La grande casse

If you've seen the remake of Gone In 60 Seconds (not a bad movie either) then you must see this outstanding original. Unfortunately, a movie nowadays could never be done like this. H.B. "Toby" Halicki had a dream and he certainly accomplished it here. He must have had more connections than the Gotti Family. It's good to have connections. You take care of people and they take care of you. Toby certainly took care of people and was given the freedom to make this high octane movie the way he wanted to. He had a magnificent collection of cars, among many other items, and used them all in this movie. He bought cars simply to destroy in the movie. He did his own amazing stunt driving, produced, directed, and everything in this movie. Though no one was a professional actor everyone performed well. This isn't an oscar-winning movie, but it's certainly amazing to see what had to be done to make this movie happen. I think this movie is slowly starting to become a cult classic. I can find it in any store nowadays, along with his other few great movies. If you're a fan of the car chase, you'll love this movie for the realism of the impressive 40 minute car chase at the end of the movie. It is AWESOME! Best thing since Bullitt with Steve McQueen. It's great considering you didn't have the special effects. Enjoy the movie! It's a must see!

Hey guys, if you want to REALLY enjoy this flick, watch the horrific remake first. You had to be young in the mid 70's to remember the hype that went with this flick. A total B-Grader that had audiences (including me and my 19 year old wife) queued up around the block.

Considering its microscopic budget, H B Halicki delivered precisely what audiences wanted to see - truck loads of cars smashed up! No more no less! No-one handed over their (then) $5 expecting to see Sir Laurence Olivier do Hamlet, they just wanted some serious fender-bending and this they got!

Admittedly I suspect most people who own the video or DVD these days fast-forward to the actual 40 minute chase each time they load it up. I am actually watching it as I compose this critique! (Right at the sequence at the end where Harley pulls off the big swapperoo at the car wash!) Absolute stand-outs are the incredible smash on the freeway when Halicki takes out the power pole at 80 mph plus and the unimproved-upon final scene as the Mach-1 leaps several cars at the intersection. That shot, lovingly photographed from multiple slow-motion camera angles was worth the ticket price alone. The climactic scene in the 2000 version is just plain wimpy!

The plotline for the film is remarkably simple. Man steals cars for a living! For trivia fans who may NOT know. H. B. Halicki died during a stunt filming the sequel GONE IN 60 SECONDS : THE JUNKMAN which features arguably the greatest car stunt of all time. (Sorry, not telling!!)

Most movie buffs will be more familar with the remade version starring Nicholas Cage. This movie however is so different and far far away from the remake. The format is the same. Very slow moving for its first segment with lots of jumping around and pointless scenes which have no relation to the plot and a minimum amount of dialogue. The finale of the movie is probably the ultimate in car chase scenes in history. A lenghty car chase with many smash ups on involving police cars. ( these were real members of the public who agreed to appear in the movie, but the cars were specifically bought, 150 in total) is a joy to watch and reminiscent of an episode of TV series "CHIPS".

Worth a look for those who want to make a comparison to the recent movie or those into high automative thrills so to speak. I like it beacuse it was so badly acted, so bad that it becomes enjoyable hokum. The DVD which I rented of this a few months ago while in Canada has behind the scenes footage which is worthy of note. Look out also for Gone in Seconds 2 made in 1982 starring Christopher Stone

This was the seminal movie that raised publics awareness about automobile security. Back then nobody knew actually fast a car can be heisted. Gone in 60 seconds said it all in its title and people became aware how vulnerable their prized possessions were. Now because of this, we have an entire industry dedicated to protecting automobiles.

Looking at this movie is shocking in a way because it shows how "raw" the society was back then. I really love the movie because I can see the nostalgic landscape of Los Angeles shown in all their glories. I can catch some of the landmarks that exists even today. The "cars" are lavish for back then. Pantera, Mangusta, Daytona, Rolls, and of course the '73 Mustang. Very cool.

There's something primal about this movie. Maybe because the production is so basic. There's no special effects, or attempt to make the characters pretty. It feels like drinking water right out of the faucet. This rawness makes this movie moving in a way like no other movies I've seen recently.

This is one heck of a movie, and you owe it to yourself to see it at least once.

It's amazing what could be done with a tiny budget and no digital effects. I watched this after having seen the trashy remake, and expected a similar degree of dumb wisecracks and hackneyed sub-plots.

I was impressed, however, to discover real talent behind the camera. The plot is simple: a car thief has to steal 40 fancy cars in a very short time. Using a combination of skill, insider knowledge of the insurance business and just sheer brass, the protagonist and his pals start their automotive harvest. Everything seems done and taken care of, when everything goes to hell at the last moment, leading to what surely be the longest car chase put to film.

The best thing about this movie is its low-budget feel. Many of the early scenes are almost mimed, with voices overdubbed later; you don't see actual dialogue, just hear it on top of the action. But as things progress, it begins to show more polish, and by the time we get to the big chase, you get what appears to be the entire 7th Cavalry Division in squad cars chasing one li'l yellow Mustang.

A very smart touch during the big chase was to frequently cut to the aftermath of car crashes, with wounded cops and civilians being dragged from burning cars and hustled away in ambulances -- it added an edge to the film, to show there are actually consequences to these actions (and how often is that shown on the big screen?).

Aside from the marvelously-choreographed action sequences, there are many moments of great wit, which I won't describe so's not to spoil them.

All in all, a brilliant piece of film-making, made not with glitz, glamor, star-power or special effects -- just sheer talent (and pretty cars, o'course!).