Could someone who has seen the movie please confirm whether one or several of the screen captures at http://sam.zoy.org/laclasse/missing-cars.html (EDIT: I eventually found out where the scenes were from: Straight Time) are taken from Freebie and the Bean? That movie is not available in my country. Thanks in advance!
shareI don't think so. I just watched the movie on INHD, and those scenes don't look familiar.
The movie was shot in San Francisco. Those scenes look more like Southern California, or maybe even Mexico.
Also, I don't remember any AMC cars in the movie. Fords, yes. Maybe some GM cars.
Agreed with the other reply, your screencaps with its colors & landscape palette suggest Southern California (you might want to look into 'Gumball Rally'). There are no such vast freeway landscapes in Metropolitan San Francisco where most of 'Freebie' was filmed. In fact, during the 89 quake, the Embarcadero freeway along the Ferry building waterfront was torn down. Chase locations were filmed on the Hayes Valley portion of the Hiway 101 skyway (half now torn down), the downtown Financial District (w/prominently filmed Transamerica Pyramid Tower, once headqquarters of former UA/Transamerica Corp. then producers of this film-later bought by MGM/Ted Turner then swallowed up by Time/Warner), Portman's Hyatt Regency Hotel/Embarcadero Center Business complex, Nob Hill, Portero Hill, SOMA South of Market area, Chinatown/North Beach (w/a shot of Francis Ford Coppola owned offices/Flatiron Bldg & Red Light District now long gone), former Calif. Academy of Sciences/Steinhardt Aquarium and Candlestick Park (home of the NFL 49ers, once home of the baseball Giants; now called Monster Park).
It was quite a feat for a Hollywood crew to have shot some of the spectacular chase montages in such a crowded downtown locations. They had precedence with the success of Bullit filmed 6 years prior. With so many government, union & Cal OSHA agency safety regulations & oversight nowadays, such reckless free-for-all stunts such as in this movie couldn't be made this day & age. It would be patched with CGI now & look over-produced. Hollywood used to love filming in San Francisco. You will find many of these similar locations in Bullitt, Vertigo, The Conversation, What's Up Doc, The Rock & the Dirty Harry movies. Whatta time it was!
Also required viewing for Fans of Rush: The Stunt Man, O-Toole & Railsback's never been better & Coronado Island never more beautiful.
...from a longtime San Franciscan
Thanks for the tips. I watched "Gumball Rally", then also "Cannonball!" but the cars did not match. Fortunately, I found out where it was taken from: "Straight Time", an excellent movie starring Dustin Hoffman that was mostly shot in L.A.
sharehello, if you would like a copy of this classic please email and let me know, i would be happy to sell to you for five euro's via paypal. if you wish
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