There’s plenty of terrifying automotive Halloween references, but when it comes to cars, the car from The Car might just be the car. The Car was a strange 1977 horror movie about a murderous car that was highly sensitive to being insulted and appeared to drive by itself.
In addition to seemingly being able to become offended, the car also appeared to be unable to drive onto hallowed ground, like a cemetery, allowing the people the car was tormenting an opportunity to taunt the machine:
The distinctive-looking sinister car was based on a 1971 Lincoln Continental and heavily customized by George Barris. The roof was chopped, the fenders increased in size and height significantly, new massive bumpers fitted, incredibly dark tint, and more.
Barris’ own site gives some interesting details about the car, especially the telephone pole bit at the end of the second paragraph there (emphasis mine):
There was a dynamite-charged telephone pole in there? I can’t quite picture in my head what’s being described here; was the pole used to somehow keep the car intact and rolling?
Top was chopped 4 inches with all black transparent windows. Full body roll bars installed over and around stunt driver. A steel tube canon was installed on passenger side which had a telephone pole inside and steel cap which housed dynamite and black powder. When the stunt man rolled the car he would trigger the tube telephone pole by igniting the dynamite which drove the pole into the ground and roll the car 5 times. Finished with 20 coats of black pearl lacquer. A total of four were made.
Anyway, this is one scary car, and I’m pretty sure I heard that it saw a picture of you online and figured out your address. Okay! Enjoy your day!
I assume it’s all Newtonian physics. For every action (force) in nature there is an equal and opposite reaction. The force that blasts the mass of the pole downward also acts against the car in the opposite direction, causing it to roll.
Presumably it wouldn’t work as well if the explosive was just pushing air.
Jack Nicholson overdid it at least a little, often a lot, in just about everything he did. He was able to get away with it because so many of the characters he played had a violent temper.
Most actors of their generation over-do it because even after years of doing it, they’re not accustomed to well-directed cinema and the tight camera shots that go with it. They’re still doing stage acting. I think many of the directors they work with are still “stage minded”, too.
After finally seeing the movie a few years back, I see it as mildly amusing, in an “I was scared of “THAT?!?” way.
Now, the only cars that scare me are affordable used BMWs.
*(Maybe a little alcohol; I don’t remember real well)
You do not have to look closely at all to see the cannon blast in that shot, or the limp mannequin dressed like a Nazi tied to the handlebars.
https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a15368601/hal-needham-famed-stuntman-and-cannonball-run-director-dies-at-82/
The western setup was key…to the extent it works, it wouldn’t at all if it were set in an urban area.
Like how the Star Wars movies got marred (the first time I mean) with the prequels’ crappy “scientific” explanation of Jedi powers. Unnecessary, clunky, and in the end, detracting from our enjoyment.
I would have thought he meant “cannon” but if Barris himself said otherwise, I guess that makes it canon.
Definition of “cannon” : any device for propelling a substance or object at high speeds (Yep)
The guy ends up blowing his whole budget, then going over, and the work is only about 1/4 of the way finished… the last time they show the car on the show they’re pushing it into long term storage.
I wonder whatever happened to that car and that guys poor financial choices.
Actually, come to think of it, they might have also been going for that scene in Americathon where Meat Loaf fights a car
It’s also nearly completely un-google-able. There was a brief moment where I wanted a model kit of it, but I realized it would be nigh impossible to search “the car model” and return halfway meaningful results.
https://bit.ly/NotThatUnGoogleable
I’d loved the description of Ed Begley Jr’s electric motor, the most even propulsion system ever conceived!
Even though it didn’t come up much in the show.
