Tagarchief: Carsploitation

Gone in 60 Seconds

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

Director: H.B. Halicki
Written by: H.B. Halicki
Cast: H.B. Halicki, Marion Busia, Jerry Daugirda, James McIntyre

Year / Country: 1974, USA
Running Time: 98 mins.

Stunt driver H.B. Halicki ventured into film with this independent flick that features the longest chase scene in film history. Halicki did everything himself; producing, acting, writing, directing and of course performing the many car stunts the film contains. The result is a somewhat unbalanced but nevertheless entertaining piece of popcorn cinema.

The story revolves around Maindrian Pace, a professional car thief who accepts the job to ‘collect’ 48 cars within a week. He and his colleagues start stealing cars all over L.A., but run into trouble when they attempt to nick a yellow Ford Mustang from 1973. Pace has to outrun the entire police force through several states, wreaking havoc wherever he goes.

The lack of story is compensated with car stunts galore, and Halicki knows how to pass on his passion for automobiles. Enthusiasts will revel at the sight of all great classic models on display here. Action fans will certainly enjoy the powerful stunt work, and movie fans in general might enjoy the seventies haircuts, atmosphere and music.

Still it feels a bit empty. Perhaps it’s the lack of personality of the characters, or it might be humor that is missing a bit. In any case it feels like a true ‘friends and family’ movie, which is something all cinema fans should definitely encourage. Besides, there is plenty to enjoy. The build-up is already reasonably suspenseful and once the chase starts, there is barely time to breathe. Halicki certainly deserves credit for realizing his dream and creating a one-of-a-kind movie in the process.

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Biography: H.B. Halicki (1940, New York – 1989, New York), also known as Toby and ‘The Car Crash King’ started his career in the towing business of his family. As a teenager he decided to move to California after losing two brothers. By the time he was 17, Halicki owned and operated his own body shop, while he simultaneously collected a wide range of automobiles. In 1974 Halicki made his feature debut with Gone in 60 Seconds, for which he contributed his enormous collection of cars. Several of those were damaged beyond repair during the shoot. After the film Halicki continued collecting cars, and he became owner of one of the largest private car collections in the world. In 1989 when Halicki was shooting Gone in 60 Seconds 2, he was killed when a telephone pole fell on him during a stunt.

Filmography: Gone in 60 Seconds (1974), The Junkman (1982), Deadline Auto Theft (1983)

Vanishing Point

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

Director: Richard C. Sarafian
Written by: Malcolm Hart, G. Cabrera Infante
Cast: Barry Newman, Cleavon Little, Dean Jagger, Victoria Medlin

Year / Country: 1971, USA
Running Time: 94 mins.

This classic carsploitation movie really has two main characters; Kowalski and a 1970 white Dodge Challenger. That’s right, the same Dodge Challenger used by Tarantino in Death Proof. Kowalski is a born driver who has no real purpose. Except to bring the Dodge from Denver to San Francisco. He drives across Colorado, Nevada and California with the police on his tail who want to bust them for some minor felonies.

Kowalski is assisted by the DJ of a radio station named Super Soul, who provides him with police frequency info. He also entertains his listeners with a groovy rock soundtrack. Through flashbacks we learn more about the cool Kowalski. How he is a Vietnam vet, a former cop, and a professional road racer. Over the years he has lost everything, including his girlfriend. The flashbacks also offer some sort of explanation for his unexpected action at the end, though it remains mysterious.

The excellent race scenes and car stunts alone make this film worth your while. But apart from that, it offers an interesting view on existentialism. It’s about a guy who just drives and only stops to tank, buy some speed or meet the occasional strange and colorful character like an old snake catcher, a pacifist biker and two weird hitchhikers’ who want to rob him. The beautiful landscapes also help in making this a very enjoyable road trip.

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Biography: Richard C. Sarafian (1930, New York – 2013, Santa Monica) was an American screenwriter, actor and director who started his long career by directing episodes for successful western and crime series. In 1981 he produced what is probably his greatest success; The Gangster Chronicles, an emmy-winning TV series about the rise of Lucky Luciano and Meyer Lanski. He also portrayed real-life gangsters Jack Dragna and Paul Castellano himself in the films Bugsy and Gotti.

Filmography (a selection): Maverick (1961, TV episode), Bronco (1961, TV episode), The Roaring 20’s (1961, TV episode), Cheyenne (1961/62, TV episodes), Terror at Black Falls (1962), Lawman (1961/62, TV episodes), The Gallant Men (1962/63, TV episodes), 77 Sunset Strip (1962/63, TV episodes), The Twilight Zone (1963, TV episode), Andy (1965)
Ben Casey (1963-65, TV episodes), The Wild Wild West (1965, TV episodes), Batman (1966, TV episodes), Jericho (1966, TV episodes), The Iron Horse (1967, TV episode), The Guns of Will Sonnett (1967, TV episodes), I Spy (1966-68, TV episodes), Gunsmoke (1965-68, TV episodes), Run Wild, Run Free (1969), Fragment of Fear (1970), Vanishing Point (1971), Man in the Wilderness (1971), Lolly-Madonna XXX (1973), The Next Man (1976), The African Queen (1977, TV), Sunburn (1979), The Gangster Chronicles (1981, TV series), The Bear (1984), Wildside (1985, TV episodes), Eye of the Tiger (1986), Street Justice (1989), Solar Crisis (1990)

Death Race 2000

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

Director: Paul Bartel
Written by: Ib Melchior (story), Robert Thom, Charles Griffith
Cast: David Carradine, Simone Griffeth, Sylvester Stallone, Mary Woronov

Year / Country: 1975, USA
Running Time: 84 mins.

A future race takes place annually whereby the contestants have to kill pedestrians to score points. This is the latest gladiator-like event to please the bloodthirsty crowd.

The main character Frankenstein (Carradine) is a great anti-hero. He’s the most popular driver due to winning a number of previous editions of the race. After losing a few limbs, he has mechanical parts fitted in him that make him an even more efficient racer. With his black cape and mask he looks like a pre-Star Wars Darth Vader. His arch rival Machine Gun Joe is portrayed by a young Sylvester Stallone, who got his name by unloading his machine gun in the audience.

This cult gem from the seventies is produced by Roger Corman, king of the B-movie cheapies. The carmageddon concept works well, and you get to enjoy the characters that go by names of Nero the Hero and Herman the German. The makers obviously had a lot of fun shooting this film, and they never forgot what they were making; a funny, violent action B-movie with some inventive dialogues and situations. Watch this film and you’ll have a great time for sure!

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Biography: Paul Bartel (1938, New York – 2000, New York) majored in theater arts at UCLA and studied film directing in Rome. After getting his first work experience with Roger Corman he directed a number of low budget cult films. He also worked as a writer and an actor. He died in 2000 from a heart attack.

Filmography: The Secret Cinema (1968, short), Naughty Nurse (1969, short), Private Parts (1972), Death Race 2000 (1975), Cannonball! (1976), Eating Raoul (1982), Not for Publication (1984), Lust in the Dust (1985), The Longshot (1986), Amazing Stories (1986/87, TV episodes), Shelf Life (1993), The Comic Strip Presents…(1993, TV episode), Clueless (1996, TV episode)