3. The French Connection (1971)This list wouldnt be complete without the frantic pursuit by Gene Hackmans Popeye Doyle in a 1971 Pontiac LeMans as he tries to catch up with a hitman who has escaped and is riding an elevated train. This sequence was filmed in Brooklyn and featured an array of dangerous stunts. Its no wonder you feel as though youre in the thick of the action with Hackman it was filmed without any permission from the City of New York! As the chase gets heated, Popeyes car gets increasingly punished and it seems as though hes going to lose control. He almost does at one point when having to swerve out of the way of a mother and baby, instead sending a stack of crates flying instead an often emulated cliché of the car chase set-up, but one which has never been beaten for suspense.