GET REEL: These 12 action films will get your motor running

What would an action film be without a riveting car chase scene? Or two? Or three? Or tons?

Well, it likely wouldn’t be as riveting or as much fun.

Now we won’t deny that some action films add car chase scenes just because they have nothing else to do, and if there’s an outdoor market in the vicinity, you know the car is going to crash through it. But some films actually build their plots around car chases and in some instances the car chase scenes provide the only reason to watch the film. In a perfect world, a car chase scene contributes to a film’s overall thrill package. It grows out of the plot rather than being simply tacked on. Of course, there is something to be said for films that revel in thrills for thrills’ sake.

Listed below in alphabetical order are 12 action films that feature memorable car chase scenes. Considering how ubiquitous car chase scenes are in action films, it’s quite likely I may have left off one of your favorites. If so, I apologize in advance. But, just so you know, I’m on a mission from God.

“THE BLUES BROTHERS” (1980 – Yes, I borrowed that last line from this film. Directed by John Landis and starring John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd, the film features a car chase scene where the brothers, with Jake driving a Dodge Monaco patrol car, aka the Bluesmobile, lead police on a hilarious chase through an Illinois shopping mall. The mall doesn’t fare well. Another chase, this time through the streets of Chicago, results in a massive police car pileup. By film’s end, more than 100 cars were wrecked during the shoot.

“BULLITT” (1968) – This film starring Steve McQueen and directed by Peter Yates is considered by many to the granddaddy of all great car chase scenes. The memorable one here lasts almost 11 minutes and uses the hilly streets of San Francisco as its track with cars, including a Ford Mustang and Dodge Charger, at times exceeding 110 mph. McQueen, who was an accomplished driver, did some of his own driving, but stunt men handled the more dangerous sequences. One of the stunt drivers, Bill Hickman, helped choreograph the scene. You’ll be hearing about him again. The film won an Oscar for Frank B. Keller for best editing.

“DUEL” (1971) – We typically don’t include made-for-TV films in this column, but we have to make an exception here because the chase scene is just so darn memorable. Well, the chase scene is actually the film. Directed by some guy named Steven Spielberg before he made some shark movie, the film stars Dennis Weaver as a salesman driving his Plymouth Valiant on a California highway who makes the mistake of passing a tank truck whose driver clearly doesn’t appreciate being passed. What unfolds is the truck driver pursuing Weaver with malice aforethought of the vehicular kind.

“THE FAST AND THE FURIOUS” (2001) – This film, and its seven sequels, basically exist to showcase physics-defying car chase scenes and sanity-defying stunts involving cars. The draw each time can be found in the soul-deep character development. Or maybe it’s simply to see how the filmmakers can top the sheer ridiculousness of the last film’s stunts. Want to see cars plummet from a cargo plane and land safely? Sure you do. More films are reportedly on the way. It’s only a matter of time before we get treated to a scene where Vin Diesel, driving a Corvette Stingray, eludes Satan while driving through the fiery bowels of hell.

“THE FRENCH CONNECTION” (1971) – Most of the films on this list aren’t likely to be considered classics, but this is one of them. The movie won Oscars for best picture, best actor (Gene Hackman), best director (William Friedkin), best cinematography (Owen Roizman) and best film editing (Gerald B. Greenberg). It’s quite likely that Roizman and Greenberg helped their Academy Award cause by contributing to the most famous car chase scenes in the car chase canon. To catch a killer riding in an elevated train in Brooklyn, Hackman commandeers a civilian’s car – a Pontiac Lemans – and gives chase. The aforementioned Hickman performs the stunt driving, reaching up to 90 mph, reportedly in real traffic. It’s a white-knuckle excursion. He also did memorable work in “The Seven-Ups.” Friedkin would later prove he was equally adept at directing car chase scenes in “To Live and Die in L.A.”

“GONE IN 60 SECONDS” (1974) – Don’t confuse this film with the 2000 remake starring Nicolas Cage. This one stars H.B. Halicki, who also directed, produced and wrote the film and handled his own stunt work. The only reason to watch this movie is for its 40-minute car chase scene – reportedly the longest in film history - in which 93 cars get mangled. All told, 127 cars were either damaged or destroyed in the film. Sadly, Halicki died filming the sequel when a car stunt went horribly wrong.

“MAD MAX 2" aka "THE ROAD WARRIOR” (1981) – Both the original and “Mad Max: Fury Road” feature superb car chase scenes, but for high-octane thrills, I prefer “The Road Warrior” as its full-throttle chaos involves tankers, trucks, motorcycles, cars, a smidgeon of violence and one of the screen’s great psychos, Lord Humungus, who meets his demise head on, so to speak. George Miller directs this madness with a master’s touch while star Mel Gibson doles out the punishment with panache. This is a testosterone treat.

“THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN” (1974) – James Bond films contain their fair share of car chase scenes, but the one in this Roger Moore vehicle is particularly memorable for its “aerial twist” maneuver. For the scene, stunt driver Loren "Bumps" Willard as James Bond drives an AMC Hornet over a busted bridge, spinning the car around 360 degrees in mid-air, before he sticks a perfect landing. Willard completed the carefully planned jump on the first take. No CGI, folks. Unfortunately, the slow-motion stunt is accompanied by a seriously lame slide whistle. My advice: Watch the scene with the mute on. The film marks the fourth and final Bond movie directed by Guy Hamilton.

“THE MATRIX RELOADED” (2003) – Not the best of the Matrix films, but this one has a car chase scene on a California highway that motors with maniacal pizzazz. No CGI either. OK, that could be a lie. The special effects here truly are special. Just don’t try these stunts on Rte. 128. The film was written and directed by the Wachowski brothers and stars Keanu Reeves.

“RONIN” (1998) – Here’s another film where the car chase scenes stand out. That’s not surprising since the director, John Frankenheimer, previously helmed “Grand Prix,” an Oscar-winning movie about Formula One Drivers. He was also an amateur race car driver. In this film, professional race car drivers coordinated and performed the vehicle stunts with the most thrilling one taking place on the streets of Paris. This final chase involved 300 stunt car drivers behind the wheel of BMWs and Peugeots driving at speeds up to 120 mph with no special effects involved. Sacre bleu. Robert De Niro stars.

“SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT” (1977) – If you’re a moonshiner transporting illegal hooch in your vehicle of choice, there’s a good chance the law might want to stop you, and there’s an even better chance you’ll want to avoid that from happening. The result: car chases. Here, Burt Reynolds plays the moonshiner and a Trans Am is his vehicle of choice. In the scene where his car jumps over a dilapidated bridge, the Trans Am gets a jolt from a booster rocket strapped to it. Handling the driving is the film’s director, Hal Needham, who was also Reynolds’ longtime stuntman.

“VANISHING POINT” (1971) – Yet another movie where the car chase is de rigueur. Here, Barry Newman plays a car delivery driver assigned to get a Dodge Challenger from Denver to San Francisco ASAP. Naturally, there’s some speeding involved and the police take chase. Accidents transpire. Directed by Richard C. Sarafian, the film has become a cult favorite.

So many honorable mentions: “Dirty Mary Crazy Larry,” the “Bourne” films, ”Terminator 2: Judgment Day,” “Baby Driver,” “Drive,” “Driver,” “Death Proof,” “The Italian Job” (take your pick: the 1969 original or the 2003 remake, a must for Mini Cooper enthusiasts), “Transporters,” “Two-Lane Blacktop” and “The Burglars.” And, of course, your favorites.