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“Cars” Races to Victory Lane at the Box OfficeBy Wm. ‘Bill’ J. Jinkins
Cars debuted on June 9th in the North America market to a $62.8m weekend gross. As of the second weekend Cars was still very much in the lead against Jack Black’s Nacho Libre. Other release dates for major international markets have been set during the summer season: France on July 12; Germany and Switzerland on July 13; the UK and Spain on July 14; Japan on July 15; and Italy on September 1. Commenting on the announcement of release dates, Dick Cook, chairman of The Walt Disney Studios said, "The move from November 2005 to June 2006 makes perfect sense. Cars is the quintessential summer film for audiences of all ages. It has a fantastic story full of action, adventure, comedy, heartfelt emotion with cutting edge animation and incredible voice talent." Cook continued, "In the vein of Finding Nemo, we feel the movie will have legs throughout summer and beyond." Cars, the seventh animated feature film to be created by Pixar Animation Studios as well as the first to be released by Walt Disney Pictures, is directed by Pixar's two-time Academy Award-winner John Lasseter, who directed Toy Story, A Bug's Life, and Toy Story 2. This heartfelt G-rated flick is not merely for wee ones, car people or racing fans – anybody of any age group will enjoy this tender story that conveys several meaningful messages including that no man is an island as well as how the human race is destroying the landscape and middle America for the sake of progress. However gearheads will appreciate the unprecedented level of detail, even for Pixar. The movie is also a who’s-who ensemble of actors and notables lending their voices, either as main cast members or in cameos. Whereas Toy Story focused around toys that came to life around living beings it’s strictly a world of inanimate objects here (i.e. all things mechanical), sans any sight of homo sapiens, animals, insects and the like. However the truly ingenious element is how well Pixar mates each individual persona with its intended vehicle. You’re barely into the story before you realize how well these cars actually come to life. The story is centered around Lightning McQueen (voiced by Owen Wilson), who is a young hotshot, somewhat cocky but likeable, modern-day stock car. In his rookie year on the circuit, Lightning feels he doesn’t need anyone but himself to make it to the top, deserving all the perks upfront (not unlike a number of ‘young guns’ that have grace the NASCAR circuit past and present). Despite the obvious, ‘Lightning’ was not named in honor of the late legendary actor turned racer Steve McQueen, Official word from Pixar is that he is named for Glenn McQueen, a former employee who died at age 41 of melanoma during the development of Cars. Whereas we’ll accept that answer we still can’t believe that Steve McQueen’s DNA doesn’t lived somewhere within Lightning as well. Without giving away the plot McQueen finds his way (in transit to a big race in California) off the beaten path in the small dried-up town of Radiator Springs, located on the old Route 66 in Carburetor County, somewhere in the desert southwest, presumably Arizona (off of I 40). The few citizens left in Radiator Springs are the main ensemble and include the sheriff, Doc Hudson, Sally Carrera, Flo, Ramone, Filmore, Sarge, Luigi, Guido, Lizzie, Red and last but certainly not least the town’s most colorful character, Mater. The sheriff, voiced by Michael Wallis, is a black and white1949 Mercury squad car who likes to keep law in Radiator Springs by hiding behind billboards waiting for violators. While not extensive, Wallis’s filmology ironically includes hosting the documentary Route 66: A Nostalgic Ride Down America's Mother Road from Chicago to L.A. Doc, voiced by Paul Newman , is a 1951 Hudson Hornet coupe wise beyond even his years. Doc doubles as the local physician (i.e. mechanic) and municipal court judge. However a clouded secret brought him to Radiator Springs that actually was reality in that era of the Hornet’s existence. Sally, voiced by Bonnie Hunt, is a sexy 1992 powder-blue Porsche 911. She’s a relative newcomer to Radiator Springs that owns the newly refurbished Cozy Cone Motel, a motorcourt with traffic-cone huts (i.e. garages) resembling the various teepee establishments found along the old highway route. Hunt is better known for her parts playing the mom in Beethoven (I & II) with Charles Grodin and Cheaper by the Dozen (I & II) with Steve Martin, as well as the brief 1995 CBS series Bonnie Hunt Show. However this is not the first time for Hunt to lend her voice for a Pixar film, having appeared as Rosie in a Bug’s life and Flint in Monster’s Inc. Flo is a dazzling 1950s era dream car voiced by Jennifer Lewis. She owns the local filling station that emulates a Fifties drive-in restaurant, complete with gas pumps at every bay. Lewis is no stranger at lending her voice to animation, having appeared as Mowtown Turtle in the 2004 Shark Tale. Ramone, voiced by Cheech Marin, is a customized low-rider 1959 Impala hardtop coupe. He owns the local custom paint and body shop. To pass the time away he repaints himself several times during the picture. Marin gets to reprise his old East L.A. persona, giving us an affectionate remembrance of his earlier days as half of the comedy duo Cheech and Chong. George Carlin is perfect as Filmore, a vintage ‘spaced-out’ VW microbus complete with peace signs and flower stickers. Carlin has an opportunity to reprise his old “Hippie Dippie Weatherman” persona. Incidentally the name Filmore recalls the famed Fillmore West and East ballrooms, sites of a series of seminal rock, jazz and blues concerts that were held on both coasts during the 1960s. Sarge, a WWII era army jeep, is voiced by Paul Dooley. This ‘by the book’ military retiree owns the local army surplus store and has the misfortune to be neighbor to Filmore. You can only imagine the irony of that scenario. Besides appearing in many movies, including most notably Popeye, Dooley has appeared as a variety of recurrent characters on numerous television shows, including My So-Called Life, Dream On, Grace Under Fire, and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine where he played the recurring role of Enabran Tain. He guest starred in other primetime shows like Sabrina, the Teenage Witch and Desperate Housewives. Luigi, voiced by Tony Shalhoub is a vintage Fiat 500 and proprietor of the local tire store He is assisted by Guido (voiced by Guido Quaroni), who strikingly resembles a vintage three-wheel BMW Isetta. Though Lebanese by ethnicity Shalhoub gets to reprise his familiar Italian voice from his role as the cabbie "Antonio" in the TV sitcom Wings. While serving in a far less visible spot, Lizzie, voiced by Katherine Helmond, is the ‘Tin Lizzie’ widow of Stanley, a long deceased Steamer. Helmond is better known for her role as Jessica Tate on the wacky 1970s-80s TV series Soap. Mater, an old rusty tow truck. voiced by Larry the Cable Guy, runs the town’s wrecking yard. With the help of this redneck blue-collar comic’s humor Mater instantly becomes the hit of the show. Mater has the movie’s most humorous, though dumb redneck, lines. Thankfully Mater’s alter ego (Larry, TCG) is successfully able to tone down his shtick to fit G-rated audiences. His only off-color line has the feel of ad-lib, when he queries “He did what in his cup?” In fact it’s almost too ironic how Marin, Carlin and Larry TCG - comedians known for their raunchy, R-rated bits - all appear in this family-oriented picture. There are several subtle moments not to miss, for instance when Sarge blows Reveille the screen is supplied with a mesa more appropriate for Utah than Arizona. However the landscape profile resembles that of the Cadillac Ranch outside of Amarillo, Texas. Also, note the white-lettered ‘Lightyear’ racing slicks, a trademark owned by Pixar thanks to a interplanetary space cadet named Buzz.
The King obviously is Richard Petty who lends his voice to a 1970 Superbird complete with red number ‘43’ sans STP logos. Like his namesake the King allegedly has won more cup races than any other car in history. He is accompanied by his lovely bride, a matching Petty blue-colored station-wagon named Queen, who is voice by Petty’s real-life wife, Shirley. The King’s sponsor is ‘Tex’, a glittery gold with white padded roof 1975 Cadillac Coupe de Ville, complete with the quintessential grille-mounted longhorns. The voice of Tex is supplied by Humpy Wheeler, president and general manager of Lowe's Motor Speedway.
Racing commentary cameos are furnished by retired-racer turned color commentator DW himself as Darrell “Cartrip”, portraying a rainbow warrior-like 1977 Monte Carlo stock car painted number ‘17’, reminiscent of Waltrip’s Tide-sponsored days. Other racing legend cameos include Mario Andretti and Dale Earnhardt Jr., just to name a few. Other cameos quick to catch are provided by late-night talk show host Jay Leno (vehicle unknown but looks suspiciously like a Town Car), plus the current governor of California, as an obvious Hummer! An even more obscure cameo appearance is provided by NPR radio personalities Click and Clack, the Tappet Brothers (Tom and Ray Maggliozzi) as a rusty green 1963 Dodge Dart and a similar vintage Dodge A-100 van. Followers of this wacky radio Car Talk duo should be able link the significance of the Dart to Tommy’s persona.
As always the visuals and puns are too numerous to absorb completely the first go-around, so this one becomes a must-see, over-and-over-to-get-it-all-in. Watch it on the big screen and then rent, no, buy the DVD. And word of caution, watch all the rolling credits at the end are you’ll miss half of the movie. It’s difficult to criticize either story content or casting, however one obvious omission comes to mind, as to why Andy Griffith wasn’t considered for the role as the Sheriff (or was he?). Age and health could have been mitigating factors. And though the movie did not lack for main or supporting cast members (i.e vehicles), one more addition may have been apropos in this context, a mid-sixties Corvair named ‘Nader’, voiced by the consumer activist himself*. *Footnote: Consumer activist Ralph Nader wrote the 1965 book “Unsafe at any Speed” which some say was the death nail for the Corvair. Mr. Jinkins is an automobile historian and member of the Texas Auto Writers Association |
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Somehow,
you just knew this one was destined to be a sensational hit with all the
pre-opening hoopla as well as all the marketing tie-ins, such as merchandising
as well as corporate sponsorship from SBC and State Farm Insurance.
Basically
the story begins and ends on the race track where it’s a three-way race to the
championship between rookie McQueen, the retiring veteran ‘The King’ and Chick
Hicks, a racer that’s been around the circuit since the 1980s.
Chick
Hicks, voiced by Michael Keaton, is a slight knock-off of a 1980s Buick Regal
and the ‘heavy’ of the story line. Keaton is a versatile actor who has played
Beetlejuice to Batman, and almost everything in-between, though this role will
do little for his career
Mack,
McQueen’s transport tractor-trailer rig, is voiced by John Ratzenberger, best
known for his role as Cliff Clavin, the mailman from the 1980s hit TV series
Cheers. However you’ll be surprised as well as educated on how many characters
Ratzenberger has voiced throughout Pixar’s seven-feature catalog.