The Love Bug (1997) (TV)

Director:

Peyton Reed

Writers (WGA):

Gordon Buford (earlier story)
Bill Walsh (earlier screenplay) ...

Release Date:

30 November 1997 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Adventure | Family | Fantasy

Tagline:

Herbie's Back In A Brand-New Movie!

Plot:

Herbie, the magical Volkswagen Beetle, is passed on to a new owner. Together, they must battle a dastardly racer and his devil-car "Horace"...

Plot Keywords:

Volkswagen Beetle | Volkswagen | Animate Car | Smart Car | Remake

Cast

  (Credited cast)

Bruce Campbell	...	Hank Cooper
John Hannah	...	Simon Moore III
Alexandra Wentworth	...	Alex Davis
Kevin J. O'Connor	...	Roddy Martel
Dana Gould	...	Rupert
Harold Gould	...	Dr. Gustav Stumpfel
Micky Dolenz	...	Donny Shotz
Burton Gilliam	...	Mecanic Race Announcer
Clarence Williams III	...	Chuck
Dean Jones	...	Jim Douglas
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Richard Burch	...	Tow Truck Driver
Jeff Garlin	...	Highway Patrolman
Alecia Guzman	...	Bride Model
Rich Hall
Christin Hinojosa	...	Trendy Gal
Andy Houts	...	1st Mechanic
Doug McCallie	...	Cocky Mechanic
Earl McDaniel III
Peter Spears	...	Young Dr. Stumpfel
Andrew Woodworth	...	Trendy Guy

Runtime:

88 min | Argentina:90 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Australia:G | UK:PG | Argentina:Atp

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Walt Disney Television

Trivia:

Herbie The Love Bug was a 1963 Volkswagen Beetle deluxe ragtop sedan painted in Volkswagen L87 pearl white. Under normal circumstances, the interior would be a matching white. However, Herbie's interior was painted a special non-reflective grey color so the camera and studio lights would not reflect.

Goofs:

Continuity: At the end of the "dueling race", Alex takes off her helmet twice.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Troldspejlet: (#35.1)" (2006)

The Love Bug 5

5th film in the Love Bug series (following The Love Bug, Herbie Rides Again, Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo, and Herbie Goes Bananas), incorrectly labeled a remake is actually a sequel despite it's title (a lot of the original film's plot is reworked but isn't that true of most sequels?) Dean Jones portrays original owner Jim Douglas in the odd numbered films, including this one but he is delegated to a much smaller part (but it does assure us this is a sequel and not a remake.) Bruce Campbell takes over as the new owner of Herbie (hey, if Ken Berry could do it?) Not as good as the first three (Dean Jones was in one and three and how can you beat Helen Hayes driving Herbie around a high rise ledge in number two?) but better than the fourth (which always seemed more like a Benji film to me), and better than the short-lived series that had buried the series for a long time. Apparently there were many changes of continuity in story line from the original and the VW's detailing (hey it's been 28 years and quite a few crashes, why not a little face lift?), but this isn't the type of film to worry about such things. Just have fun and enjoy. It's good to see Herbie working again and he's held up better than most of Hollywood's movie stars.