C'était un rendez vous - Claude Lelouch

[stbm5]

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/C%27était_un_rendez-vous

[HRE_Wheels]

CLASSIC. It's been at least 10 years since I've seen this. Thank you for posting it, I love it

[stbm5]

yeah its pretty awesome

[stbm5]

have you read "The Driver" by Alex Roy?

[10"]

Total classic! Mercedes Benz is what he's driving!

https://iedeiblog.com/2011/04/29/cet...es-that-could/

[KingOfJericho]

I'm curious how fast he was actually going. Looking at the ground it seems like he's going at quite a clip (obviously, being so close to it), yet, he seems to be passing other cars and the trees only marginally quicker. Combine that with the fact that this was done with a gigantic, luxurious land-yacht and the video loses so much of its mojo. Now I view it as a "brisk ride through Paris in a Mercedes" rather than a hooning Ferrari. Maybe I've become jaded over the years...

[stbm5]

no he was driving Ferrari 275 GTB

[jmg]

Originally Posted by KingOfJericho

I'm curious how fast he was actually going. Looking at the ground it seems like he's going at quite a clip (obviously, being so close to it), yet, he seems to be passing other cars and the trees only marginally quicker. Combine that with the fact that this was done with a gigantic, luxurious land-yacht and the video loses so much of its mojo. Now I view it as a "brisk ride through Paris in a Mercedes" rather than a hooning Ferrari. Maybe I've become jaded over the years...

Not as fast as you think. The closer to the ground the camera is, the faster the sensation of speed.

Originally Posted by stbm5

no he was driving Ferrari 275 GTB

There was a moment at 5:20 where the car goes up on the curb with little drama. The sporty Ferrari 275 GTB would not have gone up over and down that curb with such grace. Case in point: the Ferrari 275 GTB suspension would have resulted in a jittery bumpy movie. The Mercedes was chosen because of it's softer suspension.

The audio overdubbing is it's most obvious at the end of the film when the car comes to it's final stop. The screeching tires audio continues for a few frames even after the car comes to a complete stop (in fact, the car suspension is already rebounding) then comes to an abrupt edited stop.

I don't think any competent filmmaker would risk damaging a Ferrari 275 GTB, even in 1976, by mounting a huge camera on it and NOT show the audience that it was in fact a Ferrari 275 GTB somehow.

[stbm5]

i stand corrected.

One of the most storied automotive films ever, er, filmed, Claude Lelouch's C'etait un Rendezvous has been cloaked in mystery since the moment it was released. Was it one of Lelouch's F1 racing pals behind the wheel of what often was assumed to be a Ferrari 275GTB? Was it Lelouch himself? No, no and yes. No, it wasn't a racing driver, the car was a Mercedes 6.9 that the director still owns (the Ferrari was dubbed in to add to the thrill factor), and yes, it was Lelouch behind the wheel.

What's more, the girl at the end is Claude's babymomma, and he did in fact have one spotter, when he exits the second tunnel near the Louvre. The spotter was supposed to radio the driver in case there was traffic after a blind turn. Lelouch got no signal, so he hammered it. It turns out later that the walkie-talkie was broken.

The Ferrari was dubbed in after the 6.9's own score was deemed to be not-so-exciting (although, due to the Merc's air suspension, it made an ideal camera car for the touchy gyroscopically-balanced camera), and as Lelouch posits, the run really did happen, but the Ferrari noises make it more exciting. What's more, as Herr Roy — our tipster and translator on this one — points out, yes, there are a few glitches in terms of shift timing in the film (he counts three), but the fact that 98% of them are right-on is frankly pretty amazing.