Review of The Car (1977) by Lotti K — 17 Apr 2009

The 1970's were a strange time. If Stephen Spielberg had had a demented younger cousin who was trying to copy his older relatives' success with JAWS and DUEL, the result might have been something like THE CAR, a film that opens with a SPOOKY quote from Anton LaVey, and then cuts to an (apparently evil?) black roadster as it runs down a pair of innocent young bicyclists. The CAR is apparently out to terrorize a small town for...well, no particular reason other than it's REALLY EVIL. Nobody's driving the thing, it's just zooming around town, lurking, stalking and picking off victims. It's up to the small-town sherriff (James Brolin) and his loyal deputies to try and defend their slice of the desert from a situation that I'm sure no police officer in his right mind expects to face. The main problem with the car, and the reason why it doesn't get a higher mark, is the pacing...there are long scenes of painful dialogue and character subplots that don't go anywhere good sandwiched in between the scenes where THE CAR strikes (The stuntwork and driving is quite well done). Nothing is as effective as the opening scene, which is always a strike against a film, however, there is a 'has to be seen to be believed' scene where THE CAR attacks the town's schoolchildren while they're at a rodeo, and a group of cowboys (!!) sacrifice themselves to distract THE CAR while the kids make it to high ground. (I really like typing THE CAR in capital letters, by the way). Later on, there's a scene that probably inspired Stephen King's CHRISTINE, where THE CAR performs a hit and run on someone while they're IN THEIR HOUSE, and the film's end manages to be a combination of impressive pyrotechnics and ridiculous abruptness. Fans of scary films or popcorn B-movies will enjoy this a lot more than everybody else, as it's one of those films that's probably more fun to talk about than it is to actually watch.

THE CAR.