Roger Corman (producer, director, writer) has and always will be the king of the drive-in B movie. For over 50 years he’s been churning out low-budget, independent flicks and almost single-handedly nurtured many of the great actors and directors of the 70s. Both Francis Coppola and Martin Scorsese cut their directing chops in Corman produced films (Dementia 13 and Boxcar Bertha respectively) as well as future acting heavyweights Jack Nicholson and Robert DeNiro.
Death Race 2000, released in 1975, is still one of Corman’s most popular and profitable films released by his studio New World Pictures in addition to being one of the greatest cult/B films ever. Made for $300,000 on desert roads and freeways throughout California’s San Fernando Valley, Death Race was a cheap exploitation film that would predate the success of Rollerball( released later that year with James Caan) and its eerie, pessimistic vision of sports and society. While Rollerball was heavy and bleak, Death Race was laughable and enjoyable.
In the year 2000, the U.S. has become a totalitarian society overseen by the sinister Mr. President who has created the most popular sport ever...The Transcontinental Road Race. It is a nationwide road race from New York to the new Los Angeles where the winner is determined not by who finishes first but by who scores the most points by running over pedestrians.
Among the contestants are Machine Gun Joe Viterbo (a young pre-Rocky Sylvester Stallone), Calamity Jane (former Andy Warhol ingenue Mary Woronov), Nero the Hero (a pre-Kobra Kai sensei Kreese played by Martin Kove), and Nazi-loving Matilda the Hun (Roberta Collins.) However, they pale in comparison to the defending champion Frankenstein ( a gaunt –looking David Carradine at the height of his Kung Fu fame) who got his name due to his having had most of his body parts replaced as a result of so many car crashes. In this particular race though the revolutionary Army of the Resistence has devised a plan to stop the race and ambush the drivers along their routes.
This isn’t award-worthy art but it’s immense fun. The film, directed by cult director Paul Bartel, who also directed cult favorites like Private Parts (1972) and Eating Raoul (1982), is shot in a crude but fast-paced manner that manages to pack more gore and gratuitous T and A (Corman staples) into 78 minutes than most films. The details of the race’s point scoring system are hidden until Stallone has his first kill 15 minuts into the film. The ever-energetic commentator Don Steele, along with other Howard Cossell-ish commentators , are present throughout the film giving Super Bowl-like updates on the race and how much each victim is worth. The older and more helpless the person, the more points they are worth. Watch for a hilarious scene where Frankenstein pays a visit to a geriatric hospital during euthanasia day. The sleek, futuristic car bodies were designed by Corman and Dean Jeffries and fitted onto Volkswagen chasis. Frankenstein’s car, complete with sharp teeth on the front and rear bumpers, is the standout car.
Carradine, in a fetishistic black cape and mask, is a little skinny to be an imposing race car driver but seems to be having fun with Frankenstein in all of his seriousness and grimness. And who knew he could kick Stallone’s ass? The standout here, sadly enough, is Stallone, who Paul Bartel hired after seeing his work in The Lords of Flatbush in 1974. Sly makes Machine Gun Joe a surprisingly insecure, brutish thug who is jealous of Frankenstein’s adoration by his fans. Considering some of his most recent work, Sly’s work here, which includes spouting off to his pretty female navigator Myra such classics as “I think you’re one very large baked potato,” is classic. Also look for future directors Lewis Teague (Alligator, Cujo, Jewel of the Nile, and Navy Seals) as an ill-fated matador and John Landis (Animal House and Blues Brothers) as a mechanic.
The gore is crude but done in an over-the-top, laughable way and, true-to-form for Corman films, there are naked girl catfights and massage rest stops throughout. The social and political satire is biting and surprisingly still relevant. Death Race would serve as the inspiration for several car-chase themed films including the extremely guilty pleasure Cannonball Run films with Burt Reynolds. The trippy, futuristic Clockwork Orange-esque music goes well with the zany action.
The extras include a theatrical trailer, a brief 11 minute documentary on the film “Playing the Game,” and a commentary by Corman and Mary Woronov. The documentary features interviews with Corman, Woronov, Martin Kove, and screenwriter Charles Griffith. Among the topics discussed are the film’s cartoonish nature and violence, its political and social satire as a reason for its long-term appeal, Stallone’s reluctance to bare his ass, and Kove’s decision to play Nero the Hero gay. The commentary covers similar ground in addition to Corman admitting he used Kubrick’s Dr. Strangelove as a template for Death Race and a highly enjoyable reminiscence by Corman and Woronov. Aspiring filmmakers can learn a lot about the day to day struggles of making low-budget, independent films from the commentary as well. Corman knows that fast cars, violence, and the ocasional catfight are guaranteed formulas for success. Thank god for Roger Corman.
Death Race 2000 – Special Edition is available at Amazon . As of yet, there is not a release date for the UK. Visit the DVD’s database for more information.
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