C'etait Un Rendezvous

November 10, 2005 8:08 AM

"On an August morning in 1978, French filmmaker Claude Lelouch mounted a gyro-stabilized camera to the bumper of a Ferrari 275 GTB and had a friend, a professional Formula 1 racer, drive him at breakneck speed through the heart of Paris. [...] Upon showing the film in public for the first time, Lelouch was arrested. He has never revealed the identity of the driver, and the film went underground until a DVD release a few years ago." Coral cache quicktime here.
posted by Armitage Shanks (196 comments total)

I saw this the other day, linked from an AksMeFi post... it's craaazy!
posted by Robot Johnny at 8:10 AM on November 10, 2005

This is one of the most intense videos I've watched. It's either that, or I should really put down the espresso and quit trying to steer with my keyboard.
posted by fnord at 8:12 AM on November 10, 2005

I saw this a year or so ago - great video, but I've noticed that the engine noise doesn't always go along with the speed of the vehicle.. Discussion at the time said that a lot of the engine noise was ovedubbed.

Also check out the "Getaway in Stockholm" series of videos.
posted by mrbill at 8:14 AM on November 10, 2005

Wow, this is like playing Gran Turismo with Gene Hackman.
posted by Rothko at 8:19 AM on November 10, 2005

I think it's been Metafiltered.
posted by LondonYank at 8:22 AM on November 10, 2005

There was always the Japanese fella who took his F40 up to 199mph and filmed it, and let's not forget Top Secret supremo Nagata Kuzihiko with his 200mph dash on England's A1 motorway driving the JUN Supra (and getting busted for his troubles...)
posted by longbaugh at 8:22 AM on November 10, 2005

I love how this post links to an external post that links back to an earlier MeFi post.
posted by Icky at 8:27 AM on November 10, 2005

Coralized content was munged for me; exploded into weirdness 90 seconds or so in.
posted by scruss at 8:29 AM on November 10, 2005

I love how this post links to an external post that links back to an earlier MeFi post.

Damnit, so it does. Civil_Disobedient takes the square.
posted by Armitage Shanks at 8:30 AM on November 10, 2005

Holy Smokes
posted by zeoslap at 8:32 AM on November 10, 2005

Jesus. The whole time I was expecting the lady pushing the baby carriage.
Good thing my chair had arms.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 8:32 AM on November 10, 2005

Hey, that's my post.

Thief.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 8:33 AM on November 10, 2005

And I didn't even get a "best answer" in that thread. I was totally robbed.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 8:34 AM on November 10, 2005

DNYOFA

(Did not read your own f*cking article)
posted by Frasermoo at 8:36 AM on November 10, 2005

Discussion at the time said that a lot of the engine noise was ovedubbed.

Engine noise was not overdubbed. What you're hearing is a professional driver driving like a professional. That is to say, keeping the engine/gearing in its best powerband, which on the 275 GT/B is probably around 5500 rpm. No point downshifting until you need to.

Naysayers point out that the vehicle at times was only doing about 30mph, but because of the high gear, it sounds faster than it's actually going. Those naysayers can get stuffed. According to analysis by a group of MIT students (linked to by me in the AskMe thread), the car topped out at around 145mph on a couple of straight-aways. And some of those streets are really fucking narrow.

Complaining that the driver was "only" doing 30mph in some parts of the film is like complaining after a guy sticks his hand in a Cuissinart that they "only" had it on dice, not puree'.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 8:39 AM on November 10, 2005

Hey, that's my post.

Actually it was my post. I was totally robbed.
posted by soiled cowboy at 8:39 AM on November 10, 2005

Oh, and I torrented it here. Let me know if a seed is needed.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 8:42 AM on November 10, 2005

That was awesome - thanks for the post. Now I know where Nissan came up with their idea (tiny video - couldn't find anything better) a few years ago.
posted by blefr at 8:43 AM on November 10, 2005

Boy, it sure would be great if MetaFilter had a built-in search feature.
posted by Armitage Shanks at 8:43 AM on November 10, 2005

Damn, we was both robbed.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 8:43 AM on November 10, 2005

I loves me this film. This is often one of the first films people reference when discussing Cinéma Vérité.
posted by basicchannel at 8:45 AM on November 10, 2005

Hey, did you check out the other video I linked to in that message? The one with the Formula 1 cars driving on regular country backroads?

They cleared the streets for that, obviously, but holyfuckinshit is it intense.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 8:46 AM on November 10, 2005

A torrent would be great, if someone can set one up or reseed. Especially if the Coral version is no good.
posted by The Bellman at 8:50 AM on November 10, 2005

The only way to see Paris.
posted by gren at 8:52 AM on November 10, 2005

...and like Civil_Disobedient said, this is a V12 Ferreri engine being run as its supposed to.
posted by gren at 8:53 AM on November 10, 2005

yarg, Ferrari engine...such a beautiful sound.
posted by gren at 8:54 AM on November 10, 2005

It's every racing game I've ever played come true. Ah, the joys of vicarious living...
posted by mikeweeney at 8:54 AM on November 10, 2005

A torrent would be great, if someone can set one up or reseed.

See, this is the problem. Nobody reads anymore.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 8:55 AM on November 10, 2005

It was boring. And the soundtrack sucked.
posted by terrapin at 8:57 AM on November 10, 2005

Look out! Guy on a bike! Left left left! Red light! Faster! Red light! That guy has his blinker on! Slow down! Ohmygod! Bus bus bus! (Whew! I'm a terrible backseat driver. Thanks, AS!)
posted by steef at 8:57 AM on November 10, 2005

I thought it would feel faster. But that may be because I've been playing Burnout:Revenge at night.
posted by papercake at 9:02 AM on November 10, 2005

I did read that, C_D, but when I tried yours it seemed to need a re-seed. Now it's working great and I'm DLing and sharing it. Many thanks! I can't wait to see it . . . in an hour and 13 minutes!
posted by The Bellman at 9:04 AM on November 10, 2005

Proves what I have always known about French drivers...
posted by DannyUKNYC at 9:05 AM on November 10, 2005

This needs a GMap add on, so we can follow along at home.
posted by Keith Talent at 9:05 AM on November 10, 2005

He has never revealed the identity of the driver

The driver is a delivery man for Domino's pizza and works part-time as a NYC cabbie.

That was one of the coolest things I have ever seen. I loved the ending. Thank you.
posted by fandango_matt at 9:06 AM on November 10, 2005

Somewhere, the spirits of John Frankenheimer and Steve McQueen are smiling.
posted by QuestionableSwami at 9:07 AM on November 10, 2005

Where was the group of nuns crossing the road? Where was the two workers who happened to be transporting a huge sheet of glass across the street at that particular moment? And the fruitseller with the wooden handcart?

This was so unreal.
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 9:07 AM on November 10, 2005

Google image, Ferrari 275 GTB
posted by Keith Talent at 9:08 AM on November 10, 2005

Awesome.
posted by Divine_Wino at 9:08 AM on November 10, 2005

Discussion at the time said that a lot of the engine noise was ovedubbed.

Another point I'm pretty sure he's downshifting at a lot of points to actually slow down and at a few points (going around the garbage truck) instead of a horn. A Ferrari at high RPMs would make enough noise to get people out of the way quick like.
posted by bitdamaged at 9:10 AM on November 10, 2005

You know, the ending makes that whole thing. He did it for love, you fucking fascists!

I support a graded/tiered licensing system. If I my reaction time is half what yours is, I should be allowed to drive 15-20 over the limit (limits created based on automotive engineering from half a century ago); especially on interstates. And you know what? I'll still do 25 over on interstates. It's a fucking straight line, assholes! What's the worst that could happen?

As far as the "environmental" angle of speed limits; far more fuel is wasted by people driving slowly and by traffic jams. Resolve those and we'll talk.

I also support separate speed limits for motorcycles, but even I'm not stupid enough to believe that will ever happen.
posted by Eideteker at 9:10 AM on November 10, 2005

This is proof, yet again, that pigeons will ALWAYS have time to fly out of the path of your vehicle.

Except that one pigeon, one time... that was brutal.
posted by Krrrlson at 9:11 AM on November 10, 2005

yarg, Ferrari engine...such a beautiful sound.

There's a quote from Roger McGuinn on the liner notes of the first Byrds album describing their sound:

"I think the difference is in the mechanical sounds of our time. Like the sound of the airplane in the Forties was a rrrrooooaaaaahhhhhh sound and Sinatra and other people sang like that with other sorts of overtones. Now we’ve got the krrriiisssshhhh jet sound, and kids singing up there now. It’s the mechanical sounds of the era: the sounds are different and so the music is different."

I was thinking of that watching this; sometimes the engine almost reminds me of a Jesus-&-Mary-Chain-ish guitar.
posted by Armitage Shanks at 9:12 AM on November 10, 2005

Car fast, download slow
The irony grips my mind
like tires on asphalt
posted by CynicalKnight at 9:15 AM on November 10, 2005

I'm also seeding C_D's torrent now. Plenty of bandwidth to go around...
posted by kindall at 9:19 AM on November 10, 2005

If you liked this, you'll love Climb Dance. Rally legend Ari Vatanen dances with death, driving a Peugoet 405 T16 on a record-breaking run at Pike's Peak rally - this film won several film festival awards for its photography and allround awesome-ness. Spectular filming, incredible driving.

Rendezvous is pretty darn cool, too, though.
posted by matthewr at 9:20 AM on November 10, 2005

Ohmygod! Bus bus bus!

That's my favorite part. You hear him slow down for the bus, then pull into The Louvre!, and say smugly to yourself, "OK, smartass, now whatcha' gonna do?" To which he proceeds to drive through a tunnel the size of a doorway. The whole time I'm thinking, "Jesus fucking christ, please don't let a pedestrian cross the street now."

A Ferrari at high RPMs would make enough noise to get people out of the way quick like.

Yeah, he revs the engine good when he goes through that tunnel.

And the soundtrack sucked.

There is no more beautiful sound on this planet than 12 cylinders of Ferrari performance being beaten into submission. None.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 9:20 AM on November 10, 2005

that was so cool!
posted by virga at 9:23 AM on November 10, 2005

Brings to mind The French Connection chase, some of which was filmed without permission on open streets in New York. Although the wikipedia article states that Hackman drives the car, I recall Friedkin saying in an interview that it was a professional driver. In either case, it resulted in a "real" crash that made it into the film.
posted by dougny at 9:24 AM on November 10, 2005

I read somewhere (on teh Internets) that Lelouch, in his autobiography, revealed that the car was not a Ferrari, but Lelouch's own Mercedes 450 SEL 6.9l. See this photo.

According to his book, the audio was from a real Ferrari and dubbed in later. This is supposedly confirmed by analzying the speed of the car relative to the centerline road stripes. The gear shift suggested by the audio has no corresponding effect with the speed of the car.

Lelouch also claimed that he himself was the driver. The following text came with my DVD copy of the film, which contradicts the dubbed audio suggestion:

"1976, Claude Lelouch just finished "Si c'était à refaire", and there remains some unused film footage, enough for some 9 minutes.

He has this idea or crossing Paris from the Porte Dauphine to the Place du Tertre in Montmartre, where his girlfriend Gunilla is waiting for the car's noise to finish climbing the stairs.

This impressive film was done with very limited means, but also taking incredible risks. Even shooting in mid-august at 4:30 in the morning, dashing through the Louvre's tunnel and ignoring the red light to cross the Rue de Rivoli (one of the most busy streets in Paris) is suicidal !

No authorization was asked for (and Lelouch's driving license was revoked symbolically after the film's presentation) and on the complete course, that Louvre part is the only spot where he posted a friend (Elie Chouraqui) with a talkie-walkie to warn him of an incoming vehicle. He discovered afterwards that the talkie-walkie was dead !

One often mention the car as beeing a Ferrari, probably because of the sound. In fact it was a Mercedes (see photo) with a worn-out exhaust pipe. The impression of speed is emphasized by the camera position, but he was anyway speeding between 80 and 120 mph."
posted by soiled cowboy at 9:24 AM on November 10, 2005

Keith Talent: "Google image, Ferrari 275 GTB"

Thanks, I needed that.
posted by OmieWise at 9:26 AM on November 10, 2005

you'll love Climb Dance

NICE. Performance drifting.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 9:27 AM on November 10, 2005

(sigh. Reckless endangerment != cool. But I'm sure I'll be in the minority here)
posted by Popular Ethics at 9:28 AM on November 10, 2005

I see 16 peers and no seeds, with huge red chunks on my status bar indicating not of the peers can put together a complete file.

Got a race going between it and the Coral cache download.

Any bets?
posted by linux at 9:28 AM on November 10, 2005

Coral cache wins. By miles.
posted by linux at 9:30 AM on November 10, 2005

Soiled Cowboy, you're ruining my fantasies, man. Next thing you'll tell me the letters to Penthouse aren't real.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 9:32 AM on November 10, 2005

well, my heart has skipped a few beats.

He did it for love, you fucking fascists!

uh, yeah. well, here's to hoping that lover gets buried under the jail.

fucking asswads.
posted by 3.2.3 at 9:34 AM on November 10, 2005

Can anybody identify the camera in this picture?

It might be an Arri. It's a 35mm with a 400' magazine, so there wasn't a lot of film left when he got to the end. Most amazing one-shot scene in cinema. I saw it on the big screen at its first US showing. Every seat in the house had a little pucker mark when it was over. Wahoo!

Runaway Train is good also. Very high pucker factor.
posted by warbaby at 9:38 AM on November 10, 2005

Soiled's account seems pretty plausible to me. Try mounting that Heath Robinson-esque camera contraption on the front of a Ferrari 275. Also, try persuading the owner of said Ferrari to even let you attach it.
posted by matthewr at 9:39 AM on November 10, 2005

I agree with Popular, I found this more upsetting exhilarating. Maybe being the father of a sixteen year old son who's going to be behind the wheel soon colors my attitude but I think that they are lucky that they aren't still in jail for killing someone (or a bus load of people) doing this.
posted by octothorpe at 9:43 AM on November 10, 2005

For those of us who can't afford a Ferrari, there is always this.
posted by QuestionableSwami at 9:52 AM on November 10, 2005

It would be interesting to see the route on a map. The MIT guys must have done it, but it's not on that site.
posted by smackfu at 9:56 AM on November 10, 2005

Can anybody identify the camera in this picture?

I read in a car magazine that the camera was a Bolex, and that after the initial showings of the film, the reel was kept at Bolex HQ as a demonstration of their hardware. Prolly bollox, but that's the way I heard the story.
posted by Triode at 9:56 AM on November 10, 2005

I found this more upsetting exhilarating

I agree... that's why I linked to the cleared-streets video in the AskMe thread. This film is a testament to good luck more than good driving.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 9:58 AM on November 10, 2005

http://aoctavio.castpost.com/

Your download troubles are over for the next 5 minutes gang.
posted by Dean Keaton at 10:00 AM on November 10, 2005

That was so cool!

(the bittorrent worked just fine for me, btw)
posted by kalimac at 10:04 AM on November 10, 2005

That was amazing. I was thinking to myself "how did they plan this to get all of the traffic lights to be green?" until he started going through all the red ones. *gulp*. And the corel cache was great. I started playing it almost immediately and never did catch up to the end of the download.
posted by spock at 10:04 AM on November 10, 2005

To me, the most amazing thing is that there are numerous pedestrians who don't seem fazed in the least by the car going by. There's one bit where the camera seem to come prpetty close to what looks like a little old lady crossing the road... and as the car goes by, she doesn't speed up at all.
posted by GuyZero at 10:04 AM on November 10, 2005

Won't someone think of the pigeons?!??

I counted 17 red traffic lights.
posted by crunchland at 10:07 AM on November 10, 2005

I watched quite a few of those links. Thanks for helping me waste my morning.

Metafilter: What a nice waste of time.
posted by zia at 10:10 AM on November 10, 2005

QuestionableSwami : Your link ... is that where they get the phrase 'flying by the seat of your pants?'
posted by crunchland at 10:11 AM on November 10, 2005

QuestionableSwami: I haven't seen that in years. Hilarious. Can you imagine how long it took to film that?
posted by spock at 10:15 AM on November 10, 2005

I bet you wouldn't all be stroking your vicarious 5500 rpm penis extensions so vigourously if they had actually killed someone.

Disgusting.
posted by chrismear at 10:17 AM on November 10, 2005

QuestionableSwami: If you steal quicktime pro (or pay, haha!) you can save it to disk and see it full screen like I did.
posted by Dean Keaton at 10:18 AM on November 10, 2005

Without a doubt an amazing film.

What a colossally selfish asshole. He should have been more harshly punished for that reckless, others'-lives-endangering stunt.
posted by five fresh fish at 10:19 AM on November 10, 2005

Wait a second chrismear: Just because I found it exciting doesn't mean I was rubbing my 5500 rpm cock. You don't have to be a neanderthalic caveman with penis envy to find risking your life exciting. I feel that it was dumb to do, dangerous, and putting innocent lives at risk. Did I still say to myself "unbelievable!" when they coursed through the curves? Yeah. I grew up with the notion that people who risk their lives to "live" is somehow exciting. It is probably ingrained into most of us at this point. If I grew up being told this stuff is horrible I wouldnt be, as you so eloquently put it, stroking my penis.
posted by Dean Keaton at 10:21 AM on November 10, 2005

It's all about the sound.

The shot is awesome and the driving is cool...but when you lay that sound on top of the visual it could just as well be a camera mounted on a Chevette.
posted by chococat at 10:22 AM on November 10, 2005

I've noticed that the engine noise doesn't always go along with the speed of the vehicle.. Discussion at the time said that a lot of the engine noise was ovedubbed.

Heel and Toe Downshift.
posted by disgruntled at 10:24 AM on November 10, 2005

Upping the ante: Idiot + Motorcycle + Greece + Traffic = Video
posted by mr.curmudgeon at 10:28 AM on November 10, 2005

i am sitting 10 feet away from the art director on the nissan prague video. No way? yes way.
posted by veritas que at 10:29 AM on November 10, 2005

agreed.

this is disgusting.

we just had a vigil for a cyclist killed by a motorist here in town - second such vigil this year (that i know of). and i can guarantee the person who hit him was driving slower than the sociopath in the video.

cars are killing this fucking planet, and here y'all are watching a snuff film.
posted by poweredbybeard at 10:30 AM on November 10, 2005

That was impressive. Thanks for the links.
posted by dazed_one at 10:34 AM on November 10, 2005

I bet you wouldn't all be stroking your vicarious 5500 rpm penis extensions so vigourously if they had actually killed someone.

Why would anyone stroke a 5500 rpm penis extension? Isn't the whole point that you don't have to do the work yourself?

cars are killing this fucking planet, and here y'all are watching a snuff film.

shut it beardo
posted by Armitage Shanks at 10:35 AM on November 10, 2005

Does anyone have the full DVD version of the trailer referenced by blefr (the Nissan one)? I found a larger version of the same trailer here, but it's still not the full DVD version.
posted by howling fantods at 10:35 AM on November 10, 2005

My uncle told me about this film years ago. I had always imagined it with a lot less cars and pedestrians. Thanks for posting it so I can finally see it in all its glory.
posted by Jawn at 10:36 AM on November 10, 2005

Damn. That is crazy stupid.
posted by papakwanz at 10:39 AM on November 10, 2005

Dean Keaton: Fine. Let them go and get their kicks by risking their lives on some godforsaken mountain somewhere, away from a city full of innocent people.

You can deny it all you want, but we all know that the thrill and aura of this film doesn't come purely from fast cars and impressive maneuvering. Part of it comes from knowing that it's real, and that people could have been hurt. That's what makes it wrong.

Believe me, I get as much visceral excitement from big motors and fast cars as the next guy. But part of being civilised is being able to control your raw emotions when you know intellectually that it's wrong.

This kind of stuff just encourages the idiots who can't think to up that level, and who therefore think it's just a big fun game to drive recklessly at stupid speeds around busy streets.

Grow up. I have.
posted by chrismear at 10:40 AM on November 10, 2005

Normally I find these jokes annoying, but...I gotta say...

Metafilter: Just because I found it exciting doesn't mean I was rubbing my 5500 rpm cock.
posted by you just lost the game at 10:45 AM on November 10, 2005

I like C'etait un Rendez-Vous because it's one take, no editing, and it's got an ending that made me smile.

The people calling it "disgusting" are probably the same people who got their terrornoia pants in a knot over the German art students who stuck the video projector to the side of the subway train.
posted by fandango_matt at 10:46 AM on November 10, 2005

Whoa. Curmudgeon's link is bonkers.
posted by soiled cowboy at 10:47 AM on November 10, 2005

all this logic completely ruins the fun of the video for me.. ignorance is bliss..

Rad video up until reading comments.. I get what you guys are saying and agree.. but this happened in 1971, let's just enjoy it for what it is: a PROFESSIONAL driver putting on an impressive display.. it's not something we get to see everyday.. actually, I think he was in complete control of the car and was in no danger, he accelerated when there's nothing in the way or when there was a path and he popped into neutral or downshifted whenever the path was uncertain..
posted by pez_LPhiE at 10:50 AM on November 10, 2005

The C'etait un Rendez-Vous needs an overhead helicopter shot to really round out the experience. I always find that the helicopter shot in F1 is my favorite - it really shows the lines the driver uses through the curves and also gives a better sense of the speed of deceleration/acceleration.
posted by mullacc at 10:52 AM on November 10, 2005

I've been to Paris in August. I'd be surprised if the car could find someone to hit.
posted by horsewithnoname at 10:53 AM on November 10, 2005

Think of the children!
posted by iamck at 10:53 AM on November 10, 2005

Can anybody identify the camera in this picture?

That's no bolex, nor is it an arriflex. It's an Eclair Cameflex.

Reflex, MOS, 16&35mm camera (can be converted between the two gauges).
posted by Pliskie at 10:53 AM on November 10, 2005

Loved it. Got me all hard and shit and it was cool to see such a big chunk of Paris.

Would've rocked if a tiny bluehaired grandma got out at the end. You know...torching the car behind her as she shuffled off into the orthopaedic sunset. Aight...
posted by Skygazer at 10:54 AM on November 10, 2005

fandango_matt: You're kidding, right?
posted by chrismear at 10:54 AM on November 10, 2005

shut it beardo

apology accepted.

The people calling it "disgusting" are probably the same people who got their terrornoia pants in a knot over the German art students who stuck the video projector to the side of the subway train.

Um... what? That's just cool. Putting multiple lives at risk just to feel that special rumbling in your cojones is - yeah, i'll say it again - sociopathic. What is it that is preventing you from seeing that those two videos are very very different things?
posted by poweredbybeard at 10:55 AM on November 10, 2005

here is another adrenaline boost,welcome to the jungle.
posted by hortense at 10:55 AM on November 10, 2005

mr.curmudgeon, I believe that video is from the Ghost Rider series of DVDs. No, not _that_ Ghost Rider. In-F*n-sane, puts this video to shame. Think 150mph on one wheel on a turbo 'busa. An amusing bit from the DVD was 'Ghost Rider' hanging back to give the finger to the police in Volvo T5s.
posted by kableh at 10:56 AM on November 10, 2005

pez:
this happened in 1971, let's just enjoy it for what it is: a PROFESSIONAL driver putting on an impressive display.. it's not something we get to see everyday.. actually, I think he was in complete control of the car

I'm not worried for the driver in something like this. Couldn't care less what happened to him, really. Once you exhibit this amount of stupidity, all bets are off.

It's not a matter of having the car in control, it's all the unknown variables - ie. people walking about carrying on with the business of their lives - that make this dangerous. The stuff you can't see until you drive over it. This is a concern even for people driving at reasonable speeds. I've almost been hit even when people aren't being stupid, but just intersecting with me and dumb luck in low-visibility situations. To actively invite that is reprehensible.
posted by poweredbybeard at 10:59 AM on November 10, 2005

You can deny it all you want, but we all know that the thrill and aura of this film doesn't come purely from fast cars and impressive maneuvering. Part of it comes from knowing that it's real, and that people could have been hurt. That's what makes it wrong.

I totally agree with you.

This kind of stuff just encourages the idiots who can't think to up that level, and who therefore think it's just a big fun game to drive recklessly at stupid speeds around busy streets.

Sigh... maybe some people can't reach our level of intelligence (now that is what I call stroking my 5500 rpm cock). I am sure we both have dealt with our share of dolts.

Grow up. I have.

You had me nodding right up until you insulted me. Point made, I agree on all accounts, insult keeps me from congratulating you.
posted by Dean Keaton at 11:02 AM on November 10, 2005

Getting all outraged twenty-seven years after it was shot is just pointless. Any consequences that were due Lelouch have long ago been meted out.
posted by kindall at 11:08 AM on November 10, 2005

I don't see any protesters. WTF?
posted by bardic at 11:13 AM on November 10, 2005

Dean Keaton: Please accept my apologies for the insult. I clearly misjudged you.

Kindall: My outrage is directed less at Lelouch personally and more at the unbridled enthusiasm exhibited in this thread.
posted by chrismear at 11:17 AM on November 10, 2005

Getting all outraged twenty-seven years after it was shot is just pointless.

you know that famous picture of the soldier shooting the vietcong in the head? that shit is fucking funny.... now.

hell, ima go shoot someone too.
posted by poweredbybeard at 11:18 AM on November 10, 2005

Putting all those lives in danger was worth it.
posted by lazy-ville at 11:19 AM on November 10, 2005

I have absolutely no issues whatsoever with people who endanger their own lives. Hell, I'm one of them!

I have big issues with people who endanger others' lives, especially when those others are non-consenting.

There is one moment in that clip where he comes within literal inches of running over a pedestrian in a red dress.
posted by five fresh fish at 11:19 AM on November 10, 2005

I wonder what the odds are you could find roads that clear today(30 years later)?
posted by madajb at 11:22 AM on November 10, 2005

Well, it happened. That's why I'm not angry. This time, the guy was a professional and people didn't get hurt. Common sense dictates that people who see this will, like me, find it VERY scary-cool (x10,000) precisely because of the very clear danger aspect and would never ever be tempted to try it themselves.

And the tempted few probably aren't the type to heed safety warnings anyway, and would probably try something like this even if the film hadn't been made. You know, fast cars... not that creative an idea, is it?

What's betting the driver reveals all on his deathbed to a relative who doesn't know how to work the internets?
posted by paperpete at 11:24 AM on November 10, 2005

My foot presses into the floor involuntarily when I watch this...
posted by tbonicus at 11:26 AM on November 10, 2005

As a teacher with many 14-15 year old students, I must say that I deplore this sort of thing.

As a stereotypical guy, I must say that was totally awesome.

I can live with the contradiction.
posted by Joey Michaels at 11:26 AM on November 10, 2005

Also check out the "Getaway in Stockholm" series of videos.

A couple of years ago here in my hometown a young man killed a 4-year old girl with his sporty BMW. He drove against a red light.

As it soon would be found out, that same guy was also the manager of a firm that imported those "Getaway" videos from Sweden.

This film is awesome, but still it and videos of it's kind encourage behaviour that is totally unacceptable. IMO it should still be banned.
posted by hoskala at 11:32 AM on November 10, 2005

cars are killing this fucking planet, and here y'all are watching a snuff film.

Jeez - watching this isn't going to make me drive any less carefully than I already do (or stop riding my bike to work as I do every day, in case you'd like to blame me for global warming).

Frankly, it's the sound (overdubbed or not) that really makes me smile. Would you prefer we pretend it never happened?

you know that famous picture of the soldier shooting the vietcong in the head? that shit is fucking funny.... now.

Hyperbole much?

You don't know anything about me. What gives you the right to make sweeping generalizations based on our enthusiasm for this film?
posted by jalexei at 11:38 AM on November 10, 2005

God I hate apple. My copy of quicktime 'expired' so I had to download a new installer, which I couldn't get without iTunes, which I don't want.

Loverly.
posted by delmoi at 11:38 AM on November 10, 2005

A couple of years ago here in my hometown a young man killed a 4-year old girl with his sporty BMW. He drove against a red light.

As it soon would be found out, that same guy was also the manager of a firm that imported those "Getaway" videos from Sweden.

Imply causality much?
posted by delmoi at 11:39 AM on November 10, 2005

My outrage is directed less at Lelouch personally and more at the unbridled enthusiasm exhibited in this thread.

I can't think of a single reason not to enjoy it.

you know that famous picture of the soldier shooting the vietcong in the head? that shit is fucking funny.... now.

Geez, how many ways is this wrong? 1) This was never claimed to be funny. 2) Unlike in the photo you mention, nobody actually died. 3) People have in fact made some jokes related to that photograph (arguably in poor taste but that's kind of the point). I guess three. Three is the ways it is wrong.
posted by kindall at 11:41 AM on November 10, 2005

I thought it was admirable.

The risk posed to the people on the streets there was probably less than the threat my grandfather used to pose every time he went out driving, after his eyesight started getting a bit weak. Certainly less than the millions of morons who can't handle driving while talking on a cell phone, yet persist in doing it every day. I suspect it was worthwhile, to get such a thing on film. Someone trying to repeat that today, there you'd have a better argument that it would just be stupid.
posted by sfenders at 11:42 AM on November 10, 2005

That was amazing (the Coral cache worked fine for me), and like Keith Talent, I'd love to see the route plotted out on a map so I could follow along.

The people calling it "disgusting" are probably the same people who got their terrornoia pants in a knot over the German art students who stuck the video projector to the side of the subway train.

Um... what? That's just cool.

But what if someone living in the subway tunnel had stuck his head out at the wrong time and the projector had decapitated him?? Then those damn art students would have been murderers! How can you enjoy it thinking of what might have been?
posted by languagehat at 11:46 AM on November 10, 2005

can we just ignore chicken little here and get back to talking about how bad ass that engine sounds? I wish I could get that as a cell phone ring.
posted by spicynuts at 11:50 AM on November 10, 2005

nobody actually died

Oh, I guess that it's OK then. Risking scores of lives and property for a stupid little stunt is fine if no one actually dies. Can they re-enact this going past your house?
posted by octothorpe at 11:52 AM on November 10, 2005

you know that famous picture of the soldier shooting the vietcong in the head?

More outrageously irresponsible behavior.
posted by Armitage Shanks at 11:53 AM on November 10, 2005

I'd love to see the route plotted out on a map so I could follow along.

OK, gratuitous self-link warning:

I Google Mapped the route for your entertainment.

If anyone knows how to do markers in Google Maps, let me know and I'll throw on time codes.

Please excuse the rest of the site, which currently looks like dogshit. In fact, please forget I even mentioned "rest of the site."
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 11:55 AM on November 10, 2005

C_D-That's very cool. Thanks.
posted by OmieWise at 12:01 PM on November 10, 2005

Oh, I guess that it's OK then. Risking scores of lives and property for a stupid little stunt is fine if no one actually dies. Can they re-enact this going past your house?

With the state of the world today, you are focusing your outrage on something that happened 31 years ago, in which the perpetrator was apprehended and prosecuted? Priorities?
posted by spicynuts at 12:10 PM on November 10, 2005

Why does the plane at ~1:12 into the movie fly so fast?
posted by iamck at 12:15 PM on November 10, 2005

Looking at the Google Map of the route more closely, he really could have saved a shitload of time if he'd gone around the Arc d'Triumphe three more exits and followed it up. But then you wouldn't have that whole Louvre part, which is k-rad.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 12:20 PM on November 10, 2005

Man, the best part of metafilter is that on every single issue, there are people on both sides.

It's evil!

It's cool!

I vote cool.
posted by graventy at 12:31 PM on November 10, 2005

Ok, I have to admit that this was pretty damn funny.

A uselessly irrelevant comparison, sure - but funny.

ps. you're still a dick
posted by poweredbybeard at 12:32 PM on November 10, 2005

You can deny it all you want, but we all know that the thrill and aura of this film doesn't come purely from fast cars and impressive maneuvering.

Nope. This would have been an equally exciting, equally impressive display of driving if the roads had been closed to traffic and everyone you saw was a well-paid stunt driver or stunt(wo)man who had cheerfully insisted on being put at risk.

It was like watching the chase in Ronin, except all in one take.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 12:33 PM on November 10, 2005

you know that famous picture of the soldier shooting the vietcong in the head?
Yep. General Nguyen Ngoc Loan eventually moved to the United States and opened a pizza place in a mall near where I grew up.
posted by kirkaracha at 12:33 PM on November 10, 2005

Oh, I guess that it's OK then. Risking scores of lives and property for a stupid little stunt is fine if no one actually dies. Can they re-enact this going past your house?

Perhaps not fine, but it's (by definition) better than if anyone had died. And if a Ferrari 275GTB driven by a professional flew past my house my 20-month-old car-obsessed daughter would be absolutely thrilled.
posted by jalexei at 12:34 PM on November 10, 2005

Civil_Disobedient gets the poster of the day award.
posted by Keith Talent at 12:35 PM on November 10, 2005

Why does the plane at ~1:12 into the movie fly so fast?

It's a bird.
posted by lazy-ville at 12:37 PM on November 10, 2005

My God, I miss the '70s!
posted by Crabby Appleton at 12:58 PM on November 10, 2005

I wonder if the churchbells at the end were added in. Because they don't sound like the bells at Sacré Coeur.
posted by horsewithnoname at 1:05 PM on November 10, 2005

ROU_Xenophobe: This would have been an equally exciting, equally impressive display of driving if the roads had been closed to traffic and everyone you saw was a well-paid stunt driver or stunt(wo)man who had cheerfully insisted on being put at risk.

Who would remember it, 30 years on, if it had been on closed roads? Would it be on MetaFiter? "Equally exciting"? I think not.

chrismear: Lighten up. I have.
posted by matthewr at 1:06 PM on November 10, 2005

Just because I found it exciting doesn't mean I was rubbing my 5500 rpm cock.

Yeah, it does.

You don't have to be a neanderthalic caveman with penis envy to find risking your life exciting.

No. You have to be a neanderthalic caveman with penis envy to find risking *other people's lives* exciting.

The people calling it "disgusting" are probably the same people who got their terrornoia pants in a knot over the German art students who stuck the video projector to the side of the subway train.

No, we're not. Although there wasn't any terrornoia in that thread. Just some random folks noting that it seemed weird that people in the station didn't creep out from terrornoia. Probably too subtle a point for anyone who gets off on 140 mph through Paris without a second thought.

However, people who find this unreservedly exciting probably do whack off to the war porn links posted on mefi.

This thread is telling me more about mefi that I don't want to know but makes complete sense. This unbridled enthusiasm for boneheaded endangerment belongs on fark.
posted by 3.2.3 at 1:13 PM on November 10, 2005

3.2.3 - While stewing and composing your comment, you could have been feeding the homeless, or sending money to starving children. How dare you.
posted by iamck at 1:20 PM on November 10, 2005

iamck - or i could have been hunting down dickwads to run over. dare me.
posted by 3.2.3 at 1:34 PM on November 10, 2005

I've got a 5500 RPM Boner for Boneheaded Endangerment!

iamck - or i could have been hunting down dickwads to run over. dare me.

You'll be driving the bright orange padded geo metro with the speed govenour right? around 16 mph? Cool, come on over, we'll play chicken or go skitching or something. Don't forget your car helmet.
posted by Divine_Wino at 1:42 PM on November 10, 2005

You'll be driving the bright orange padded geo metro with the speed govenour right?

oh god, i've been found out.
posted by 3.2.3 at 1:45 PM on November 10, 2005

or i could have been hunting down dickwads to run over. dare me.

3.2.3 -- I don't just dare you, I TRIPLE DOG DARE you!

* heh heh... now he's GOT to do it!*
posted by soiled cowboy at 1:50 PM on November 10, 2005

The low POV definitely increases the sensation of speed. Most of the time he truly isn't moving all that fast. The best example of this was when he approached the delivery truck that had its hazard lights on in the middle of the road. Braking did not begin until he was nearly upon it, and he came to a complete stop rather abruptly and smoothly.

Consider, a modern Ferrari, with the benefit of 30 years of engineering, still takes 100ft or so to come to a stop from only 60mph. And, in rough terms, as your speed doubles, your stopping distance increases by 4x.

Also, assume the speed limit on some of those roads was about 50mph. If he had been going 130mph+ his closing speed would have made passes mere blurs. Some cars he passed at almost a leisurely pace. It took him about 5 seconds to pass the yellow car (cab?) near the beginning.

Without busting out high level mathematics (that I'm both too lazy and too dumb to do), it doesn't appear that he could be going much over 20mph over the other traffic, if even that much.

Now, the guy on the motorcycle, with much higher POV, and exponentially closer quarters, that guy is a fucking manic.

I am an avid motorcyclist and I was hoping someone would open their door and literally demolish him.

People like that give motorcyclists everywhere a bad name.
posted by Ynoxas at 1:56 PM on November 10, 2005

The world is divided into two classes: those who've driven 130 mph and those who haven't.

Give it a rest. The film was made over 25 years ago. No harm, no foul.

And it is one hell of a nice piece of film. When I first saw it, there was a rumor he and his wife were killed making a sequel. Now I know the rumor was bogus.
posted by warbaby at 1:56 PM on November 10, 2005

I've only done that a couple times warbaby, always in sparsely populated areas (can we just lighten up with the marming, it doesn't really help anyone make their point, it's like you are stroking a 5500 RPM Righteousness boner).

One time I hit around 140-145 in a Nissan Skyline R32 GTS-4 in Spain (we were over from England), that was, to coin a phrase, wicked fucking awesome. Righthand drive, Freaky.
posted by Divine_Wino at 2:14 PM on November 10, 2005

I don't have a cock and found the video pretty exciting/awesome/freaky cool (redlightredlightredlight!). I also think Lelouch was completely irresponsible and, frankly, crazy to do something like this. However, it happened a long time ago and he was punished.

(Does 120mph across the Arizona desert at night count? Volvo stationwagon if it matters.)
posted by deborah at 2:17 PM on November 10, 2005

I just watched Climb Dance. Now that's insane.
posted by deborah at 2:25 PM on November 10, 2005

"I just watched Climb Dance. Now that's insane."

Certainly is. Spectacular filming, awesome driving - and no one could get hurt!* Everybody wins.

* Except if the 600bhp turbocharged 4WD four-wheel-steer Peugoet veered an inch, and plunged down the near-vertical cliff-faces lining the road. Yeah. Apart from that.
posted by matthewr at 2:53 PM on November 10, 2005

Just because I found it exciting doesn't mean I was rubbing my 5500 rpm cock.

Yeah, it does.

Provide evidence.

You don't have to be a neanderthalic caveman with penis envy to find risking your life exciting.

No. You have to be a neanderthalic caveman with penis envy to find risking *other people's lives* exciting.

I disagree with your strawman argument on the basis that you don't provide evidence.

However, people who find this unreservedly exciting probably do whack off to the war porn links posted on mefi.

You, sir or maam, probably have more penis envy than the typical 14 year old itching to try the same stunt in his daddys station wagon. Not only that, you have no basis to your argument. "el oh el penises!" is pretty vapid at best. You don't even mention adrenaline and the psychological changes that happen in human beings when put in fight or flight mode. Let's discuss this in depth, and how it can be addictive. Please, make a contribution instead of a closed argument with no relevance and no explanation.
posted by Dean Keaton at 3:01 PM on November 10, 2005

Metafilter: Please, make a contribution instead of a closed argument with no relevance and no explanation.

/sorry
posted by iamck at 3:04 PM on November 10, 2005

Risking scores of lives and property for a stupid little stunt is fine if no one actually dies. Can they re-enact this going past your house?

Sure, as long as they do it twenty-seven years ago.
posted by kindall at 3:05 PM on November 10, 2005

Most cool.
posted by Smedleyman at 3:11 PM on November 10, 2005

The most lauded act of Parisian madness, in more recent times, is the one shot from a motorcyclist on the boulevarde Peripherique which you can download here.
posted by strawberryviagra at 3:13 PM on November 10, 2005

This kind of stuff just encourages the idiots who can't think to up that level, and who therefore think it's just a big fun game to drive recklessly at stupid speeds around busy streets.

Yes! in fact, I've just decided to replicate this first thing in the morning tomorrow. Actually, I'm going to stay up all night, get drunk and then at 5 am ... er wait I don't even have a car. I've had very scary and very lucky escapes myself and seen one too many people get killed by idiots on the road so I'm not exactly keen on the concept.

But you know, vicarious excitement of speed and danger? It means you can enjoy watching something you'd never ever want to do yourself, or want others to do.

Surely everyone with a functioning neuron must be already aware of how crazy and irresponsible a stunt this is and how it was mostly luck (and I assume a little bit of experience too) that allowed the driver to avoid causing a series of fatal accidents. It's impossible to watch the video without thinking all that, because you know it's real. Yet it's still brilliant to watch, a mixture of awe and terror.

Obviously if someone had died no one would find it so awesome to watch, would they? There you go. It's a one off stunt, went miraculously well, and the footage is great. Simple as that.

The kind of pricks who drive dangerously and put their and others lives at risk, well, rest assured they don't need to watch something like this to get the inspiration to be pricks.
posted by funambulist at 3:21 PM on November 10, 2005

Metafilter: it's like [...] stroking a 5500 RPM Righteousness boner
posted by Suck Poppet at 3:22 PM on November 10, 2005

Provide evidence.


posted by 3.2.3 at 3:23 PM on November 10, 2005

This unbridled enthusiasm for boneheaded endangerment belongs on fark.

This scolding, schoolmarm-ish self-righteousness belongs on....um, Fark (it kind of breaks down at the end).
posted by jalexei at 3:26 PM on November 10, 2005

Guyzero: There's one bit where the camera seem to come prpetty close to what looks like a little old lady crossing the road... and as the car goes by, she doesn't speed up at all.

I just thought that she didn't even see it, she had already almost completely crossed the road and the car passed by to her left (if that's the same bit you're talking about!).

The effect is also scarier due to the position of the camera. From the drivers point of view, he must have enjoyed a wider view of the road and spotted other cars and pedestrians ahead better than what you see in the footage.

It's amazing how quickly the cars comes to a halt at the end. You almost picture it going right over the step.
posted by funambulist at 3:32 PM on November 10, 2005

I don't really get what you guys are talking about. I see people drive like this in New York all the time.
posted by fungible at 4:34 PM on November 10, 2005

Big secrets in a little film
posted by fandango_matt at 4:42 PM on November 10, 2005

I think it only gets really exciting in the last 1/3rd, when it's obvious that he's driving down narrow residential streets. The rest of the time, he's driving down pretty wide streets next to big things, and it's hard to get an impression of how fast he's going.

Even still, a good use for my 10mins.

(wish I could see it on the bigscreen)
posted by afroblanca at 4:46 PM on November 10, 2005

Looks like a hoax to me.

140 mph? no way. 120 mph? no way.

Unless the average citizen of Paris at the time was doing 100 mph themselves.

140 Kmh? No way. 120 Kmh? Perhaps.

The speed at which cars I assume are doing 30/40 mph and then stationary objects - doesnt match the claims of such high speeds.

The feeling of speed should be further amplified by the camera being mounted so low - yet, its not.

As a boy racer I've been in cars, in heavy traffic shifting past other cars waay faster than this thing is. I've driven (legally) over 130 mph and it was waay faster than this.

Sure he ran some read lights - thats pretty hardcore.

But I totally doubt the speeds he does. Seriously, watching the guy who speeds round the paris ring road on his motorbike and watching his speedo hit 250 kmh - that all looked quick and by golly was quick. The Getaway In Stockholme videos also feel far quicker that this.

I fear the hype and legend of this video far exceeds the actual video.

But; tommorow I'm gonna nail my commute to work...

And there is a better sound than a Ferrari V12 and thats an Aston Martin V12.

And to those people who think this thread is stupid because it glorifies serious road stupidity - your right.
And you probably better than me, more talented, brighter etc.
But your boring farts. You cant contest this, you are.
posted by 13twelve at 4:50 PM on November 10, 2005

C_D-That's very cool. Thanks.

Heartily seconded. You are my new MeFi Hero.

3.2.3: We get it. You are far, far more righteous and goodly than we lesser mortals. We worship at your shrine. Now can you go save some children or something?
posted by languagehat at 5:00 PM on November 10, 2005

Civil_Disobedient, that map was FABULOUS.
posted by smackfu at 5:06 PM on November 10, 2005

Here's a scientific analysis of the speeds, based on times and distances between recognized landmarks.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 5:11 PM on November 10, 2005

Without busting out high level mathematics (that I'm both too lazy and too dumb to do), it doesn't appear that he could be going much over 20mph over the other traffic, if even that much.

This speed analysis of the video, based on time the car took to drive between landmarks indicates that he was indeed going faster than that.

People like that give motorcyclists everywhere a bad name.

The thing with a motorbike is that it weighs a lot less than and thus has less energy and momentum so it both stops faster and is a lot less likely to injure other people. When the quarters were close, he wasn't really going that fast and the only really risky parts for passersby were the times he came to crosswalks from between stopped cars. As far as I'm concerned bikers can weave between traffic as much as they want, I definitely won't resent their faster progress enough to try to kill them with my door.
posted by lazy-ville at 5:13 PM on November 10, 2005

pwned
posted by lazy-ville at 5:14 PM on November 10, 2005

Civil_Disobedient, that map was FABULOUS.

Thanks! Update: the map now has screen grabs from the appropriate part of the movie. Just click on the waypoints.

Yes, I know, I'm so cool.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 5:16 PM on November 10, 2005

That's the second time in 48 hours this has happened, lazy-ville!
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 5:20 PM on November 10, 2005

I'm conflicted. The kid in me thought it was very cool and quite exhilirating. At one point my nose was one inch from the screen. The grownup in me thinks the kid in me is terrible for liking it.

As I see it, the only solution is to watch it repeatedly while drinking heavily until one side wins.
posted by LeeJay at 5:21 PM on November 10, 2005

*laughs good naturedly at lazy-ville

seriously. I was about to post that same scientific link myself. heh.
posted by pots at 5:32 PM on November 10, 2005

posted by fandango_matt at 5:38 PM on November 10, 2005

It really gets fucking crazy when he gets to Montmartre, going way too fast up the hills with the pigeons. This is awesome, thank you.

We could eventually have a 3D walk through planned out between the map and this.
posted by fire&wings at 5:45 PM on November 10, 2005

Anyone have an estimate of what the focal length of that camera lens was? I'd eyeball a little more zoom than 50mm, maybe 70mm?

That would tend to reduce the appearance of speed and also account for some of the strange angles seen when he's passing parked garbage trucks, etc.
posted by anthill at 6:52 PM on November 10, 2005

What Lelouch needed was one of these.
posted by howling fantods at 7:11 PM on November 10, 2005

I once crossed the entire state of Colorado without going below 120 mph, long ago, when such things were legal. I was driving a Jaguar and had a roast of beef wrapped in aluminum foil placed between the dohcs. It was done to perfection and so was I.
posted by RMALCOLM at 7:22 PM on November 10, 2005

poweredbybeard writes "cars are killing this fucking planet, and here y'all are watching a snuff film."

Holy crumpled hyperbole batman. Snuff film? Really?

delmoi writes "God I hate apple. My copy of quicktime 'expired' so I had to download a new installer, which I couldn't get without iTunes, which I don't want. "

If your on windows media player classic is your friend.

sfenders writes "The risk posed to the people on the streets there was probably less than the threat my grandfather used to pose every time he went out driving, after his eyesight started getting a bit weak. Certainly less than the millions of morons who can't handle driving while talking on a cell phone, yet persist in doing it every day. I suspect it was worthwhile, to get such a thing on film. Someone trying to repeat that today, there you'd have a better argument that it would just be stupid."

And it was 1971, most places the penalty for driving while being too drunk to stand unassisted was a fine less than you'd get for speeding.

warbaby writes "The world is divided into two classes: those who've driven 130 mph and those who haven't."

You know your making serious time when you can blow past a cop, make a U-turn and pass the now lit up cruiser going the other way and the cop behind the wheel doesn't give you a second glance. Or, um, so I've heard.

deborah writes "(Does 120mph across the Arizona desert at night count? Volvo stationwagon if it matters.)"

Only if it wasn't a 240, everyone knows it's impossible to do _anything_ dangerous in a 240.

I thought this was awesome when I saw it in AskMe and it hasn't gotten less so in repeated viewings. Insane but awesome.

The coolest thing was drivers moving right to let the guy past, you'd never see that here.
posted by Mitheral at 7:27 PM on November 10, 2005

Ah yes, Rendezvous.

" ... and had a friend, a professional Formula 1 racer, drive him at breakneck speed ... Upon showing the film in public for the first time, Lelouch was arrested ... and the film went underground until a DVD release a few years ago."

That is incorrect. On the DVD (which I own), it states that Lelouch did his own driving, and that no arrests of any kind were involved.

Before owning the DVD, I had a dub on VHS, and before I had that, I had a dub on U-matic that was pulled from the 1st French (SECAM) release. (I still have those BTW.)

Also, the film never went "underground" it has been available in various formats for years (at least since the mid 80s).

Also, that wasn't a gyro stabilized mount, it was just bolted onto the bumper, grip truck style.

The first gyro units were about the size of washing machines, and weighed quite a bit. I don't think that they were available at all at the time this film was shot.

I seriously doubt that was a Merc he was driving, especially a 450 SEL. Those things are tanks, to put it mildly. That shot was probably taken from another production.

Yes, and Climb Dance/Ari Vatanen is another of my favorites. Hell, ANY in car camera footage from a rally car is damn impressive.

Go out and search for footage from either the Rallye Monte Carlo or the Tour de Course.

There's stages on both of those that will drain the blood from your face.

Oh, and poweredbybeard, take a cab or a bus, and leave the driving to people who can handle it.
posted by Relay at 7:36 PM on November 10, 2005

" ...but still it and videos of it's kind encourage behaviour that is totally unacceptable. IMO it should still be banned."
hoskala

Oh, OK then ...

We'll get to that right after we ban rap music, violent TV, the Three Stooges, comic books, and any recordings of Dizzy Dean's sports commentary that are floating around out there.

Give me a break ...
posted by Relay at 7:40 PM on November 10, 2005

This film is awesome, but still it and videos of it's kind encourage behaviour that is totally unacceptable. IMO it should still be banned.

Movies don't kill people. People who watch movies, and don't have the benefit of critical thinking and/or media literacy, kill people.

Solution? Ban people.
posted by brundlefly at 8:43 PM on November 10, 2005

IMO it should still be banned.

Next, I suppose you'll suggest that there are books that shouldn't be on the shelves of our public library. I'm sure you weren't really thinking your stance out when you typed that. Censorship is evil, no matter how righteous your justification may seem.
posted by crunchland at 9:05 PM on November 10, 2005

Just wanted to pop in to give a huge shoutout to Civil_Disobedient for the amazing map he put together - that's seriously wonderful stuff. I shared it with the MoFi folk as well, so the link's going around, but everyone loves it.

(And I also loved the film. Great tour of Paris. First saw it last week thanks to C_D's comment, so, double thanks there, I guess!)
posted by livii at 9:39 PM on November 10, 2005

This film was amazing, some truly brilliant driving (and this comes from an avid F1 fan.) I liked it a great deal. I guess that makes me a neanderthal, but, IMHO that's better than being a self-righteous prick...
posted by ob at 11:04 PM on November 10, 2005

This is ... an interesting precursor to some disrupting social things we're gonna be experiencing as internet video becomes more commonplace.

My thought watching this was that it was a bit like the sf concept of being able to 'record' the experience of someone and play it back for someone else -- from a mundane tropical vacation, to extreme sports, to sex, to sex with a celebrity, to murder. One story on this riff posited a recording of someone who accidentally drove off a cliff -- while being recorded -- as the most popular product of the company.

Here, we get to experience someone doing something exciting and objectionable, and there are definitely some hackles raised. There's a lot of videos online or offline -- Jackass, Paris Hilton -- that raise the same sort of objections or qualms. I suspect, however, that we're gonna be seeing more of this as more people are able to easily an inexpensively put up videos of them doing stupid or objectionable things.

Back to Lelouch. It's pretty clear he knows what the hell he's doing -- from the engine revving as horn substitute, to the careful navigation of obstacles (notice how he always goes behind the pedestrians), and a few maneuvers that show he really had some crack situational awareness. The speed is, of course, only up to 140mph on the first part of the Champs Ellysees, although the scary part for me was the dark, curving streets at the end. He must also have rehearsed the route -- and some possible alternates -- beforehand and been pretty familiar with these streets. I don't want to endorse this -- imagine if he had killed someone (*cough* John Landis) -- but as far as it goes, it was done about as professionally as one could hope.
posted by dhartung at 11:44 PM on November 10, 2005

Look, I'm not trying to make myself out as some kind of saint, okay? I watched the video, and I felt a thrill of excitement. And yes, I've driven (illegally) at 120 mph. I think speed limits are stupid, and driving skill is far more important.

I wish I wasn't proud of my pathetic little speed achievement. But a part of me still is. And in a certain circle of friends, I would talk about it, and we'd have a nice macho conversation about ridiculous driving stunts. I'm sure you've done the same.

Why is this socially acceptable? It shouldn't be, should it? Would you have a conversation with your mates about how you knocked back half a bottle of Jack Daniels before driving across town, and man you couldn't see shit, although you do remember some pretty cool near-misses, but hey, you made it to your destination in one piece, so damn you must be one shit hot driver.

No, you wouldn't. These days, drink-driving is socially and morally unacceptable. And I know that it's only relatively recently that this has been the case. Don't you think that it's a good thing that people feel a social and internal pressure not to drink and drive?

Yet we still have a culture that persists this idea that dangerous driving and taking risks on public roads makes you a big hard man, and safe driving makes you a pussy.

If I posted a fake violent rape porn video that I'd found, and started going on about the amazing production quality, and the realistic acting, the vicarious excitement I feel when I watch it, and about how I'd come close to replicating a similar kind of thrill in my real life... wouldn't you all think I was nuts? Wouldn't you feel some kind of moral disgust towards me?

Why is this thread any different? Why does dangerous driving have this level of social acceptability when every other reckless, damaging crime doesn't?
posted by chrismear at 1:45 AM on November 11, 2005

a) I saw this on cable TV - once - when I was about 12. It made a permanent impression, because it's a great piece of cinema. I'm glad to see it again; it got better with time.

b) It's clearly not a 1978 Ferrari, because it doesn't have enough oversteer accelerating out of those corners. You steer a Ferrari with its throttle.

c) At age 16, I would have been doing 130 mph on the side streets of LA in my '65 Pontiac GTO even if I hadn't seen this film. If there's any moral to that, it's that 16 year old boys shouldn't be allowed to drive.
posted by ikkyu2 at 1:48 AM on November 11, 2005

13twelve nailed this whole thing for me.
posted by Frasermoo at 1:52 AM on November 11, 2005

chrismear: If I posted a fake violent rape porn video that I'd found

Most inappropriate comparison ever?

The footage is neither about a man driving while drunk or about a man raping a woman! Please.
posted by funambulist at 2:32 AM on November 11, 2005

Just did a time/distance calculation based on the run from the Arc d'Triumphe to Place de la Concorde, where he averages 120km/hr., or about 75mph. That doesn't take into account acceleration and deceleration. I think it's safe to say that he broke 100mph on at least a couple of those straight stretches.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 3:29 AM on November 11, 2005

I too, am totally going to try to replicate this in my hometown. I'll probably have to put extra duct tape to keep the blinker from falling out like it does. I'm glad I saw this otherwise it wouldn't have occured to me... I had no idea people did this sort of thing. Thanks Metafilter! Wish me luck!
posted by hatchetjack at 9:02 AM on November 11, 2005

Thank you, funambulist, you've demonstrated my point exactly.

I'm going to stop pissing all over this thread now. I think I've laboured my point enough.
posted by chrismear at 11:04 AM on November 11, 2005

No hang on a second, how did I prove your point?

Not trying to reignite any argument, I honestly don't get what the point of that comparison was. You asked "what if I'd posted violent rape porn... Wouldn't you feel some kind of moral disgust towards me? why is this thread different" -- well, chrismear, surely you can see the difference yourself?

Unless you really do think that what Lelouch did here is the same as rape porn, or, that if one feels vicarious excitement at watching Lelouch's Rendevouz, then one must feel the same at watching a rape porn film? Seriously?
posted by funambulist at 12:36 PM on November 11, 2005

chrismear, I'm going to respond to some of your points. You probably won't like it, though.

Nobody really likes a moralist, except another moralist.

People don't think it's nearly as bad to endanger someone as to actually hurt someone. I believe this is a built-in moral intuition that doesn't respond well to argument.

People admire competence, and Lelouch demonstrated competence in pulling off this stunt. Quod licet Jovi, non licet bovi.

The current drunk driving hysteria is a moral panic prolonged for political reasons. It won't last forever. (Most of the real damage is done by a very small number of very egregious recidivists. Targeting them, as opposed to your random upstanding citizen with a BAC of 0.08%, would solve the problem.)

Rape fantasies are common, among women as well as men.

There are actually a fair number of people who don't give a damn what is "socially acceptable" at any particular point in history. They make their own moral decisions consciously and live (or die) with the consequences. As we all do, really, come to think of it.
posted by Crabby Appleton at 12:51 PM on November 11, 2005

Oh, all right then, I get it, it's yet another classic slippery slope! You start by watching formula 1 races, next thing you know you're watching someone acting like a formula 1 racer in the middle of Paris, next thing you know, you're having fantasies about raping or being raped, same thing, and just the same thing as driving a ferrari only soo much more exciting, and next thing you know, you're doing it to your sister. The final step is of course 'war porn' and torture.

Kind of like with gay marriage and bestiality really, no?

Oh Mr Lelouch, what have you done, accelerating the breakdown of civilisation in less than ten minutes...
posted by funambulist at 1:19 PM on November 11, 2005

mmmm.... Ferrari rape.... nice...
posted by hatchetjack at 2:02 PM on November 11, 2005