This cheesy cult classic has a great premise which is unfortunately spoilt by poor direction and a whole "cheap" feel to the film, due no doubt to the low budget. For fans of cult films though, this one is worth a watch, and Roger Corman was also involved in its production, making it unmissable in some circles. It's one of those films where the fun comes from watching things get destroyed - lots of cars get blown up by explosives, pedestrians are continually splattered by fast-moving vehicles, and in an exciting moment a car is chased by a plane dropping bombs! Aside from the entertaining chase bits - which only become vaguely repetitive - a whole lot of other stuff is thrown into the script. There's a vicious streak of black comedy (the "hits" scored by the drivers as they run over the public are portrayed amusingly), and even a social comment in there somewhere on America's obsession with violence - a theme which became even more popular in the '80s. Intermittently there are bits of romance and drama, but these never get in the way of the trashy spirit of the thing. We've got gratuitous nudity and gratuitous gore (wheels running over heads, etc.), sure factors to appeal to any red-blooded male.
As for the acting, most of it is quite bad, but in a fun sense. Nobody really takes themselves seriously. Sylvestor Stallone - in one of his first roles - isn't afraid to be the obnoxious, violent villain of the piece who's out for himself and himself only, and his portrayal fits the character very well. However, it's David Carradine who stands out as the crippled Frankenstein, a man who always wears a fetish rubber suit and mask due to his various limbs having been replaced by surgeons after many, many accidents. Due to obvious budgetary constraints, these mechanical additions are never seen but rather implied. It's difficult not to like a film which takes literally the term "hand grenade", a film which has an annual euthanasia day where old residents are wheeled out into the road and left to die, or where a band of rebels do their best to destroy the opponents. And watch out for that twist ending! Camp, cheesy and quite bad, DEATH RACE 2000 disappoints yet remains influential to this day, via the computer game CARMAGEDDON and its sequels.
As for the acting, most of it is quite bad, but in a fun sense. Nobody really takes themselves seriously. Sylvestor Stallone - in one of his first roles - isn't afraid to be the obnoxious, violent villain of the piece who's out for himself and himself only, and his portrayal fits the character very well. However, it's David Carradine who stands out as the crippled Frankenstein, a man who always wears a fetish rubber suit and mask due to his various limbs having been replaced by surgeons after many, many accidents. Due to obvious budgetary constraints, these mechanical additions are never seen but rather implied. It's difficult not to like a film which takes literally the term "hand grenade", a film which has an annual euthanasia day where old residents are wheeled out into the road and left to die, or where a band of rebels do their best to destroy the opponents. And watch out for that twist ending! Camp, cheesy and quite bad, DEATH RACE 2000 disappoints yet remains influential to this day, via the computer game CARMAGEDDON and its sequels.