Death Race 2000 (1975)

Director:

Paul Bartel

Writers:

Ib Melchior (story)
Robert Thom (writer) ...
(more)

Release Date:

27 April 1975 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Sci-Fi | Sport

Tagline:

In The Year 2000 Hit And Run Driving Is No Longer A Felony. It's The National Sport!

Plot:

A champion of a brutal cross-country car race of the future where pedestrians are run down for points...

Plot Keywords:

Race | President | Wedding | B Movie | Impalement

Cast

David Carradine	...	Frankenstein
Simone Griffeth	...	Annie Smith
Sylvester Stallone	...	Machine Gun Joe Viterbo
Mary Woronov	...	Calamity Jane
Roberta Collins	...	Matilda the Hun
Martin Kove	...	Nero the Hero
Louisa Moritz	...	Myra
Don Steele	...	Junior Bruce (as The Real Don Steele)
Joyce Jameson	...	Grace Pander
Carle Bensen	...	Harold
Sandy McCallum	...	Mr. President
Paul Laurence	...	Special agent
Harriet Medin	...	Thomasina Paine
Vince Trankina	...	Lt. Fury
Bill Morey	...	Deacon
Fred Grandy	...	Herman the German
William Shephard	...	Pete
Leslie McRae	...	Cleopatra (as Leslie McRay)
Wendy Bartel	...	Laurie
Jack Favorite	...	Henry
Sandy Ignon	...	FBI agent
John Landis	...	Mechanic
Darla McDonnell	...	Rhonda Bainbridge
Roger Rook	...	Radio operator
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Paul Bartel	...	Frankenstein's doctor (uncredited)
David Boyle	...	(uncredited)
Paul L. Ehrmann	...	Government agent (uncredited)
Lewis Teague	...	Toreador (uncredited)

Directed by
Paul Bartel

Writing credits
Ib Melchior		(story)
Robert Thom		(writer) and
Charles B. Griffith		(writer) (as Charles Griffith)

Produced by
Roger Corman	....	producer
Jim Weatherill	....	associate producer

Original Music by
Paul Chihara

Cinematography by
Tak Fujimoto

Film Editing by
Tina Hirsch

Art Direction by
Beala Neel		(as B.B. Neel)
Robin Royce		(as Robinson Royce)

Costume Design by
Jane Ruhm		(as Jane Rum)

Makeup Department
Patricia Hutchence	....	makeup artist (as Pat Hutchence)

Production Management
Peter Cornberg	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Charles B. Griffith	....	second unit director (as Charles Griffith)
Dennis E. Jones	....	first assistant director (as Dennis Jones)
Lewis Teague	....	second unit director

Art Department
Keith Michl	....	property master

Sound Department
Lee Alexander	....	sound mixer
Ben Burtt	....	sound designer (uncredited)
Richard Bryce Goodman	....	boom operator (uncredited)

Special Effects by
Richard MacLean	....	special effects

Stunts
Conrad E. Palmisano	....	stunts
Ronald C. Ross	....	stunt coordinator
Harry Wowchuk	....	stunts
Paula Dell	....	stunts (uncredited)
Bob Herron	....	stunts (uncredited)
Kim Kahana Jr.	....	stunts (uncredited)
Greg Walker	....	stunts (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Michael Bryar	....	key grip
Paul Hunt	....	additional cinematographer
Eric Saarinen	....	camera operator: second unit
Henning Schellerup	....	camera operator: second unit
Brian Swain	....	gaffer
Kit Kalionzes	....	assistant camera: second unit (uncredited)
Douglas Olivares	....	assistant camera (uncredited)
Leslie Otis	....	first assistant camera (uncredited)

Editorial Department
Michal Goldman	....	associate editor
Lewis Teague	....	associate editor

Other crew
Joanie Blum	....	script supervisor
Dean Jeffries	....	car constructor (as Dean Jefferies)
James Powers	....	car designer
Arrahwanna Thomsen	....	script supervisor (as Arrah Robinson)
Gil Valle	....	location manager

Production Companies

• New World Pictures
• Columbia Associates

Distributors

• New World Pictures (1975) (USA) (theatrical)
• International Film Distributors (1975) (Canada) (theatrical)
• Concorde Film (1976) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• IVC (197?) (Greece) (theatrical)
• A-Film Home Entertainment (2002) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Astro Distribution (2002) (Germany) (DVD)
• Atlantic Film (2003) (Sweden) (DVD)
• Buena Vista Home Entertainment (BVHE) (2005) (USA) (DVD) (special edition)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1978) (USA) (TV)
• Digital Multimedia Limited (DML) (1998) (USA) (DVD)
• New Horizons Home Video (1996) (USA) (VHS)
• New Horizons Home Video (1999) (USA) (DVD)
• Universal Home Entertainment (2000) (UK) (DVD)
• Universal Home Entertainment (2004) (UK) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video

Special Effects

• Jack Rabin & Associates (special optical effects) (as Jack Rabin and Associates)

Other Companies

• Electrofilm Inc.  electric helmets
• Rutan Aircraft Factory  veriveggan aircraft

Runtime:

USA:84 min | Argentina:84 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Brazilian Sign Language | Spanish

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono | Stereo | Dolby | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Australia:M (TV rating) | Netherlands:18 (original rating) | Argentina:18 (re-rating) | Argentina:X (original rating) | Netherlands:16 (re-rating) | France:-16 | Australia:R | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:AA (Ontario) | Finland:K-18 | Germany:16 (2002) | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:18 (original rating) | Canada:R (Manitoba) | UK:X (original rating) | Norway:18 (DVD release) (2003) (uncut version) | Norway:16 (video) (1988) (heavily cut) | Norway:(Banned) (1976-2003) (cinema release) | Canada:A (Nova Scotia) (original rating) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) (re-rating) (2002)

Filming Locations:

Chet Holifield Federal Building - 24000 Avila Road, Laguna Niguel, California, USA

Company:

New World Pictures

Trivia:

According to Roger Corman, several of the custom cars featured in the movie were later sold to car museums for considerably more than it cost to build them.

Goofs:

Miscellaneous: In the theatrical version and all video versions up to the "Roger Corman's Classics" release, there were some errors that have since been corrected. Traffic has been cropped from the shot when Machine Gun Joe runs over the man hanging the "Frankenstein" banner on the street (which previously made nonsense of the earlier newscast of "citizens staying off the streets"). A crewmember previously visible when Joe runs down the fisherman has also been cropped out.

Quotes:

Junior: Frankenstein scores! Frankenstein scores at last! But what kind of a score, boys and girls? Just 80 points out a possible big 700. What do you think, Gracie?
Grace Pander: Well, those doctors - dear friends of mine - have been pretty smug all these years setting up the old folks. Frankenstein must have decided it was their turn.
Harold: Which only goes to show that even the fearsome Frankenstein has a one-hundred-percent, red-blooded American sense of humor, heh heh.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Nightmare Theatre's Late Night Chill-o-Rama Horror Show Vol. 1 (1996) (V)

A Missing Piece From My Childhood

When I was younger and my family would go for a drive, my father would often make the remark that if he swerved and hit someone, it would be worth twenty points. In my youth, I never really understood where he picked it up from, but now I think it's safe to say that "Death Race 2000" was his source.

In a post-revolutionary America, racers travel from the East Coast to West Coast, racking up points along the way by running down citizens, with more points given for women, children and the elderly. Starring David Carradine and Sylvester Stallone.

While this movie is fairly cheesy, it's fun in a way most other films simply aren't. I wouldn't even call it a "dark comedy" because the violence isn't dark, it's just campy. And there is some strong underlying message about American values that could be interpreted differently by different people: is America an inherently violent nation? Or are we a nation trying to maximize our freedoms? (This dispute comes into play when "rebels" show up who wish to end the race and restore the old America.) Stallone has a surprisingly small role, despite being the secondary character. He does not speak much and seems to be in the movie for no other reason than to use violence against women. In the vernacular, he "keeps his pimp hand strong".

David Carradine, who never busts out a karate move in this film, is the real hero. He plays the race's most popular character ("Frankenstein") who has been pieced back together year after year. His bondage gear outfit and smooth Carradine attitude make him a clear favorite for movie viewers, as well.

I would need to view this film again to fully analyze it, but I think the parody of American culture is very interesting and there's no surprise this film is shown now on "American Movie Classics". That's something Stephen King's "Running Man" will probably never accomplish.