The Wild Racers

A surprisingly artsy AIP drive-in race car movie whose credits are as interesting as what's actually on screen. The great Verna Fields (before "Jaws," etc.) and Nestor Almendros (a favorite DP of Truffaut and Rohmer before lensing films like "Places in the Heart") have editing and cinematography credits. That is a very big deal! And it was fun seeing "Talia Coppola" before she became "Talia Shire," and Mimy Farmer a year before she made Barbet Schroeder's X-rated "More" (also shot by Almendros btw). Fabian was a 1960's dreamboat. He was much "hotter" than Frankie Avalon or Tommy Sands: I never understood why his career never transcended teeny-bopper fare like this. A fascinating curio for connoisseurs of '60s "B" cinema.

As a vintage racing buff, I am drawn to the movie with the vintage cars (more on that) and the views of the classic tracks in their original configurations. This film using the cars and footage from 1968.

The story of an American breaking in to the European scene is not too far-fetched. In real life there were Americans in F1 in the 1960's:Phil Hill, Dan Gurney, Ritchie Ginther, Ronnie Bucknum, Bob Bondurant and Masten Gregory. Like the Fabian character,most of these guys came out of California; but were sports car drivers,not NASCAR.

The story is interesting as the main character is very shallow, not likable and destructive. But I am drawn to the people around him.

About the cars. While they refer to the races a Grands Prix, these are not F1 cars but Formula 2 cars. At that time F2 were very similar to F1, the displacement was 1.6 liters (F1 was 3 liters), narrower tires, and no wings. In 1968, F1 cars had high mounted wings in front and back. Good footage of the cars' internal bits, notably the Cosworth FVA 4 cylinder engine. In the 60's, F1 drivers would often race with the up and comers in F2. Stewart drove Ken Tyrrell's Matras, Rindt drove the Winklemann Racing Brabham, Jack Brabham would field a team of Brabham Hondas to name a few. The cars of the protagonist are the Winklemann Racing Brabham BT-18's with the Cosworth motor.

The race footage was from the actual F2 series at the appropriate tracks.

Today's racing is too corporate and sterile to make a decent film...

'The Wild Racers' as movie is as shallow as its main character Jo Jo Quillico (played by pop singer Fabian) a race car driver living on the edge. Winning a race is his only intention and everything else comes second. Traveling from circuit to circuit, from country to country he conquers the women like racetracks. Until he finds a girlfriend (Mimsy Farmer) who sticks besides him, until she sees she can't get enough love from him.

The story is well written, but the most interesting part of the film is it's style - tilted camera angels and quick cuts - there are barely any shots that last more than 20 seconds, and scenes drive into scenes (we can barely set down at the dinner table when we are already back on racing track). The dialogue is minimal, but use of voice over is rather interesting - two characters are having conversation, then there is the change of the shot and conversation has turned into narration. I guess it has to do something the guerrilla style filmmaking as the crew didn't have permission to shoot on location (everything had to be canned on rush) and mixing it all real racing footage that some was colored from black and white.

Despite pseudo art house style the film carries the mood and atmosphere of '60s Grand Prix racing very well. Not stylistically as pure as lets say 'Le Mans' with Steve McQueen 'The Wild Racers' is still interesting film that any fans of the genre and racing should check out when the chance.

Voice of Fabian was dubbed by Dick Miller who also has brief cameo as pit mechanic, blink an eye and you miss him.

P.S. Although the film is about Formula 1, the cars shown in the movie are actually Formula 2 machinery.

Following THE YOUNG RACERS, producer Roger Corman returns to the European Race Car circuit for THE WILD RACERS, which actually only really centers on one... played by a great singer turned limited actor in American import Fabian, actually decent here since he never has to oversell a contentedly cocky persona...

Deliberately clashing against the progressive 1960's French New Wave influence of Corman's director Daniel Haller, using future JAWS editor Verna Fields for a myriad of jump-cuts from creative camera angles to create a deliberately art-house showcase showcasing a young handsome driver with almost everything...

Except the initial ability to actually win races since he's that secondary blocker with the sole purpose of letting the better driver succeed... which reverses about halfway through...

Yet most of WILD RACERS is a love story between Fabian and an actress who coincidentally held wildly onto a rebellious roll-bar in the previous years low-budget exploitation HOT RODS TO HELL, but blonde beauty Mimsy Farmer (initially hanging out with a young Talia Shire) plays the good girl this time...

Docile, vulnerable but not entirely insecure, she's a seemingly perfect opposites-attract fit for Fabian's moody, borderline verbally-abusive upstart who'd gone through a few girlfriends already, from a lanky French model to ditsy yet likable British lass Judy Cornwell...

And while the best thing here is how the movie itself is made... a kind of speedway BREATHLESS with psychedelic camera tricks along with jazzy music interludes and dance-crazy nightclubs... Fabian and Farmer have enough tension and chemistry to make the audience hope their relationship reaches the finish line.

This movie will BLOW YOUR MIND! I cant believe this movie is seen by very few people it is easily one of the best i have seen in my lifetime. The plot is full of heartwarming love and fast action. The only thing that triumphs the directing is the WRITING! Max House is a great writer and it is very sad that this is his only credit, might as well quit when your at the top i guess. I really wish to see more of Max House I hope he is still doing well and writing lot's! I will keep this review short and brief but i can't say it enough SEE THIS MASTERPIECE PLEASE AND SPREAD THE WORD.

Thanks.