Grand Theft Auto (1977) or, Crash Bam Boom!

1/10/2021

Grand Theft Auto (1977) or, Crash Bam Boom!

♥♥

Eye-popping auto destruction and speed-loving youths are promised on this dramatic poster for Ron Howard's Grand Theft Auto

A young couple wants to get hitched in Las Vegas, but her rich parents are furiously set against it, so they run off in her father's Rolls Royce. The father however sends his agents out after them, and through the radio bounties get put on their heads.

Grand Theft Auto is written by Rance Howard (The Flintstones (1964-65)) and his son, co-writer/director/star Ron Howard (The Missing (2003)), whose debut it is.

The film starts really well with lots of youthful charm and fun bits, and Grand Theft Auto is made with a child-like, rascally sense of humor. But not far into the flick, it runs out of material, and after the somewhat formulaic 'crisis' for the couple, one begins to be bored. Because Grand Theft Auto mostly consists of windows breaking in extreme slow motion and cars that drive ahead very fast due to being manipulated with fast forward editing, an effect that's used over-zealously throughout this minor vehicle.

Related posts:

Ron Howard: Corman's World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel (2011) - Stapleton's Corman doc. is among the year's best films (interview subject)

2008 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]
2008 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
2008 in films - according to Film Excess
Frost/Nixon (2008) - Howard's political drama is gripping, superiorly acted
The Da Vinci Code (2006) - Howard's first Brown adaptation is a popcorn thriller hoot

2001 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess
Top 10: The best biopic movies reviewed by Film Excess to date
A Beautiful Mind (2001) - John Nash given the Epic Treatment
EDtv (1999) - Phenomenal cast shine in Howard's witty mega-flop

Far and Away (1992) - Howard, Hollywood's sweethearts visit the old West with dull result (co-writer/director)
Backdraft (1991) - Howard's giant, stupid Chicago-set firefighter movie
American Graffiti (1973) or, Cruisin' Modesto '62 (actor)

Watch a TV-spot for the film here

Cost: 602k $

Box office: 15 mil. $

= Mega-hit (returned 24.91 times its cost)

[Grand Theft Auto was released 16 June (USA) and runs 84 minutes. The film was devised as an unofficial follow-up to the similar major hit with Howard starring, Eat My Dust (1976). Shooting took place in California and Las Vegas, Nevada around March 1977. The film grossed impressive 15 mil. $ worldwide. Roger Ebert gave the film a 2/4 star review, in line with this one. Howard returned with 3 TV movies prior to his theatrical return with Night Shift (1982). As an actor he returned in More American Graffiti (1979). Grand Theft Auto is rotten at 23 % with a 4.84/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

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Donald Sutherland has passed away

Born in Canada, Sutherland battled polio as a child. His first credit was in Suspense (1963, TV-series) and his first film was The Castle of the Living Dead (1964). Later credits in his remarkable career include The Saint (1965-66), The Dirty Dozen (1967), M*A*S*H (1970), Kelly's Heroes (1970), Klute (1971), Don't Look Now (1973), 1900 (1976), Casanova (1976), The Eagle Has Landed (1976), Ordinary People (1980), A Dry White Season (1989), JFK (1991), Outbreak (1995), Fallen (1998), Virus (1999), Fierce People (2005), Pride & Prejudice (2005), Lord of War (2005), The Hunger Games (2012), The Undoing (2020, miniseries) and many more. He passed away at age 88. R.I.P.

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Born in Detroit, Michigan, Corman had a sprawling, intellectually hungry life as a youth and young man before arriving with his first film in 1955, Five Guns West. He would follow that with titles such as Apache Woman, It Conquered the World, Attack of the Crab Monsters, Teenage Cave Man, A Bucket of Blood, House of Usher, The Little Shop of Horrors, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Intruder, The Raven, The Terror, The Masque of Red Death, The Tomb of Ligeia, The Wild Angels, The Trip, Bloody Mama and many more. As a producer he was behind almost 500 films. Arguably among the most important filmmakers of the 20th century, Corman passed away at age 98. R.I.P.

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Born in Alabama to deaf parents, Fletcher got her first credits in late-1950s TV-series.She took a 10 year-long sabbatical to devote her time to motherhood after the release of A Gathering of Eagles, but then came back and soon saw her career's most important part, as Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), for which she won her sole Oscar. Later credits include Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977), The Lucky Star (1980), Brainstorm (1983), Two Moon Junction (1988), Cruel Intentions (1999), A Perfect Man (2013) and many more. Fletcher passed away at age 88. R.I.P.

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Caan was born the son of Jewish immigrants from Germany in New York. He got his start on TV in the early 1960s. His credits include El Dorado (1966), The Rain People (1969), Brian's Song (1971, TV movie), The Godfather (1972), - for which he earned his only Oscar nomination, - Slither (1973), The Gambler (1974), Funny Lady (1975), Rollerball (1975), Silent Movie (1976), Hide in Plain Sight (1980), - the only film he also directed, - Thief (1981), Misery (1990), Honeymoon in Vegas (1992), Bottle Rocket (1996), Eraser (1996), Dogville (2003), Elf (2003), Las Vegas (2003-07), Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009) and many more. Caan passed away at age 82. R.I.P.

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1/10/2021

Grand Theft Auto (1977) or, Crash Bam Boom!

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