It's kind of amazing that Bullitt came out the same year as Barbarella.San Francisco cop Frank Bullitt (Steve McQueen) is given the high-profile case of baby-sitting a mob witness. But when the witness ends up dead, Bullitt uncovers a much deeper mystery. One that will have his Captain (Simon Oakland) coming up against an ambitious politician (Robert Vaughn), because Frank has no intention of playing by the book.
This movie is famous for the 100 mph car chase through the streets of San Francisco, but don't just fast forward to get there. It's a decent cop movie that's only dated by the technology in play (pay phones, teletype machines, etc.). Steve McQueen is incredibly charismatic, even as the taciturn Frank Bullitt.
I think my favorite part was how polite he remained, even while being threatened by Robert Vaughn's slimy politician. He never raised his voice, didn't fire back with a witty comeback, just stood his ground and did his job the way he saw fit. It was such a contrast to me from the way "cops who don't play by the rules" are portrayed today. Now it's like you can't have a cop disagree with his boss without a screaming argument and somebody slamming their badge on a desk and storming off. Frank kept it classy, though. We need to bring that back.
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