Watch to see the evolution of chase sequences over the last 100 years
Mar 30, 2021
John Aldred
John Aldred is a photographer with over 25 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter – and occasional beta tester – of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.
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Chase scenes have been a staple in movies for almost as long as movies have existed. And boy have they changed over the years! Car chase scenes from the 1920s look practically comical now, yet were at the pinnacle of on-screen drama back in their day. With Fast & Furious 9 set to hit our screens this year, Insider decided to take a look at how they’ve evolved over the last 100 years.
From 1924’s Sherlock Junior, through Bullitt, The French Connection, Ronin, Drive and more, through to the latest Fast & Furious movies, it covers a lot of ground in not only how the filming of the scenes has evolved, but how new technological innovation has allowed them to kick things up a notch every so often.
Most of us won’t be using tech and equipment anywhere near as advanced or as expensive as the examples illustrated in the video above, and I don’t think most of us would be able to convince Lexus or Mercedes to send out a tech to disable the safety features of our vehicles to film a chase scene, but it is quite interesting to see where the technology is at and what it allows filmmakers to do these days.
It’s also fantastic to see that even in the latest overplayed Hollywood franchises, the care chase sequences are still mostly shot practically and aren’t CG. At least, not the driving. A lot of them still use CG to extend the set and make a city look like a completely different city on the other side of the planet.
What’s your favourite movie chase scene?
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John Aldred
John Aldred is a photographer with over 25 years of experience in the portrait and commercial worlds. He is based in Scotland and has been an early adopter – and occasional beta tester – of almost every digital imaging technology in that time. As well as his creative visual work, John uses 3D printing, electronics and programming to create his own photography and filmmaking tools and consults for a number of brands across the industry.
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5 responses to “Watch to see the evolution of chase sequences over the last 100 years”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOK9QW21VPo
Vincent Moutot A great example of a scene not mentioned.
I always find it amazing that a few seconds on the big screen can take days and days of preparations
Nice finding.
It’s interesting to notice that it started with post production and screen projection, spent few years with real actor in real conditions, but it’s now back to full CGI where no one is taking any risks.
Size of camera was not the issue, but the fear to get hit!
Except for Tom Cruise. It’s all him.