Reel SF

San Francisco movie locations from classic films

San Francisco movie locations from classic films

Bullitt - Car Chase - Complete

  The thirteen minute car chase is the famous centerpiece of the movie.  It starts off in slow cat-and-mouse style, accompanied by a nerve-tingling Lalo Schifrin score, as Bullitt is tailed by two hit men.  It then explodes into an all-out high speed frenzy, accompanied only by the snarl of overworked engines, after Bullitt deftly gives them the slip - the hunted becomes the hunter!  The route traverses many neighborhoods, jumping from place to place and often doubling back.  It begins in Bernal Heights, moves to Potrero Hill then tours North Beach and Russian Hill.  It then progresses through the Marina, continues into McLaren Park and concludes south of San Francisco from Daly City through San Bruno Mountain State Park, dramatically culminating in Guadalupe Valley, Brisbane.  Professional drivers Bill Hickman (in the Charger) and Loren Janes, Bud Ekins and occasionally Steve McQueen himself (in the Mustang), delivered the audacious stunts.

Go here for an interview with stuntman Loren Janes for an insider’s take on the filming of the chase.

To spare the soles on CitySleuth’s gumshoes these 59 location shots are identified but not presented Then and Now. Go here to see 16 highlights from the chase in Then and Now format.

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