The Car
Encyclopedia
The Car is a 1977 thriller/horror film directed by Elliot Silverstein
and written by Michael Butler, Dennis Shryack and Lane Slate. The film stars James Brolin
, Kathleen Lloyd
, John Marley
, and Ronny Cox
, and tells the story of a mysterious car which goes on a murderous rampage, terrorizing the residents of a small town.
The movie was produced and distributed by Universal Studios
, and was influenced by numerous "road movie
s" of the 1970s including Steven Spielberg
's 1971 thriller Duel
and Roger Corman
's Death Race 2000
.
community of Santa Ynez. Two bikers cycling in the canyon are killed by a mysterious black coupe
. Police are called to the first of a series of hit and run deaths, apparently caused by the same car that appears heavily customised and has no numberplate, making identification difficult. Sheriff Evrett Peck gets a lead on the car when it is witnessed by Amos Clemens after it runs over a hitchhiker four times (going forward, then in reverse, then another repetition for good measure). After the car claims its fourth victim, the town's Sheriff (John Marley
), while trying to kill Amos, it becomes the job of Captain Wade Parent (James Brolin
) to stop the deaths. During the resulting investigation, an eyewitness to the accident states that there was no driver in the vehicle.
Despite a police cordon being placed around all roads in the area, the car enters town and attacks the school marching band as it rehearses at the local show ground. It chases the group of teachers and students, among them Wade's girlfriend Lauren (Kathleen Lloyd
), into a cemetery. Curiously enough, the machine will not enter onto the consecrated ground as Lauren taunts the purported driver that any of the townsfolk have yet to see. Seemingly in anger, the car destroys a brick gate post and leaves. The police chase the automobile along highways throughout the desert before it turns on them, destroying several squad cars and killing five officers in the process. Wade confronts the vehicle and is surprised to see that none of his bullets put a dent on the car's windshield or tires. After trying to open the door, Wade is injured, and the car escapes.
The hunt for the car becomes a personal vendetta for Wade when the automobile stalks and eliminates Lauren by driving straight through her house. Wade's deputy Luke (Ronny Cox
) puts forward the theory that it acted in revenge for the insults hurled on it by Lauren and notes it cannot enter hallowed ground. Wade concocts a plan to stop the car by burying it beneath a controlled explosion in the canyons that lie outside of town. After discovering it waiting for him in his own garage, he is forced to carry out his plans post haste. He is pursued by the car into a mountainous canyon area where his fellow officers have set a trap for the machine, and a final confrontation settles the score with a demonic visage appearing in the smoke and fire of the explosion.
The final scenes show Wade refusing to believe what the group saw in the flames, despite Deputy Johnson's insistence about what he saw.
. Chicago Tribune film critic Gene Siskel gave the film one star and his headline referred to this film as, "The Cinematic Turkey of 1977."
designed by famed customizer George Barris
, who also designed the "Munster Koach
" from The Munsters
and the original "Batmobile
" used in the 1966 television series Batman
.
There were six cars built in six weeks for the filming and all were destroyed during production. Supposedly, a seventh car was built later and displayed for a time at Universal Studios, but was eventually given back to Barris, who later sold it to a private collector in the 1980s.
The late Church of Satan
leader Anton LaVey
was given a "Technical Advisor" credit on the film. His quote: "Oh great brothers of the night who rideth upon the hot winds of hell, who dwelleth in the Devil's lair; move and appear," is given in the opening credits.
The film's main theme, heard predominantly throughout, is a reworked, orchestral version of Dies Irae
.
Footage from this film is seen in the Knight Rider episode "Trust Doesn't Rust", shown at the end when "KARR
" is destroyed by driving off a cliff, a glimpse of "The Car" is seen going over the cliff instead.
Elliot Silverstein
Elliot Silverstein, born in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, on August 3, 1927, is best known for being the director of the movie Cat Ballou.-Career:Elliot Silverstein was the director of six feature films in the mid-twentieth century...
and written by Michael Butler, Dennis Shryack and Lane Slate. The film stars James Brolin
James Brolin
James Brolin is an American actor, producer and director, best known for his roles in soap operas, movies, sitcoms, and television. He is the father of actor Josh Brolin and husband of singer/actress Barbra Streisand.-Early life:...
, Kathleen Lloyd
Kathleen Lloyd
Kathleen Lloyd is an American actress most noted as the leading lady in 1976's The Missouri Breaks opposite Marlon Brando and Jack Nicholson...
, John Marley
John Marley
John Marley was an American actor who was known for his role as Phil Cavalleri in Love Story and as Jack Woltz— the defiant film mogul who awakens to find the severed head of his prized horse in his bed—in The Godfather...
, and Ronny Cox
Ronny Cox
Daniel Ronald "Ronny" Cox is an American character actor, singer-songwriter and guitarist.-Personal life:Cox, the third of five children, was born in Cloudcroft, New Mexico, the son of Lounette and Bob P. Cox, a carpenter who also worked at a dairy. He grew up in Portales, New Mexico...
, and tells the story of a mysterious car which goes on a murderous rampage, terrorizing the residents of a small town.
The movie was produced and distributed by Universal Studios
Universal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
, and was influenced by numerous "road movie
Road movie
A road movie is a film genre in which the main character or characters leave home to travel from place to place. They usually leave home to escape their current lives.-History:...
s" of the 1970s including Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
's 1971 thriller Duel
Duel (film)
Duel is a 1971 television film about a terrified motorist on a remote and lonely road being chased and stalked by the unseen driver of a tanker truck...
and Roger Corman
Roger Corman
Roger William Corman is an American film producer, director and actor. He has mostly worked on low-budget B movies. Some of Corman's work has an established critical reputation, such as his cycle of films adapted from the tales of Edgar Allan Poe, and in 2009 he won an Honorary Academy Award for...
's Death Race 2000
Death Race 2000
Death Race 2000 is a 1975 cult action film directed by Paul Bartel, and starring David Carradine, Simone Griffeth and Sylvester Stallone. The film takes place in a dystopian American society in the year 2000, where the murderous Transcontinental Road Race has become a form of national entertainment...
.
Plot
The film is set in the fictional UtahUtah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
community of Santa Ynez. Two bikers cycling in the canyon are killed by a mysterious black coupe
Coupé
A coupé or coupe is a closed car body style , the precise definition of which varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, and over time...
. Police are called to the first of a series of hit and run deaths, apparently caused by the same car that appears heavily customised and has no numberplate, making identification difficult. Sheriff Evrett Peck gets a lead on the car when it is witnessed by Amos Clemens after it runs over a hitchhiker four times (going forward, then in reverse, then another repetition for good measure). After the car claims its fourth victim, the town's Sheriff (John Marley
John Marley
John Marley was an American actor who was known for his role as Phil Cavalleri in Love Story and as Jack Woltz— the defiant film mogul who awakens to find the severed head of his prized horse in his bed—in The Godfather...
), while trying to kill Amos, it becomes the job of Captain Wade Parent (James Brolin
James Brolin
James Brolin is an American actor, producer and director, best known for his roles in soap operas, movies, sitcoms, and television. He is the father of actor Josh Brolin and husband of singer/actress Barbra Streisand.-Early life:...
) to stop the deaths. During the resulting investigation, an eyewitness to the accident states that there was no driver in the vehicle.
Despite a police cordon being placed around all roads in the area, the car enters town and attacks the school marching band as it rehearses at the local show ground. It chases the group of teachers and students, among them Wade's girlfriend Lauren (Kathleen Lloyd
Kathleen Lloyd
Kathleen Lloyd is an American actress most noted as the leading lady in 1976's The Missouri Breaks opposite Marlon Brando and Jack Nicholson...
), into a cemetery. Curiously enough, the machine will not enter onto the consecrated ground as Lauren taunts the purported driver that any of the townsfolk have yet to see. Seemingly in anger, the car destroys a brick gate post and leaves. The police chase the automobile along highways throughout the desert before it turns on them, destroying several squad cars and killing five officers in the process. Wade confronts the vehicle and is surprised to see that none of his bullets put a dent on the car's windshield or tires. After trying to open the door, Wade is injured, and the car escapes.
The hunt for the car becomes a personal vendetta for Wade when the automobile stalks and eliminates Lauren by driving straight through her house. Wade's deputy Luke (Ronny Cox
Ronny Cox
Daniel Ronald "Ronny" Cox is an American character actor, singer-songwriter and guitarist.-Personal life:Cox, the third of five children, was born in Cloudcroft, New Mexico, the son of Lounette and Bob P. Cox, a carpenter who also worked at a dairy. He grew up in Portales, New Mexico...
) puts forward the theory that it acted in revenge for the insults hurled on it by Lauren and notes it cannot enter hallowed ground. Wade concocts a plan to stop the car by burying it beneath a controlled explosion in the canyons that lie outside of town. After discovering it waiting for him in his own garage, he is forced to carry out his plans post haste. He is pursued by the car into a mountainous canyon area where his fellow officers have set a trap for the machine, and a final confrontation settles the score with a demonic visage appearing in the smoke and fire of the explosion.
The final scenes show Wade refusing to believe what the group saw in the flames, despite Deputy Johnson's insistence about what he saw.
Main cast
- James BrolinJames BrolinJames Brolin is an American actor, producer and director, best known for his roles in soap operas, movies, sitcoms, and television. He is the father of actor Josh Brolin and husband of singer/actress Barbra Streisand.-Early life:...
– Sheriff Wade Parent - Kathleen LloydKathleen LloydKathleen Lloyd is an American actress most noted as the leading lady in 1976's The Missouri Breaks opposite Marlon Brando and Jack Nicholson...
– Lauren Humphries - John MarleyJohn MarleyJohn Marley was an American actor who was known for his role as Phil Cavalleri in Love Story and as Jack Woltz— the defiant film mogul who awakens to find the severed head of his prized horse in his bed—in The Godfather...
– Sheriff Everett Peck - R.G. Armstrong – Amos Clemens
- John RubinsteinJohn RubinsteinJohn Arthur Rubinstein is an American film, Broadway, and television actor, a composer of film and theatre music, and a director in theatre and television.-Early life:...
– John Morris - Kim RichardsKim RichardsKimberly "Kim" Richards is an American actress, former child actress, and television personality. She had roles in several Disney movies in the 1970s and later TV shows in the late 1970s and early 80s before returning to the screen with her sister Kyle Richards on Bravo's The Real Housewives of...
– Lynn Marie Parent - Kyle RichardsKyle RichardsKyle Egan Richards is an American actress and television personality. She is known for returning to television with her sister, Kim Richards, on Bravo's The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.-Early life:...
– Debbie Parent - Doris DowlingDoris DowlingDoris Dowling was an American actress of film, stage and television.After her time as a chorus-girl on Broadway, Detroit-born Doris Dowling followed her elder sister Constance to Hollywood. Her first credited film role was that of Gloria, barfly and drinking companion to fellow alcoholic Ray...
– Bertha Clemens - Ronny CoxRonny CoxDaniel Ronald "Ronny" Cox is an American character actor, singer-songwriter and guitarist.-Personal life:Cox, the third of five children, was born in Cloudcroft, New Mexico, the son of Lounette and Bob P. Cox, a carpenter who also worked at a dairy. He grew up in Portales, New Mexico...
– Deputy Luke Johnson
Critical reception
The film was panned by critics, citing poor dialogue and acting. The film received a 18% approval rating from Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
. Chicago Tribune film critic Gene Siskel gave the film one star and his headline referred to this film as, "The Cinematic Turkey of 1977."
Production
The evil car in the film was a customized 1971 Lincoln Continental Mark IIILincoln Continental Mark III
The Lincoln Continental Mark III was a personal luxury car produced by Lincoln and sold in North America in the 1969 through 1971 model years.-Introduction:...
designed by famed customizer George Barris
George Barris (auto customizer)
George Barris is a designer of custom cars.-Early history:George and his brother Sam were born in Chicago in the 1920s. After the deaths of their parents, they moved to Roseville, California as children to live with relatives. Both were good students, interested in drama, music, and design...
, who also designed the "Munster Koach
Munster Koach
The Munster Koach was the family car that was used in the television series, The Munsters. The show's producers contracted George Barristo provide the Koach. Barris asked Tom Daniel to design the car, and had it built at Barris Kustoms, First by Tex Smith, but finished by Dick Dean, his shop...
" from The Munsters
The Munsters
The Munsters is a 1960s American family television sitcom depicting the home life of a family of monsters. It starred Fred Gwynne as Herman Munster and Yvonne De Carlo as his wife, Lily Munster. The series was a satire of both traditional monster movies and popular family entertainment of the era,...
and the original "Batmobile
Batmobile
The Batmobile is the automobile of DC Comics superhero Batman. The car has evolved along with the character from comic books to television and films. Kept in the Batcave, which it accesses through a hidden entrance, the Batmobile is a gadget-laden vehicle used by Batman in his crime-fighting...
" used in the 1966 television series Batman
Batman (TV series)
Batman is an American television series, based on the DC comic book character of the same name. It stars Adam West as Batman and Burt Ward as Robin — two crime-fighting heroes who defend Gotham City. It aired on the American Broadcasting Company network for three seasons from January 12, 1966 to...
.
There were six cars built in six weeks for the filming and all were destroyed during production. Supposedly, a seventh car was built later and displayed for a time at Universal Studios, but was eventually given back to Barris, who later sold it to a private collector in the 1980s.
The late Church of Satan
Church of Satan
The Church of Satan is an organization dedicated to the acceptance of the carnal self, as articulated in The Satanic Bible, written in 1969 by Anton Szandor LaVey.- History :...
leader Anton LaVey
Anton LaVey
Anton Szandor LaVey , born Howard Stanton Levey, was the founder of the Church of Satan as well as a writer, occultist, and musician...
was given a "Technical Advisor" credit on the film. His quote: "Oh great brothers of the night who rideth upon the hot winds of hell, who dwelleth in the Devil's lair; move and appear," is given in the opening credits.
The film's main theme, heard predominantly throughout, is a reworked, orchestral version of Dies Irae
Dies Irae
Dies Irae is a thirteenth century Latin hymn thought to be written by Thomas of Celano . It is a medieval Latin poem characterized by its accentual stress and its rhymed lines. The metre is trochaic...
.
Footage from this film is seen in the Knight Rider episode "Trust Doesn't Rust", shown at the end when "KARR
KARR (Knight Rider)
KARR is the name of a fictional, automated, prototype vehicle featured as a major antagonist in two episodes of the television series Knight Rider and was part of a multi-episode story arc in the 2008 revived series....
" is destroyed by driving off a cliff, a glimpse of "The Car" is seen going over the cliff instead.
See also
- Killdozer!, a 1974 film about a possessed bulldozer.
- Christine, a 1983 horror film inspired by Stephen King's novel of the same name.
- The HearseThe HearseThe Hearse is a 1980 horror movie starring Trish Van Devere and Joseph Cotten.- Plot :Jane Hardy arrives in the town of Blackford to stay in an old house left to her by a late aunt...
, a 1980 horror movie about a possessed hearse. - "Nightmares"Nightmares (1983 film)Nightmares is a 1983 film with four tales of horror, starring Emilio Estevez, Lance Henriksen, Cristina Raines, Veronica Cartwright and Richard Masur. The film is directed by T.V. veteran Joseph Sargent and began as a television project of four horror stories. The results were deemed too strong for...
, a 1983 movie made up of four separate story segments; the third, "The Benediction", features a travelling priest attacked on the highway by a demonic 4x4Four-wheel driveFour-wheel drive, 4WD, or 4×4 is a four-wheeled vehicle with a drivetrain that allows all four wheels to receive torque from the engine simultaneously...
. - The WraithThe WraithThe Wraith is a 1986 action/science fiction film, directed and written by Mike Marvin. The film was later featured in an episode of Cinema Insomnia....
– 1986 film about a phantom car and driver seeking revenge - Maximum OverdriveMaximum OverdriveMaximum Overdrive is a 1986 American action-horror-science fiction film written and directed by novelist Stephen King. The screenplay was inspired by and loosely based on King's short story, Trucks, which was included in King's first collection of short stories, Night Shift.Maximum Overdrive is...
, a 1986 horror movie, loosely based on the short story "Trucks"Trucks (short story)"Trucks" is a short story by Stephen King, first published in the June 1973 issue of Cavalier magazine, and later collected in King's 1978 collection Night Shift.-Setting:"Trucks" takes place in a truck-stop in the United States...
by Stephen King. - Wheels of TerrorWheels of TerrorWheels of Terror is a 1990 television movie, directed by Christopher Cain, starring Joanna Cassidy and Marcie Leeds. The film originally debuted on the USA Network in 1990...
, a 1990 made-for-TV film about a driverless car terrorizing a small Arizona community.- TrucksTrucks (film)Trucks is a 1997 Canadian and American television thriller film directed by Chris Thomson. It is a remake of the 1986 Action/Horror film Stephen King's Maximum Overdrive.-Plot:...
, a 1997 made-for-TV film, also based on the King short story.
- Trucks
- Phantom Racer, a 2009 SyFySyfySyfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
movie about a possessed race car. - HybridHybrid (film)Hybrid is a 2007 telefilm by Syfy....
, film about a possessed car.