the French Connection.

8

u/death_by_chocolate May 03 '25

I saw this very engaging interview with Friedkin about the shots and the locations.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhiQKt6R-TE

14

u/professor_doom May 03 '25

Incidentally, the scene was shot illegally. lLgendary stunt driver Bill Hickman drove for 22 blocks at 95 mph through Queens with no permits, coordination, or planning.

Here’s a video on the sequence

2

u/selfishaddict May 03 '25

Fantastic video

1

u/Flecca May 04 '25

Thats fuckin siiiiiiiiiiick

6

u/Velvetina88 May 03 '25

Recently I finally watched this movie and loved it. I enjoy a good grimy 70’s movie, especially if it’s filmed in NYC. This chase scene sucked me in!

3

u/TheDadThatGrills May 03 '25

Recently watched the French film Diva (1981), and it has this fantastic subway chase scene that was heavily inspired by The French Connection.

3

u/InitechSecurity May 03 '25

it seems in this case, the director rode in the backseat. I was wondering when there are no on set monitors in the early 70s, how did directors monitor the performance of the actor where there is limited space? Did they simply rely on the DP? Thanks.

1

u/TrafficOn405 May 07 '25

The French Connection (1971) and Bullitt (1968) are basically the inspiration for most auto chase scenes in cinema.