Gone in 60 Seconds

A guy who has a normal job works an additional sideline as a car thief and ranks among the best in the business. He and his team are hired to steal a large "order" for a powerful client, but right as the last car is being jacked our hero realizes that the cops have been tipped off and he goes to do what he does best - puts the pedal to the metal. This movie has really not much to offer you unless you go gaga over car chases. And if you do and can excuse the highly amateurish production and the thin storyline in the first half then be prepared for a fun ride during the spectacular second half. Our hero tears through five cities in a nice 1973 Mustang leaving a slew of wrecked cars in his wake of high speed mayhem. Going on highways, alleyways, fields, and just about everywhere that a car can go, he goes! Terrific breakneck fun. 7/10 Rated PG for metal crunching mayhem

Crap acting, dodgy voice dubbing, lack of plotting... no matter, the reason for this films existence is highly evident, the stunts are superb, the final chase builds like a classical music piece, starting off small and basic before escalating into a full blown crescendo. The sheer amount of destruction on-screen is astounding, but unlike most car chases this actually shows the consequences, with cutaways of the chase "victims" placed in between the hi-octane spills and tyre squealing thrills. Unlike the recent Nic Cage remake, which purports to be a Ferrari but is actually a Fiat Uno in disguise, this version keeps things simple and lets the action do the talking. Shallow, yes, but you'll hard pressed to find a more exciting car chase this side of Ronin.

I've only seen trailers for the Summer 2000 release of GONE IN SIXTY SECONDS. But the trailers show a big budget, MTV style editing, and big stars. What it didn't show was that this thriller about a master car thief is a remake of this 1974 no-budgeter by auto man Halicki. The 1974 GI60S's charm is that it is very low budget. Some scenes, such as the auto auction in the run down lot, or the Radio DJ's cramped little studio add to some crisp atmosphere. However, the first half of GI60S is rather amateurish (One entire scene is terribly out of focus) and we have trouble following Halicki's unprofessionally written plot. The second half of the film is a car chase that has to be seen to be believed! In 40 minutes, close to 90 cars are destroyed in a massive auto chase spanning several cities, freeways, parks, lots, you just name it. For all it's sloppiness, the original 1974 version of GI60S has a neat charm.