RANKED: The 28 best car chases in movie history

Universal

There's something about a good car chase in a movie that's a joy for the senses.

Maybe it's the incredible talent of stunt drivers (and added visual effects in the last 30 years) that makes you feel you're in danger even though you're comfortably in your seat, or the high stakes of the moment in which the characters we're rooting for will either get out of the situation or have a gruesome finale, but an impressive car-chase scene can make even a mediocre movie a beloved classic.   

The "Fast and Furious" movies have collectively taken the car chase to the next level. To prepare you for the latest movie in the franchise, "The Fate of the Furious" (opening April 14), we decided to look back on the best car chases ever pulled off. 

See where the memorable chases from movies like "Mad Max: Fury Road," "Terminator 2: Judgment Day," and "Bullitt" rank on our list:

28. “The Rock” (1996)

Buena Vista Pictures

Before Michael Bay brought nerve gas to Alcatraz, he had a Hummer wreak havoc on the streets of San Francisco. When John Mason (Sean Connery) tries to make a run for it in the beginning of the movie, he hops into a Hummer, and let's just say he doesn't obey traffic laws. Stanley Goodspeed (Nicolas Cage) is honestly no better in a commandeered Ferrari.

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27. “Lucy” (2014)

Universal

After taking a dangerous synthetic drug that has given her special powers, Lucy (Scarlett Johansson) is on the hunt for the person responsible for making her this way. In Paris she thinks she's got a lead on one of the bad guys through sensing people's data on their devices and thus begins her insane chase to find the person through rush-hour traffic. At one point driving on the sidewalk, she never gets a scratch on her car, but she leaves destruction in her wake. 

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26. “The Italian Job” (2003)

Paramount Pictures

Though the original "The Italian Job" had a great chase with Mini cars, it's the 2003 reboot that really pushed the envelope. The custom-made Mini Coopers featured in the scene in which Mark Wahlberg, Charlize Theron, and Jason Statham race through underground Los Angeles had to be built with electric motors, as combustible engines aren't allowed in the subway tunnels they shot in. And most of the actors did their own stunt driving.

Fun fact: "Fate of the Furious" director F. Gary Gray also helmed this movie.

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