Get Revved Up About Car Flicks


Word Count:
579
Keywords:
AUTOMOTIVE, DINING/ENTERTAINMENT, GENERAL INTEREST, SPRINGONTHEROADMICROSITE, UK, CAN, MARCH 2010, MARCH 10

It's the season for putting the top down, turning up the radio and cruising the country's highways. Watch one or more of these car-themed movies to put yourself in the mood for some time behind the wheel.

Thunder Road (1958): Lucas Doolin, played by Robert Mitchum, comes home from the Korean War and takes over the family's moonshining business. He has to avoid big-city gangsters and the police in the process.

Bullitt (1968): Steve McQueen stars as the San Francisco cop looking to find the kingpin who killed the witness under his protection. The actor did much of the driving of the '68 Mustang in this movie, leaving only the riskiest maneuvers to his stunt double.

American Graffiti (1973): A coming of age movie set in the 1960s about four teenagers going off to college. They spend one last summer cruising the Sunset Strip and getting into trouble. Stars Richard Dreyfuss, Harrison Ford and Ron Williams. This movie was directed by George Lucas of "Star Wars" fame.

Smokey and the Bandit (1977): For the '70s generation this is the definitive car movie, with Burt Reynolds at his best in the starring role. An iconic Trans Am steals many of the scenes, as does a hilarious Jackie Gleason as Sheriff Buford T. Justice.

Mad Max (1979): The movie that made Mel Gibson a star was a low-budget Australian flick about a murderous motorcycle gang and a futuristic cop who takes it personally.

The Cannonball Run (1983): Eccentric competitors engage in an illegal cross-country car race. A who's who of stars, including Burt Reynolds, Jackie Chan, Farrah Fawcett, Dom DeLuise, and Dean Martin star in this action-packed flick.

Christine (1983): Steven King's book brought to life centers on pure evil embodied in a 1958 Plymouth.

Back to the Future (1985): While the starring car is out of commission for most of the movie, the tale of a 1980s teenager who travels back to the 1950s in a time-leaping DeLorean remains memorable to this day. Michael J. Fox stars as Marty McFly, the time-traveling star.

Ronin (1998): Former special forces soldiers and intelligence operatives now working as mercenaries embark on a new mission: retrieving an important suitcase from a man who is about to sell it to the Russians. Ronin is the Japanese word for a Samuri with no master. All of these men are Ronin, with their own agenda ... making money. Stars Robert DeNiro and Jean Reno and featuring what many consider to be film's greatest car chase.

Gone in Sixty Seconds (2000): A retired car thief must get back into the business, stealing 50 cars in one night to save the life of his brother. Stars Nicholas Cage and Angelina Jolie.

The Fast and the Furious (2001): An undercover cop infiltrates the underbelly of Los Angeles street racers. This movie spawned a series of sequels with more automotive special effects than substance.

The Italian Job (2003): Foreign car afficionados will enjoy the chase scenes in this movie about thieves attempting to pull the heist of their lives. Mark Wahlberg and Charlize Theron star in this remake of the 1969 classic.

Cars (2006): The animated PIXAR film about a young hot rod, Lightning McQueen, who gets waylaid in a one-horse town off Route 66 en route to a big race. Owen Wilson, Bonnie Hunt,  Paul Newman, and Larry the Cable Guy lend their voice over talents.  SC103160