Motion Pictures Did anyone catch "GRAN PRIX" on TCM tonight?

Saw it for the first time. I was completely blown away. The cinematography was simply stunning! The sound was incredible too. I was impressed with it all. I do like how it looked like they were going about 65 in the cars but they shot it to give you a sense of going 180. Pretty amazing movie. Sorry I know it isnt exactly hot rods or customs, but just wanted to let other fellow hambers know about this amazing movie if they havent seen it yet.

 

I really need to see that film, I've had the DVD for three years and havent even taken it out of the plastic wrap yet.

 

I have the DVD. And you're right, the cinematography is great.
Every gearhead should have it and LeMans in his movie library.

 

I've seen this film dozens of time, but last night was the first time in HD and it was like seeing it for the first time again. The pseudo race footage is awesome, and the pre-wing, pre-add cars in national colors are cool. As usual the background blur goes away and reveals more 50's and 60's GP drivers. Graham Hill was a great driver, but a very bad actor.

 

I have a 58" HD plasma TV hooked up to a high end surround sound system and when this movie starts up the cat runs for cover. As it starts the camera zooms into the megaphone exhaust pipes and you hear the starter turn over with a wisp of smoke coming from the pipes. The engine fires and the sound is fantastic.

 

I watched it at the theater with my dad when it first came out. But yes, I watched it again last night. One of my all time favorite movies. Many first in movie technology was in that movie.

 

Great, great movie. As has been said, you need that and Le Mans.

 

One of my favorite movies.In fact, I think I'm gonna watch the dvd tonite ! Apparently, not only did James Garner study martial arts with Bruce Lee, but also, during the making of this film he was told if he ever got fed up with acting he'd make a natural racing driver!
A much overlooked icon.
Paul.

 

I heard that Clint Eastwood was remarkable in that one.

 

I wacthed it what a awesome flic.....

 

I remember seeing it at the theater when I was in high school...that was really high tech for the day and there was only one theater in downtown Cincinnati that could handle the wide screen display.

 

Grand Prix along with Le Mans are the 2 greatest filmed auto racing movies of all time. I wonder why a movie about the NASCAR Superbirds era of 70/71 was never done. That would have been incredible!
Tom

 

The closest there is, is Redline 7000. It's mid '60s stock car though. There is some other cool stuff in there too...Cobra Daytona.

Grand Prix is cool, but I prefer LeMans. Both come on TCM from time to time but I always miss them. I guess it would be easier to just go ahead and buy them.

 

KILLER! Slim

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knspbmbQMDY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_it_LDxxIKY

 

Found it on Hd DVd for 3.00 on amazon.. The sound was truly amazing in that movie!!

 

Part of what made Grand Prix so great was the audio. For the Monaco portion Phil Hill actually drove his Ferrari down an airstrip (If I recall) in a straight line while going through all of the shifts of Monaco by memory. That audio is said to have matched up perfectly to the on car video captured from Monaco.

 

I stayed up too late watching it. The volume was way up!

 

Just by total luck I saw it was on and watched it. I have it in the collection but thought, "what the heck". In some ways it was cool knowing I was watching tv and seeing the movie. I too really like the opening scene. From what I read some time ago, the racing scenes were filmed during actual GP races. I thought the intermission was nostalgic as well.

 

I had a chance to talk to race driver Bob Bondurant about his involvment with the making of Grand Prix. He drove a Ford GT 40 with the body removed that had camera mounts all over it and in between qualifying and the race they would take the real drivers out and shoot them "racing". Bob said the drivers did not hold back for the filming, it was everything he could do to stay with them for short bursts at a time. Mind you there was also a cameraman hanging on for dear life on the Ford!

 

Found this. Making of GRAN PRIX. Slim

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yPHck13W9A

 

I was wondering what kind of car they used to get some of those high speed shots. I really enjoyed the scene where they were on the bank at the last race. I thought that shot was stunning.

 

I remember when it was in the theater in my little home town !!

 

They used a Ford GT40 with a huge cinemascope camera mounted on it.
I went to a special showing in the 60's at a theater in Tampa, FL that was outfitted with the wraparound screen and the stereo sound. I was absolutely stunned by the effect of the total immersion in the movie that was absolutely groundbreaking technology then.
James Garner was a formidable driver and did most of his scenes himself.
I will never forget it.

 

I'm not sure if anyone has explicitly stated it here, but they were commonly going 150+ in a cut down GT40 camera car, with trips up around 185. Cameraman facing rearward.

So if it looks like they are going 180, there's a pretty good chance they're actually going 180.

 

I can remember reading in a Popular Science and Popular Mechanics magazine back in the 60s that had an arcticle about some of the techniques used to film that movie.

Here they are....

http://books.google.com/books?id=1S...&resnum=1&ved=0CAkQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false

http://books.google.com/books?id=Rd...r+mechanics+magazine&cd=2#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

When I was in the Navy( late 60's), I showed(projectionist) that movie in the officer's mess about a dozen times and never did get tired of it...Even when the film broke and I had to repair it........

 

I've never seen it all the way through, but the bits I've seen have been great!I need to buy it on DVD.

Nick.

 

Death Trap...correct me if I'm wrong. But I also recall Bondurant saying how unhappy the GT40 was with those changes and just how much of a handfull that it was to drive that way.

 

The difference between movies like Grand Prix and Lemans compaired to Red Line or Fireball 500 is that they were real movies instead of long running serial commercials. Hollywood has not quite figured that out yet when doing the Stock car stuff but they are working on it as we speak.

Grand Prix and Lemans are trule awsome movie experiences. Love it !

 

I flipped between Grand Prix and The Thomas Crown Affair (the 1968 one with McQueen).

I was surfing channels and wouldn't have stopped on the Thomas Crown Affair but I spotted a chopped/channeled Model A hot rod used briefly by one of the bad guys front and center in a scene.