and something occurred to me. it doesnt seem like there are very many GOOD movies in which a significant part of the substance of the film is about cars. sure there are the obvious ones like the fast and the furious movies, but those were all terrible. im sure there are good ones out there, i just havent heard of them yet. anybody have any ideas what i should look out for next time im at blockbuster, or on netflix or whatever?
Well, the obvious answer is American Graffiti. I agree thjat there is a very long list of baaaaaad car movies, but I still enjoy them.
I'd like to see Aloha Bobby and Rose on DVD someday- I'd imagine it was bad, but I saw it in theater when it was new, and haven't since.
lewbud
Reader
5/8/10 9:54 p.m.
I like the following, but then my taste has been questioned before: LeMans, Grand Prix, Days of Thunder, Driven, Gumball Rally, Cannonballs 1-3, The Wraith, Death Race, Winning, The Italian Job-old and new. There are a few that escape me now. If you want some good racing documentaries: From Dust to Glory, Can-Am Legends, Trans-Am Legends, plus others on my shelf that I can't recall while I'm at work. Most of these are about racing rather than cars, but hopefully they're a place to start.
i like the cannonball movies. from dust to glory is the one with eric bana right? if so, that was good
From Dust to Glory is about the Baja 1000, and is a good movie. Eric Bana's movie is Love the Beast.
oh ya thats right! in that case LOVE THE BEAST was good
I've said it before, and I'll say it again, the only good (fictional) movie about racing is "Grand Prix". "LeMans" is worth watching for the racing footage, but plot-wise, it barely qualifies as a movie. The rest are crap, though "Days of Thunder" has some camp value. "Driven" is so bad as to be hilarious.
But there are plenty of good documentaries.
Bullitt for the chase scene, the original Gone in 60 seconds, Grand Prix, The Wraith.....the list goes on
Streetwiseguy wrote:
I'd like to see Aloha Bobby and Rose on DVD someday- I'd imagine it was bad, but I saw it in theater when it was new, and haven't since.
Don't bother. I've got it on DVD. The Camaro is pretty cool, but the movie makes me wince.
Best "car" movie has got to be "A Man and a Woman".
Light hearted- Gummball Rally, Smokey and the Bandit(1)
Campy but good- Cannonball Run(1)
No plot, just enjoy- Vanishing Point
Anything with McQueen+internal combustion=Infinit win
hahahaha smokey and the bandit! the other day i went to a taco bell and asked for a diablo sandwich and a dr pepper
Vanishing Point
American Graffitti - best ever
Cars, by Disney
OH, and "Greased Lighting" Yeah it is about Nascar but the story line is fantastic.
"Two Lane Blacktop" if you want to see two 2x4s drive the baddest 55 Chevy across the country.
"The Love Bug." Laugh all you want, there's some serious vintage sports cars in that flick.
"The Last American Hero." Thinly disguised story of Junior Johnson.
"Corvette Summer." A story of obsession. Luke Skywalker drives the world's most hideous Tupperware.
"The California Kid." Only TV movie about hot rods that is good.
Nok4
New Reader
5/9/10 3:10 a.m.
Thanks for this question, I remember
The Last Chase(1981)
This is taken from imdb site
It is the future. Evil fascists have forced everyone to recycle and drive electric cars, and have oppressed all those poor people who want to drive Ferraris and smoke cigarettes.
Redline(2007) its bad
Fast & Furious YO , I watched part of one of those movies at a pizza shop and was full mentaly and physicaly in 6 min.
I'm kind of stretching the rules a bit, but The World's Fastest Indian is a must-see.
Luke
SuperDork
5/9/10 6:00 a.m.
^Definitely.
Also, 'No Man's Land' is an '80s movie with Charlie Sheen and a bunch of sweet '80s Porsches.
To me, though, some of the best car films are ones not specifically about cars. Just about any half-decent action movie set/made in the '60s-'70s is usually full of cool old cars.
I still think this movie has it all:
Cool cars, great stunt driving with no CGI, an acceptable story and good acting.
I'll throw both Italian Jobs into the mix (even though the original is miles better than the remake). Also it doesn't really quality as a car movie per say, Ronin has some chase scenes that are so rad it needs to be mentioned.
Not really car 'movies' but excellent gearhead entertainment: the 'Victory by Design' series.
How about 'Bullitt'? Not a car flick per se but a fantastic chase scene. The Dirty Harry movie 'The Dead Pool' has several scenes involving an RC car with a cool chase in San Francisco.
any time jason bourne is operating a motor vehicle on screen = win