Herbie Fully Loaded

When I was a kid (long ago), I saw all four "Herbie" movies, and I can remember being kind of underwhelmed by them even at that tender age. In fact, I thought the last two of the original four were really lame. So I made it a point to avoid "Herbie Fully Loaded" when it came out. But it came on television recently, and I decided to give it a chance since I'd be seeing it for free.

I was surprised. Now, I will admit that the movie has its share of flaws. It doesn't explain why Herbie, in the time between the previous movie and this movie went downhill as a racer, and why Herbie had been forgotten by the racing community (and its audience) - you would think a Beetle that kept winning races would be remembered by SOMEONE! I could go on with listing its flaws, but I found its charms outweighed its flaws. For starters, the protagonists are very likable, down to earth and not annoyingly goofy. And Dillon's character of the rival racer was not broad and instead more of a realistic villain.

The special effects are a mix of "old school" effects like the original movies used, mixed in with CGI. I actually found the combination worked, blending with each other well.

I'm not saying that this is a movie to actively seek out... but if you come across it while in a silly mood, I think there's a good chance you'd find it an agreeable way to pass the time.

I can sit through this movie once, but I doubt I could make it through a second time. Mildly entertaining mainly for the physical presence of Lindsay Lohan. The fun of Matt Dillon(think Something About Mary), and the re-emergence of a more serious acting Micheal Keaton. This is not the fun romp The Love Bug was but it is watchable. One of my main detractions from the movie was the fact that Herbie had evolved into R2D2 antics for the most part. I was bored with the headlight eyes effects about the second time of the 30 or so times they were used and the bending front fender caused the same reaction from me. Go see this with your little ones, i.e. the "single digit bracket" kids and don't expect a lot from this film.

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When Maggie Peyton (Lindsay Lohan) graduates from college, her father Ray Peyton Sr. (Michael Keaton) gives an used car from a scrap metal yard as a gift, and she takes a 1963 Volkswagen beetle with the number 53. Maggie finds a letter in the glove compartment telling that the bug's name is Herbie and she visits her friend and mechanic Kevin (Justin Long) to check Herbie. They go to a car show where they are challenged by the arrogant champion racer Trip Murphy (Matt Dillon) for a race. Maggie and Herbie win Trip, and the revengeful pilot plots a scheme to take Herbie from Maggie.

"Herbie Fully Loaded" is delightfully cute and a magnificent family entertainment. The story is predictable, corny, but mainly adorable. The sweet Lindsay Lohan is perfect for this type of role, and Matt Dillon performs a great villain. Take the popcorn, join family and friends and have a good-time watching "Herbie Fully Loaded" on DVD. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Herbie, Meu Fusca Turbinado" ("Herbie, My Turbined Beetle")

Maggie Peytton is not overly impressed when her graduation gift from her race driver father is a busted VW beetle. Planning to ditch it at a gathering of car fans, Maggie inadvertently finds herself in a promotional street race with undefeated NASCAR champion Trip Murphy. What nobody knows is that this little VW is none other than former sensation Herbie – sadly now confined to the scrap heap of history (literally). When Maggie wins, Murphy is outraged and sets out to engineer a rematch while Maggie tries to work out quite what it is about this little car that makes her drive so fast.

I think it is important to come into this film as a fan of the Herbie films rather than someone for whom the laws of thermodynamics must be rigidly applied across all film genres. I say this because much of the film is absurd and there will be those wringing their hands about the simply impossible moves that the little car makes, however these same people should also keep in mind that they are watching a film about a mischievous car that is alive. It is important to enter into the spirit of the film and, in fairness, Fully Loaded does help the viewer as much as possible by being wonderfully charming and disarming.

It doesn't really have a bad bone in its body and I must admit that I found it refreshingly clean family entertainment that was easy to enjoy even if it was just as easy to forget. Of course if you're not sold on this charm and find it grating or silly from the start then you should bail out because it will not get easier for you as it gets sillier the longer it goes on. Director Robinson delivers a good clean script really well, not making it post0ironic but totally hitting the innocent charm that made the character so good in the first place. Herbie himself is quite fun but it is the main cast that do the harder job of getting the mood right.

Ignore her real-life personae and just watch Lohan for what she does here and you'll find her performance to be quite good and fitting the film. Keaton, Dillon, Long and Meyer are all solid and provide the film with a professional feel in the cast. Overall then this is a fun and clean family film that is surprisingly charming and effective. Getting into the swing with it is important as the action is very silly at times and it is only if you are feeling it that you can forgive it. For me, I was right there with it and enjoyed it for the simple fun it was.

I took my six year old, his seven year old friend, and a two year old to see Herbie. The options for family films are limited. I am happy to see entertainment for children remain clean and not contain any comments that are meant for adults and not children. The kids loved it. We all enjoyed it. Kids do not focus on the fact that it is not realistic. They both wanted to grow up and have a car just like Herbie. It also brought back fond memories for me due to seeing the original film in my childhood. I found the movie very entertaining and one of the best family films produced in a long time. It was nice to have something other than cartoons to watch. I appreciate the fact that my children are innoccent and I would like for them to stay that way for just a little while. Herbie was well worth the money and I would recommend it for family night out.