Gone in 60 Seconds (1974)

Directed by H. B. Halicki. Starring H. B. Halicki, Jerry Daugirda, Marion Busia, George Cole, James McIntyre, Markos Kotsikos, Ronald Halicki. [PG]

70s “carmageddon” cult item where a yellow Ford Mustang nicknamed “Eleanor” gets top billing onscreen. (And why not? She easily gives the best performance.) Insurance claims investigator Maindrian Pace (Halicki) moonlights as a car thief and accepts an impossible job boosting and delivering 48 specific vehicles by a tight deadline. Independently produced and crudely-made time-killer (Halicki, who’s also credited as producer and writer, didn’t even bother crafting a real script); best known for its prolonged car chase (lasting roughly two-fifths of the pic’s runtime!), but the episode isn’t smoothly sustained, with frequent cutaways and sheer exhaustion sapping away much of the potential excitement. A handful of vigorous camera shots and (presumably un-faked) stunts/crashes make it worthy viewing for fans of its type, but it’s too soulless and erratic to appeal much to anyone else. Liberally remade in 2000.

54/100