What's the greatest car movie ever?

I'm not an endurance racing guy or a European car guy, but, man, Le Mans has to be pretty high up there for me. It's got lean, minimalistic storytelling, a lot of it told through ambient background conversation, the sounds are great, it's got some interesting artistic shots, Steve Mcqueen is his usual steely-eyed, tight-lipped, badass self.

Ford vs. Ferrari takes a few storytelling detours and shortcuts and some artistic license, but it's still a terrifically-told story, the actors all nail their roles, and even people who aren't car people can really enjoy that film.

Smokey & The Bandit, pure comedy gold, and it made the Trans Am an icon.

Mad Max: Fury Road, it's just....epic.

In the "so bad, it's good" category, Cobra with Sylvester Stallone. He wheels a hot-rodded '49 Mercury like an absolute berkeleying madman and there's some seriously brutal crashes, while spewing out gems like "You're the disease and I'm the cure."

Definitely LeMans. It's got Steve McQueen, Ferraris and Porsche 917s. Not much of a plot, but the footage is beyond belief. This is from an era of racing that will never be seen again.

Vanishing Point. Minimalist. Kowalsky is done with humanity but you don't know why. Insert your own criticism of humanity here. Vintage Dodge Challenger. Western roads. Naked woman on dirt bike. Funky radio DJ. 

Of course he dies at the end.

You're all wrong the correct answer is:

Car Wash

VolvoHeretic said:

I can't lie, its Herbie the Love Bug. Great vintage cars, even a Volvo 1800.  Some might say Bullet, but if you watch the car chase between the Mustang and the Charger flying through the streets of San Francisco, in every scene there is the same little green VW that is faster then either of those two cars in order to somehow be in every scene. Plus I cried a little at the end of Herbie. Obviously, Peter Thorndyke (Villain) is played by Frenchy because of his driving of an XKE. Am watching it right now on Disney +.

So tough to outrank The Love Bug. It's cute, it's funny, it's sad, it's cuddly. It's a story about love, family, underdogs, teamwork, beating bullies and so much more.

And it makes you seven again. 

I've probably seen that movie 100 times.

My youngest son was not physically able to leave the house at one point and he watched that movie every day, sometimes twice. He would get so excited and cheer him on, go Herbie, go, even after the tenth time he'd seen it that week.

We're all forgetting:

I'm a big fan of Burt Reynolds car films. 

Hooper, Smokey and the Bandit, Cannonball Run, Stroker Ace.

Also a fan of the Love Bug films and the Blues Brothers films.

For me, it's less about the cars and more about the stunts. 

Peabody said:

I've probably seen that movie 100 times.

My youngest son was not physically able to leave the house at one point and he watched that movie every day, sometimes twice. He would get so excited and cheer him on, go Herbie, go, even after the tenth time he'd seen it that week.

 

That's really sweet. My kids are 5 and 8 now it might be time to show them the love bug. 

Ya'll missed a great one (also seen this about 100 times)

In reply to Peabody :

I've done the "first gear......second gear......" but nobody gets it.   

Freaking hilarious.

BradLTL said:

I'm personally partial to LeMans and Gran Prix, but I'll say...

Ford v. Ferrari

It's a great movie for sure, but where it wins over all the others is that is kindles interest from an audience that may not usually watch a movie about motorsports or even motorsports directly. The acting and humor make it so even my wife will make it through a sitting. So, it's gotta be the winner. 

Agree with the Ford v. Ferrari. It got my GF sucked in and into endurance racing. The politics at the end also were a great way to explain modern IMSA and ACO rules regarding driving ratings and BOP. 

I have a soft spot in my heart for Days of Thunder, even if it is just the NASCAR version of Top Gun. If you listen to Dinner with Racers featuring Dr. Jerry Punch, he wrote most of the movie too LOL. 

Stroker Ace and Smokey and the Bandit are excellent choices as well. 

I love all the Herbie movies, watched all of them a ton as a kid to compliment my obsession with Days of Thunder. 

I'm a sucker for the first two Fast and Furious movies. It shined a light on the import car culture that helped it explode even more, even if the acting, story line, and mods were all tasteless. It's still a classic. 

I think Rush is brilliant too

The cinematography of Le Mans and Gran Prix win it for me though. 

In reply to Datsun310Guy :

Hey man, I didn't know your name was Alex

In reply to Peabody :

???

It's a quote from the movie

While I love them most car movies are incredibly lame.

I'll watch Gran Prix every time it's on but the whole psychedelic video music montage in the middle of the film really needs to go.

I find Le Mans to be the one I like most.

Now as far as things like Death Race 2000........those are so bad you can't help but love them.

ddavidv said:

Worst movie ever made that happens to have cars in it:  plenty of contenders, but Two Lane Blacktop is probably my top pick.  Pointless, dumb story with wooden acting and nothing much ever really happens. I think there are a couple cars in a few scenes, but anyone who thinks Bullit is a dud with a car chase ought to look harder at this gawdawful mess of a movie.

Glad to see there are others who feel this way.  Two Lane Blacktop is The Big Lebowski of car movies.   The people who like it do so for indeterminate reasons or "for the culture" nothing more.  FWIW I like The Big Lebowski but I understand why most people dont get it.   I found nothing redeeming about Two Lane Blacktop other than a couple of mildly interesting cars.

In reply to Peabody :

Time to watch the movie again 

I haven't read all of the posts so i don't know if anyone mentioned this film,  but I recommend "The Racers" a 1955 movie starring Kirk Douglas.  I haven't seen it in over 10 years and I can not find it on any of the cable networks.   The story is about Grand Prix racing in the fifties with shots of racing cars from that period.