Rush-hour in Paris - well somebody is in a hell of a hurry - utter lunacy!

[Steve K]

Thanks for that, Gordon - the first link confirms what I remembered reading about the film, that it wasn't actually a Ferrari, but rather something a bit more mundane, and the second demonstrates clearly how a low camera POV can make fairly rapid speeds seem an awful lot quicker. Still an absorbing piece of filming, though!

[EddieB]

Definitely the sound effects are dubbed and the low viewpoint exaggerates the speed (note how gently the car crests the bump at the top of the Rue Norvins near the end), but still excessive speed to say nothing of running red lights (especially at blind junctions) and passing one set of lights on the wrong side. Taking the middle arch away from the Louvre was skillful, if the whole enterprise wasn't idiotic!.

[Lady_Ava_Hay]

I think that a low camera angle and a very modest increase in film speed would account for most of the anomalies. One or two hairy moments and some close calls with other vehicles. Note that some of the oncoming cars are switching on to main beam. Obviously the film car is on main beam as well as a defence mechanism.

 

I would suggest that this was filmed in August. Paris shuts for most of August for 'vacances'. I have no doubt that the route was researched many times before the film was made. It reminds me of the Tokyo motorcycle commute that was linked on here some time back.

 

There have been several instances of random footage being used in this country for prosecutions and the courts do accept these. Two that spring to mind are the university lecturer who reached for a sweet, collided with a truck that veered across the motorway and jumped into the opposing traffic killing several. The only evidence was the following survey car that just happened to film the whole incident. The second was a motorcyclist who strapped a camera to the tank of his Kawasaki and went for a 160 mph spin, T-Boned a car and killed a couple in it. He survived with cuts and bruises as did the camera footage that was used to prosecute him.

 

The trouble is with these high speed early morning forays are that the other vehicles are lazy in checking and are not expecting a high speed vehicle in any event. That is why the law comes down so heavily on such misdeeds; it narrows the window of opportunity for a safe trip for other road users who have a right to expect that this sort of driving will not happen.

 

Incidentally, did I read somewhere that French traffic lights all default to red or flashing orange when not in use?

[NGT6 1315]

The trouble is with these high speed early morning forays are that the other vehicles are lazy in checking and are not expecting a high speed vehicle in any event. That is why the law comes down so heavily on such misdeeds; it narrows the window of opportunity for a safe trip for other road users who have a right to expect that this sort of driving will not happen.

 

Well put, David. It's for these reasons that I believe reckless driving should be fined stiffly and consistently.

[skipepsi]

I think I would rephrase that, they are not expecting any body at all! My next door neighbour was t boned at 4.00am as the guy didn't stop at the traffic lights 'because there is never anybody else on the road at this hour' not what he told his insurance company or the police either............

[Horsetan]

....did I read somewhere that French traffic lights all default to red or flashing orange when not in use?

 

Yes - the ones that don't see round-the-clock use will "switch off" to flashing amber. The Germans, Austrians and Swiss do the same, as do the Portuguese, and quite a few other Euro nations.

[Guest dilbert]

Incidentally, did I read somewhere that French traffic lights all default to red or flashing orange when not in use?

 

Flashing orange - but they are still in use, the difference being that there is no need to stop, but that you can proceed using caution... dilbert

[Kickstart]

Hi

 

There is this video from the late 1980s, on the peripherique in reasonable traffic.

 

 

All the best

 

Keith

[Colin_McLeod]

The OP video may have become a cult film, but it could easily have become a tradgey. There is nothing to be proud of with such bad driving, nor is it something to be impressed by.

 

Every time he ran a red light he risked lives. (It does not matter that it was early morning). I would not give a toss if he had killed himself; Its the innocent motorists on the other road that I would feel for.

[Accurascale Fran]

I believe I saw the tail end of a documentary recently about the making of this film. The car used was a Mercedes W116 S class, with the Ferrari sound dubbed over.

[trisonic]

This is why you don't want to try this on a 'bike................

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yoUaH6wGLs

 

Spanish Police action.

 

 

Best, Pete.

[Robert]

Irresponsible? Definitely. Great fun? Certainly!

 

I've seen the film before, but it never ceases to amaze. He is obviously keeping his eye on the road pretty well, regardless of what speed he is actually doing. There are a number of interesting events in the film, like when he starts to make a right hand turn and then thinks better of it and carries on - probably another dustcart blocking the road! Paris must have more dustcarts than practically every other city on earth!

 

There is no way that you could do this today - which just makes it another product of a bygone age.

 

On the subject of traffic lights. Here in Germany, traffic lights on junctions which are not so frequented switch off at night. The main road lights go out completely, and the lights in the side road switch over to flashing amber - which means you have to obey the other signage at the junction - which may be "give way" or "stop" depending upon the junction. On the busier junctions, the lights will stay on all night. From memory, in my village there are four sets of traffic lights on the main street. Three switch off after 22:00 and one set stays on all night. This will also happen if the traffic lights fail - it is very unusual for a set of lights to fail completely. Crossing a red traffic light is always an offense - punishable (at least in Germany) by a hefty fine and points.

[trisonic]

Just to remind everyone that Police in the USA will punish everyone going through a STOP sign without positively stopping the same as if they ran a Red light.

 

Best, Pete.

[Belsay Lad]

Irresponsible? Definitely. Great fun? Certainly!

 

As I spend a fair bit of my time in Paris I am well aware of the French motorists' view of speed limits and more relevantly red lights (or the 'vert homme' sign)!

 

So, I would agree with 'Irresponsible - Definitely' but as to 'Great fun-...'? Would you certainly like to be the Gendarme who has to knock on a person's door to tell them that a loved one has been killed by such a twit? (I was originally going to use a vowel much closer in the alphabet to the first in the last word but thought that the Mods might have a fit...)

[Guest dilbert]

The average speed for a car in Paris is about 5kph per hour - the number of tickets issued for parking offences far outweighs those issued for issued for speeding. I find that Marseilles to drive in is worse than Paris.

 

As for bad drivers, they exist in all countries. I find the crap months for driving in France are in July and August on the autoroutes. If not choked by traffic jams, then foreign drivers tend to drive according to habits they have in their countries of residence - not always the best.

 

As for the routes nationales and departmentales (as they used to be annotated), there are few foreign motorists that can explain even a couple of the exception conditions of the (in)famous 'priorité à droite' when this applies to unmarked junctions... dilbert

 

.

[Welly]

Several times when watching the OP's clip, I was muttering "Merde!" and "Putain le bordel!"

[Robert]

So, I would agree with 'Irresponsible - Definitely' but as to 'Great fun-...'? Would you certainly like to be the Gendarme who has to knock on a person's door to tell them that a loved one has been killed by such a twit? (I was originally going to use a vowel much closer in the alphabet to the first in the last word but thought that the Mods might have a fit...)

 

Of course I wouldn't want to be the person who had to make that house call. However, the long and short of it is that nobody got hurt - that is exactly the point that I am making, this is a film from a bygone era. I am not condoning what was done - but the fact is that it was done and filmed for prosperity.

[Padishar Creel]

We had to change again at a small station (Thionville ?) from SNCF to DB for the connecting service to Trier. It was near midnight now - no chance for the connection, what shall we do ? - but DB saved the day, laying on an additional train for the Trier passengers.

 

An eventfull high speed day to Paris, complete with crazy French, crazy Brits, crazy Yanks & dependable Germans. !!

 

Brit15

 

Hallo Apollo,

Please keep that as a fond memory, DBAG is not as passenger friendly as that any more. Nowadays that late arrival would not be considered "their fault" so you would have to find your own way home,

I was in an SBahn last year (the second to last of the day) and an 18yr decided he wanted to "surf" on it, unfortunately for him the 15kV decided it was better to use him than the pantograph and we ground to a halt. 1 hour later the youngster was pulled off the roof (still alive, but only just) - and the passengers were left to find their own way home. Reason? The disruption was not directly caused by DBAG.

The 18yr old survived minus two legs and an arm (- and a huge bill to pay), according to a neighbour who works in one of the nearby hospitals - a cautionary tale.

[Follower]

 

Lelouch was arrested following this film that was forbiden to be

shown and he has refused to give the name of the Ferrari driver.

 

 

 

I bought the DVD when it was released, AFAIK it was Claude driving it; after finishing a film in Paris he was offered the use of one of the first gyro-stabilised cameras. It only had a 10 minute film capacity and he remembered an idea he had some years earlier.... He did station a friend with a walkie talkie at the entrance to the Place d'Etoile (hope I've spelt it right) as it was the one blind junction. The film (lasting all of 9 minutes) was released, but Claude was promptly summoned to the Paris head of Police (Prefecture?) who demanded Claude's licence "I have been ordered to seize your licence". Claude decided not to argue and handed it over. The head of police examined it carefully and then handed it back "But they didn't say for how long. My daughters enjoyed your film!"

I spent many years trying to get a VHS copy of it -without success) and eventually decided that it was an Urban Myth. Then the Daily Telegraph ran an article on it -one of the staff at Spirit Films came across a poor quality VHS copy and felt it deserved better. He contacted Claude who still had the master copy and was happy for Spirit to distribute it. £17 pounds later I had my copy -it really needs a large wide-screen TV or a projector to really enjoy it.

 

Simon.

[Belsay Lad]

 

 

Of course I wouldn't want to be the person who had to make that house call. However, the long and short of it is that nobody got hurt - that is exactly the point that I am making, this is a film from a bygone era. I am not condoning what was done - but the fact is that it was done and filmed for prosperity.

 

Hi Robert

 

However some petrol-heads today might just decide to see if they can recreate it... (not implicating a certain BBC programme you understand)

 

But I accept your point (and there was no intention to criticize), apologies for any offence.

 

Kind regards

Eddie

[Colin_McLeod]

Filmed for posterity!! What posterity?? The streets of Paris could still have been filmed for posterity without the unacceptable risks to lives.

 

 

Edit for spelling.

[Robert]

However some petrol-heads today might just decide to see if they can recreate it... (not implicating a certain BBC programme you understand)

 

Hi Eddie,

 

Yes - I see your point too. No offence intended, or taken!

[Horsetan]

..... the Paris head of Police (Prefecture?) ....

 

It wasn't Clouseau or Dreyfus, then.

[Follower]

 

It wasn't Clouseau or Dreyfus, then.

 

I can hear the former:

"M'sieur Lelouche, your ly-cence sil vous plait."

 

Simon.

[lapford34102]

Hi,

Not getting involved in the rights, wrongs or otherwise of this but some may like this

 

 

Stu