The Car (1977)

Directed by Elliot Silverstein. Starring James Brolin, Ronny Cox, Kathleen Lloyd, Eddie Little Sky, R. G. Armstrong, Elizabeth Thompson, Roy Jenson, John Marley, Doris Dowling, John Rubinstein, Kate Murtagh. [PG]

A small town in the Utah desert is terrorized by a mysterious, possibly supernaturally-possessed car that goes on a murder spree. Surprisingly well-made thriller with lots of great scenery and above-average direction, even faintly echoing Steven Spielberg’s breakthrough movie Duel at times, but its central conceit is a tough one to swallow (or, at the very least, take seriously). Though the car doesn’t get to show off much “personality,” and its design isn’t particularly memorable or menacing besides the low roof and darkened windows, when its presence is felt, the film is modestly entertaining, even suspenseful. When it’s offscreen, however, the pace grinds to a halt with trite dialogue and standard-issue scenes of domesticity and buried guilt and unimportant secrets and plain drab “local character color.” The climax is a dud, too…right up to the fiery denouement that turns it all into a ridiculous joke. Given a sequel more than forty years after this film’s release.

49/100