The Van

It may seem like a dumb sex comedy from the 70's but it's more like a window to the decade of decadence.This movie has it all!Sex,pot smoking,a car wash,super-cool vans,cool clothes,a pimp,hookers,van racing,the continuous playing of Chevy Van and other Sammy Johns songs and more!If you want to know what people were really doing in the 70's,get this movie.It will make you want to go FUN TRUCKIN'.

...this is, above all else, the typical Crown International Pictures drive-in (read "passion pit") programmer. The 1975 Sammy Johns hit record "Chevy Van" is heard repeatedly on the soundtrack (this movie has even been reissued with the title CHEVY VAN), despite the film's title vehicle being a Dodge. Danny DeVito makes only six minutes of on-screen appearance, but countless VHS reissues falsely credit him as the star of the flick. The movie is a comparatively sexist morality tale -- will Bobby find sexual satisfaction through the one-night-stand his customised van facilitates, or must he wait until Tina, the girl of his dreams, gives him the time of day? Still, it is representative of the prevailing carnal dream of male American high schoolers of the time, and on that basis alone THE VAN has, almost in spite of itself, become an artifact of the period that must be referenced in any honest retrospective of the period's popular American cinema...

The plot, as much as there is one, is about a guy buying a van to get laid, then getting laid. That's pretty much it. The main character has a goofy grin on his face 90% of the time and the music is painfully literal, but you know what, this is a cute 70's time capsule with the fashion, locations, cars, and hairstyles. Not gonna win any awards, but still worth a late night watch.

Coming-of-age fare from the 70s; you know that period where a new van supposedly meant high living, fast girls, and tons of laughs. Hmmm. Anyway, The Van is not entirely bad. I mean let's be realistic. This film wasn't trying to be anything grandiose or even a cheap imitation of American Graffiti. Thank goodness because it would fail miserably. A teen-aged Stuart Goetz, giving a very energetic performance, works at a carwash and finally saves enough to get his loaded van. It seems to have everything in it including a water bed, mirrored ceiling, and a toaster. The van symbolizes this teen's ability to get women to sleep with him. All he does is mention he has a van in some instances. Well, naturally this ploy doesn't work all the time and romance buds with a girl that doesn't seem all that impressed with his wheels. The film is very formulaic and has its expected dose of naked girls and sexual situations. Nothing special here but oddly the film has heart. Goetz, if nothing else as he bobs his head up and down and side to side through most of the film wildly grinning, adds a life to this film that would otherwise be even more irritating. It is this energy which also makes him get quite annoying after awhile as well. Certainly a Catch 22! The other cast members are nothing special. Danny Devito; however, has one of his first roles as Goetz'z boss. Connie Lisa Marie as a roughneck's squeeze is gorgeous. The hit song "Chevy Van" plays throughout the film. Not a bad way to take one down memory lane, even if it is an askewed point of view.

this film is one of lifes little pleasures...................and it is a must see for fans of the street car flick, its about a teenager who blows his entire college savings on a coustom chevy van as a way to lure girls in for wild sex parties. there are 2 versions of this film the edited version and the original version, unfortunately the edited version is the only one that remains in circulation. the original version included several nudity scenes,and some pot smoking scenes. the re-released version has all those scenes removed. however there is some great 1970's music in this film - and its funny to watch --- I never knew Danny DeVito was ever that Young. this is a fun movie and its a perfect break(getaway)from the period dramas and war movies that I love so well. The most memoriable thing about this film is it's theme song. --- even if you dislike this film, you will still find yourself walking around for several days singing the theme song.