On This Day

Bullitt released

October 17th 1968

07:24 17 October 2023

'Bullitt' opened in theaters in the US and Canada on this day in 1968 and with it Peter Yates brought a new realism to the cop thriller formula. The British directors first American film is notable for being shot entirely on location, its detail to police procedural work and of course that car chase.

Yates was hired to direct after Steve McQueen and producers Robert E. Relyea and Philip D’Antoni were persuaded to watch his gritty crime drama ‘Robbery’ (1967) with its documentary style authenticity and impressively filmed high-speed car chase.

Based on Robert L. Pikes’ 1963 novel ‘Mute Witness’, San Francisco police detective Lieutenant Frank Bullitt (Steve McQueen) and his team are assigned to protect a mob informant, 48 hours before he is due to testify, by ambitious politician Walter Chalmers (Robert Vaughn).

When the witness and a police colleague fall victim to a mob-style execution, Bullitt is determined to uncover the truth.

Cinematographer, William A. Fraker makes great use of the San Francisco locations, accompanied by Lalo Schifrins’ bluesy jazz score.

The iconic car chase between Bullitts’ Ford Mustang GT and the hitmens Dodge Charger took two weeks to film and comes in at just under 11 minutes midway through the movie. It’s a hugely innovative sequence, not just for its stunt work but also for the film editing that deservedly won Frank P. Keller an Academy Award.

After filming, the Mustang driven by McQueen was sold to a Warner Bros employee for $3500 and in January 2020 fetched $3.74 million at an auction in Florida.

‘Bullitt’ was made when Steve McQueen was at the height of his career and paved the way for a new era of crime dramas such as ‘Dirty Harry’ (1971) and ‘The French Connection (1971).

It is still one of the best films to star ‘The King of Cool’.