BULLITT (1968)

San Francisco police lieutenant Steve McQueen is brought in to protect (for 40 hours) a key witness for a upcoming Senate Subcommittee hearing on organized crime.  The witness is holed up in a cheap hotel, so McQueen goes over there and does some of the worst witness protecting in movie history.  The witness is killed and then McQueen decides to get serious.  Any by "serious" I mean: doing average movie detective investigative work, buying a lot of disgusting looking TV dinners, stealing a newspaper, causing a shoot-out in a crowded airport terminal and going on a highly dangerous car chase without using any sirens/lights or calling for back-up.

I'm sure back in 1968 BULLITT was fresh and exciting (it was the 5th highest box office draw that year), but I'm also sure that in 1968, 1968 porno was exciting.  But ain't nobody watching that shit nowadays!  That said, BULLITT is not a bad film.  I enjoyed it alright and can see how it was influential on countless other police movies, but it's just too slow for me.  Also, the entire story was moved forward by McQueen's bad decisions.  Nice editing, great-looking San Francisco scenery, laid-back acting, a hip jazz score, ancient technology (including some bizarre and extremely unsafe looking coffee heating device), cool old muscle cars, very minor roles by Jacqueline Bisset and Robert Duvall.

Worth watching for the historical importance, but if you're looking for an exciting action movie that'll knock your socks off, this ain't it.

THE TOWERING INFERNO (1974)

THE TOWERING INFERNO never got quite as epic as the posters promised, but it is a fun ride and the 165-minute run time flies by.

Paul Newman is the architect for a new 138 floor skyscraper in San Francisco.  The building is his baby, he knows it inside and out, but then right before the big grand opening with a party in the Promenade Room on the top floor, he discovers that some of the electrical wiring he demanded was replaced with shoddy second-rate stuff that can't withstand the awesome load of such an awesome building!  Oh shit.  Naturally, a fire breaks out on the 81st floor.  This traps the partiers on the 135 floor, so now at the 43-minute mark enters badass fire chief Steve McQueen to do what bad ass fire chiefs do: fight fires, talk sternly, save lives left and right, tie himself to a pole, stare down an elevator shaft, ride on a wire underneath a helicopter, talk to O.J. Simpson without suffering a 14 cm-long (5.5 inches) gash across their throat, set off massive explosions with C4, get drenched in water, pat people on the shoulder and repeatedly bitch at Paul Newman for building skyscrapers too damn tall!  When will you ever learn?!!

Out of all the 1970's disaster movies I've seen, THE TOWERING INFERNO is probably the most exciting.  And the one I revisit the most.  Quick pace, good special effects, above average acting, the term "breeches buoy" used a lot, McQueen barking orders all over the place, control panels full of lights, McQueen and Newman with the exact same amount of lines, C4, awesome supporting cast.

Required viewing for fans of vintage disaster movies. I'd absolutely love to see a serious reboot of this story. Even an animated version that tries to match that badass poster artwork would be awesome!