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“Jaws” in car form is how The Car has been described, so I took this ’70s action film for a test-drive and… oh, I can’t be doing with car puns. I’m too tyred.
The premise is set up in the first part of that sentence, and the film doesn’t hang around too long before a black Lincoln Continental Mark III appears to run over two cyclists at the start, but then given how many cyclists jump red lights and dodge traffic, it probably has a point. But what about all the other victims to come?
Well, some people get killed in this film simply by not getting out of the way of the car when they had ample time to do so and, quite frankly, deserve to snuff it!
It’s a bit ridiculous that the car covers the ground it does, across the Utah desert, without someone trying to trip him up, and it’s annoying that everyone acts like such a wuss over it. Ordinary citizens would at least throw something at the windscreen or, these days, shoot at it. It’s a given that the police would, but drive through certain nefarious cities and it’d probably lose its wheels without even parking!
It’s even more nonsensical about the way that certain car crashes result in explosions. I know this was the done thing back in the ’70s, but these look like someone’s really having a laugh…
They make a feature about how Ronny Cox is in this film, but to me, he does the least out of anyone, sitting about and mooching, even though there are times when he does have reason to mooch. And, in this film, doesn’t James Brolin, as Sheriff Wade Parent, look very similar to the way Christian Bale does these days…
Another point of note for me is that the opening music is very much like The Shining, but not quite, even though this came before.
Overall, “Jaws” in car form, this is not. Given the, ahem, quality of the film, this is more like Jaws 3, so, it’s watchable, but not quite as bad as Jaws: The Revenge.
The film is presented in the original 2.35:1 widescreen ratio and there are times when the print is a bit hazy, but for the most part it looks superb and the desert landscapes looked incredible when spread out across my 50″ screen in anamorphic Panavision, which gives everything a convex look at the edges and works well to heighten the tension when required.
The sound is in DTS HD 1.0 mono, so there’s nothing to get animated about, audio-wise, but it does a good job of bringing the atmosphere home to you.
There extras on this disc are as follows – and are in HD, too:
- Making a Mechanical Monster (27:32): This features an interview with William Aldrige, aka “Bill FX”, who was in second-in-command when it came to the special FX and was given his big break by Jack Faggard for this film. Bill’s a bit annoyed that they didn’t give any credit for special FX to the named individuals, but then goes on to recount the fun times of making this movie and what it was like to be part of a crew 35 years ago compared to the modern equivalent.
- Hitchhike to Hell (10:16): Actor John Rubenstein talks about his time on the set, playing perm-haired hitchhiker John Morris, and his encounter with the car. These days… he has a lot less hair!
- Trailer (2:04): Cropped to 16:9, and stupidly gives away all the deaths!
- John Landis Trailer commentary (2:56): The director gives his take on the trailer.
- Easter egg (2:14): Move the cursor next to the car, on the right of the extras, and the director
talks about the movie, as well. - Audio commentary: from director Elliot Silverstein and British film critic Calum Waddell.
The menu features clips from the film playing with the theme playing in the background.
There are subtitles in English, but for this Special Edition the chaptering is anything BUT special with the usual 12 that so many films get these days. Very lazy.
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FILM CONTENT PICTURE QUALITY SOUND QUALITY EXTRAS |
5 7 6 2 |
| OVERALL | 5 |
Detailed specs:
Cert: 
Running time: 96 minutes
Year: 1977
Released: July 15th 2013
Chapters: 12
Cat.no: FCD856
Picture: 1080p High Definition
Sound: Mono
Languages: English
Subtitles: English
Widescreen: 2.35:1 (Anamorphic Panavision)
Disc Format: BD50
Director: Elliot Silverstein
Producers: Marvin Birdt and Elliot Silverstein
Screenplay: Michael Butler, Dennis Shryack and Lane Slate
Music: Leonard Rosenman
Cast:
Wade Parent: James Brolin
Lauren: Kathleen Lloyd
Everett: John Marley
Amos Clements: R.G. Armstrong
John Morris: John Rubinstein
Margie: Elizabeth Thompson
Ray Mott: Roy Jenson
Lynn Marie: Kim Richards
Debbie: Kyle Richards
Miss McDonald: Kate Murtagh
Metcalf: Robert Phillips
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.