Top 10 Greatest Movie Chases of All Time.
Who doesn’t love a classic movie chase? Whether on foot or in a car, these are set pieces that action movies thrive off of. Here I dare to list what I think are ten of the best of the best! The ones that get your heart pumping and your butt squirming in your seat. And hereeee we go!
10. Garber Vs. Ryder. The Taking of Pelham 123. 2009.
This epic chase was the most intense and exciting scene in this Tony Scott 2009 remake of 1974’s The Taking of Pelham One Two Three starring Walter Matthau and Robert Shaw. What makes this scene so exciting and enjoyable is how the ordinary regular Joe Walter Garber is all of a sudden thrown into action hero mode chasing down the bad guy with gun in hand. The urgency and fear on his face is something we all could relate to if we were in the same situation.
9. 48 Hrs. Cates and Hammond Vs. Billy Bear and Ganz. 1982.
Jack and Reggie go toe to toe with Ganz and Billy Bear in a highspeed bus chase. One of the most exciting and fist pumping scenes in the film as our heroes finally get their shot at taking on the two most ruthless criminals Cates has ever encountered.
8. Batman Vs. Bane and the League of Shadows\Gotham PD. The Dark Knight Rises. 2013.
In essence there two chases going on here. Batman was chasing the League of Shadows while Gotham PD was chasing him. It was one big epic night in Gotham city and thrills me to no end now just as much as it did then.
7.Batman Vs. The Phantasm and Gotham PD. Batman Mask of The Phantasm. 1993.
Another epic Batman\Villain\Gotham PD chase that managed to be even more epic than the other. This was 90’s animation at its finest. The perfect musical score playing along with the action raises the entire scene’s epicness to dangerous levels.
6. T2 and John Conner Vs. T-1000. Teriminator 2: Judgement Day. 1991.
We all remember how amazing this was! The Terminator was back, this time to protect John Conner instead of trying to make sure he was never born. The old Terminator vs. the new T-1000 was one epic battle, and this big truck chase scene was just a teaser for the constant classic battles between John, T2, Sarah Connor and T-1000 were gonna engage in.
5. Hanna and LA PD vs. McCauley & Crew. Heat. 1995.
Okay, the fact that is even more of a classic shootout scene may seem like a cheat, but it’s still got a great foot chase at the end of it with Al Pacino’s Hanna going after DeNiro’s McCauley and crew after all the shooting finally stops. It’s one of the all time greatest action scenes as well as shootout scenes in cinema history.
4. Mills vs. John Doe. Se7en. 1995.
Se7en boasted many classic moments, lines and scenes throughout the film, and this classic chase with Mills chasing John Doe with Somerset behind him is one of them. A beautifully shot with the rain giving it that perfect look and feel. The choreography just gets the heart pumping wickedly fast. And it ends with a great conclusion.
3. Popeye Doyle Vs. French Hitman. The French Connection. 1971.
One of the most dangerous car chase scenes ever filmed. No stunt driver used, just actor Gene Hackman driving recklessly across town chasing after the french hitman. As nearly a perfect chase scene ever done, the work put in by all involved deserves to be commended for its boldness and overall epicness.
2. Burnett and Lowery vs. Fouchet and his gang. Bad Boys. 1995.
Bad Boys has two iconic chase scenes but for the purpose of this list I have to go with the first one on foot where Marcus and Mike chase down the bad guys that just grabbed their witness. The scene is epic with the perfect score playing. It also officially made Lawrence and Smith big time action stars. It’s been said that Will’s specific running with his shirt open moment is the exact moment he became Mr. Will Smith, action superstar. It all ends with that iconic shot of Marcus and Mike rising up after losing the bad guys.
- Roger Thornhill vs. Cropduster. North By Northwest. 1959.
North By Northwest, in a way invented both the action movie as well as the spy movie. It was proto James Bond before Sean Connery dawned the tux and drunk Martinis shaken not stirred. The iconic cropduster chase has become iconic in cinema. Alfred Hitchcock had a very specific idea for this particular sequence. Though I don’t think he ever imagined how influential this specific chase and scene was to all the other legendary ones years after North By Northwest. Even the mere image of the cropduster on Thornhill’s tail has become an iconic and mimicked image. It also ends with a classic action movie trope that is still used to this day.
Thanks for reading, folks!