The action scene, coordinated by Bill Hickman, was filmed in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, roughly running under the BMT West End Line (currently the D train, then the B train) which runs on an elevated track above Stillwell Avenue, 86th Street and New Utrecht Avenue in Brooklyn, with the chase ending just north of the 62nd ...

Was the car chase in The French Connection real?

How William Friedkin made The French Connection – and almost killed Gene Hackman. The greatest car chase in cinema was shot with no permits and featured actual crashes with real New Yorkers.

Where did the movie French Connection take place?

As noted in the press materials, The French Connection was filmed on location in New York City, Washington, D.C. and Marseilles, France. The New York locations included Central Park, Park Avenue, the Lower East Side and portions of Brooklyn, the Bronx and Queens.

What line was removed from The French Connection?

Within those six seconds, an exchange between the narcotics cop Jimmy “Popeye” Doyle (Gene Hackman) and his partner Buddy Russo (Roy Scheider), Doyle uses the n-word. In the new cut, he does not.

Why was The French Connection censored?

A new edit of 'The French Connection' removes a racial slur. But nit-picking old artworks for breaking today's rules inevitably makes it harder to see the complete picture. The remarkable thing about the censored scene is how ordinary it feels if you've watched a police procedural made before, say, 2010.

William Friedkin on the Car Chase Scene In THE FRENCH CONNECTION

What scene was cut from The French Connection?

Current streaming and broadcast versions available censor a scene where a character uses a racial slur without any notation of alteration. Even on venues expected to have the full theatrical version.

What was The French Connection scandal?

The French Connection was a scheme through which heroin was smuggled from Indochina through Turkey to France and then to the United States and Canada. The operation started in the 1930s, reached its peak in the 1960s, and was dismantled in the 1970s.

Where was the last scene of The French Connection filmed?

Wards Island, New York City (the final shootout) The National Mall in Washington, D.C., near The Capitol (where Charnier and Sal meet) Westbury Hotel, 15 East 69th Street, Manhattan, New York City (Charnier's hotel)

Did Disney edit French Connection?

All we know is that a 52-second piece of the film was removed due to the words Gene Hackman's character of Popeye Doyle speaks within it. Before we dive in, let's be upfront about something: Disney has cut a scene in the movie that included a terrible racial slur.

What was the famous line from The French Connection?

"Picking your feet in Poughkeepsie" is a phrase that Egan would sometimes use during interrogations to disorient and confuse suspects during interrogations, with the aim of Grosso getting them to open up by asking more direct queries actually related to the case.

Who was the real Frenchman in The French Connection?

Patsy's underworld connections included Jean 'The Giant' Jehan, the ringleader, and French TV star Jacques Angelvin, France's answer to talk show host Johnny Carson. Jehan had persuaded Angelvin to smuggle uncut heroin into New York by stuffing it into his 1960 Buick and sailing it to America on an ocean liner.

Is French Connection based on a true story?

The French Connection is an adaptation of Robin Moore's book of the same name which dealt with the true story of NYPD detectives Eddie Egan and Sonny Grosso, the cops who broke up a notorious drug operation and confiscated thirty-two million pounds worth of heroin.

Why is The French Connection a great movie?

Realistic, fast-paced and uncommonly smart, The French Connection is bolstered by stellar performances by Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider, not to mention William Friedkin's thrilling production.

What is the greatest car chase scene in movie history?

Who was the real cop in French Connection?

Mr. Egan was the tough-talking New York City police officer whose exploits inspired the Academy Award winning film The French Connection (1971). With partner Sonny Grosso, he managed a 112-pound heroin bust in 1962, one of the biggest in New York's history. Mr.

Where was the chase movie filmed?

Although the film is set in California, it was actually shot in the Houston metropolitan area, Texas. Rifkin explained that shutting down a freeway in Los Angeles for a long period of time would have been too expensive.

Was there a French Connection 3?

NYPD Detective Popeye Doyle investigates the death of a local prostitute which soon leads him and his partner into a web of international intrigue and foreign assassins.

Did Criterion censor French Connection?

Film fans are expressing their fury after a scene in The French Connection was censored without explanation. Those watching William Friedkin's 1971 drama on US streaming platform Criterion Channel were left confused by a clunky edit during a scene roughly 10 minutes into the film.

Does Disney own the French Connection?

The French Connection was a 20th Century Fox film, a company that Disney now owns thanks to a 2017 merger with Fox.

Was there a French Connection 2 movie?

"Popeye" Doyle travels to Marseille to find Alain Charnier, the drug smuggler who eluded him in New York. "Popeye" Doyle travels to Marseille to find Alain Charnier, the drug smuggler who eluded him in New York.

In which French city did The French Connection II take place?

"Popeye" Doyle (Gene Hackman) is sent to Marseilles, France, to work with the French Sûreté, ostensibly because he is the only policeman who recognizes Alain Charnier (Fernando Rey), also known as "Frog One," and Marseilles' "heroin kingpin," who escaped from New York at the end of the previous film.

What was the French restaurant in The French Connection?

One of the best scenes in the classic 1971 movie The French Connection involves a stakeout at a New York restaurant called The Copain.

Where was the Chase scene in The French Connection filmed?

The car chase filmed (over five weeks) beneath the Bensonhurst Elevated Railway – 26 blocks (count 'em) of Brooklyn's Stillwell Line from Bay 50th Street Station along Stillwell Avenue, into 86th Street.

Where were the drugs hidden in The French Connection?

The Frenchmen hid the heroin in the cavities of a car that they dispatched to the United States in the cargo hold of a cruise ship. As cover, they paid a French television personality, Jacques Angelvin, to take the car with him when he left on a tour of the United States.

What happened to Charnier in The French Connection?

Alain Charnier escaped and is believed to be living in France. Both Doyle and Russo were transferred out of the Narcotics Bureau and re-assigned to other departments in the NYPD. (Note: The French Connection drug bust that inspired the film took place in 1961.