Bullitt

A rigid, hotshot detective (Steve McQueen) whose star is on the rise is tapped by a shrewd senator (Robert Vaughn) to protect a key witness before a federal mob trial. What begins as a simple, somewhat irritating task turns into a perilous chess game as the officer must chase the perpetrators through the sloping streets of San Francisco, contend with the increasingly irritated politico, and unravel the peculiarities at the heart of the plight. From Robert L. Pike's novel Mute Witness, Bullitt is best known today for its esteemed car chase sequence, and rightly so, but Peter Yates' film is really just a measured, solidly made procedural. While not really functioning as a character study (Jacqueline Bissett's scenes where she tries to make McQueen come to terms with his occupation only really succeed in showing off her great beauty), the movie is absolutely dynamic as a connect the dots mystery and an actioner, even if the plot is somewhat murky. And in the role that defined his career, McQueen clearly demonstrates why he earned his King of Cool moniker.

*** 1/2 out of ****

The Friends of Eddie Coyle

With knowledge of a series of Boston area bank heists and staring down the barrel of an extended prison sentence following another arrest for running guns, low level criminal Eddie Coyle (Robert Mitchum) contemplates turning government witness. From a novel by George V. Higgins, Peter Yates' The Friends of Eddie Coyle is an ostensibly informed, low-key crime thriller about bottom feeders and full-time losers that becomes more engrossing as it moves along leading up to its excellent, shocking finale. Mitchum, looking weary and aged, delivers a pitch perfect performance and is surrounded by a den of finely casted good for nothings.

*** 1/2 out of ****

Breaking Away

In Bloomington, a group of local teenagers, or Cutters as they're not so affectionately referred to as by students of the nearby University of Indiana, goof around and struggle with their dim prospects. One of their members (Dennis Christopher), who's obsessed with Italy's top cycling team and Italian culture in general, begins romancing a cute college student while gearing his buddies to participate in the cycling championship, in the first year that Cutters will be allowed to participate. Peter Yates' "Breaking Away" is a charming, endearing, and good-spirited movie which features fine early performances from Dennis Quaid, Daniel Stern, Jackie Earle Haley, and Christopher and two extraordinary racing sequences (Yates also helmed "Bullitt" which contains what is largely considered the the greatest chase sequence) which place this among the finest sports movies ever crafted.