Running on Empty (1982)

User Rating:

5.4/10   

Director:

John Clark

Writer:

Barry Tomblin (writer)

Release Date:

5 August 1982 (Australia)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Sport

Tagline:

He'll win at any cost...

Plot:

This film collects just what it was like to be in Australia in the early 80's. It's about hot cars, hot chicks and hot times...

Plot Keywords:

Love Triangle | Automobile | Duel | Road | Speed

Cast

Terry Serio	...	Mike
Deborah Conway	...	Julie
Max Cullen	...	Rebel
Richard Moir	...	Fox
Penne Hackforth-Jones	...	Dave
Vangelis Mourikis	...	Tony
Grahame Bond	...	Jagger
Bob Barrett	...	Workman
Warren Blondell	...	Lee
Jon Darling	...	Workman
Peter Davies	...	Ram's Mate
Kristoffer Greaves	...	Starter
Paul Johnstone	...	Lecherous Garage Attendant
Chris Haywood	...	Photographer
Maurice Hughes	...	Foreman

Also Known As:

Fast Lane Fever (USA) (video title)

Runtime:

83 min

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Norway:16 (original rating) | Australia:M | Norway:15 | UK:15 | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

Cobar, New South Wales, Australia

Company:

Film Corporation of Western Australia

Goofs:

Continuity: In the opening scene Fox is racing a yellow 1969 HT Holden Monaro. When the HT crashes over the VW it changes into a 1968 HK Holden Monaro. Note tail lights.

Quotes:

Rebel: [Mike's trying to drive the '57 Chev, but not very well] You're puttin' on the agony, mate, but you're missin' all the style!

Movie Connections:

Featured in Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation! (2008)

Soundtrack:

It All Comes Runnin' Back

Running on Emty on DVD

For those of you out there who have seen this pic on VHS, I would recommend the DVD. In fact the VHS is utter rubbish. The main reason is that the film was shot widescreen (2.55:1) and the producers ran out of money making the VHS version and released it as 4:3. The result is that several actors are not on screen at all, and in many drag races, less than half the cars are showing since one is on each side of the screen. The DVD is actually a reasonable version of the film.

A lot of the best scenes in the film were cut before the final release. They were viewed as being too offensive to minority groups. In fact the prospect of a US release caused even more cuts in the film. For example, the Americans reputedly did not understand words such as Petrol & Strides.

Mike's dad and mum were meant to be hippies. The dad survives in the film as a wasted dope smoking guitarist. But the following scene with the mum was cut. The scene took place in the roof space of the house which was lined with aluminium foil, fluoro lights and filled with plants... you get the picture. The producers had rounded up a lot of real plants for the foreground and when they saw the result on the big sheet, they freaked and the scene was cut. Cowards!

Yes, the film is noted as an Australian cult classic. Voted #2 in Street machines best 100 films of all time, narrowly missing out to Mad Max ll. The latter had over 10 times the budget of ROE. In fact the budget on ROE was so small that the director could not afford to wreck any of the cars... even though there would have been a public outcry if anyone had wrecked a real HO. (compare that with Smoky and the Bandit or Blues Bros where dozens of cars were wrecked.)

So there's one real GTHO and two fakes. One of the fakes was bought from the local indigenous community in Cobar after the standby GTHO crashed into the back of the Country Boy's truck. (That was unscripted! The car was meant to burst out from the side of the truck.) Because the budget was so tight, the car was made up with ordinary brown masking tape instead of the painted on gold trim of the real thing.

The 55 chev is absolutely real. The car began as a very plain 4 door and was brilliantly and quickly converted to the blown '55 in the film. The motor was a marinised 545 which made around 1000 bhp. This was reduced to around 600 for the filming. The car was able to easily to 170 mph as show in several scenes in the film.

Just for the record, anyone with $12,000 could have picked up ALL the cars after the film. The HO, the Dodge, the '53 Ute, Rammer's 53 Chev... the lot. Wonder where they are now?

SW