The Gumball Rally (1976)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

Charles Bail

Writers:

Charles Bail (story) and
Leon Capetanos (story) ...

Release Date:

28 July 1976 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy

Tagline:

It's a hilarious coast-to-coast, 180 mile-an-hour, go-for-broke, outrageous road race with the world's most expensive cars. And it's all just for glory and a gumball machine.

Plot:

A disparate group of drivers take part in a secret and illegal cross country road race.

Plot Keywords:

Road | Chase | Illegal Grand Prix Race | Los Angeles Storm Drain | Car

Cast

Michael Sarrazin	...	Michael Bannon - Cobra Team
Norman Burton	...	Lieutenant Roscoe (as Normann Burton)
Gary Busey	...	Gibson - Camaro Team
John Durren	...	Ace Preston / Mr. Guts - Camaro Team
Susan Flannery	...	Alice - Porsche Team
Harvey Jason	...	Lapchick the Mad Hungarian - Kawasaki
Steven Keats	...	Kandinsky - Dodge Team
Tim McIntire	...	Steve 'Smitty' Smith - Ferrari Team
Joanne Nail	...	Jane - Porsche Team
J. Pat O'Malley	...	Barney Donahue - Mercedes Team
Tricia O'Neil	...	Angie - Rolls Royce
Lázaro Pérez	...	Jose - Rolls Royce
Nicholas Pryor	...	Prof. Samuel Graves - Cobra Team
Vaughn Taylor	...	Andy McAllister - Mercedes Team
Wally Taylor	...	Avila - Dodge Team

Runtime:

105 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:L | Australia:M | Finland:K-12 | UK:PG | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

380 South San Rafael Avenue, Pasadena, California, USA

Company:

First Artists

Trivia:

Linda Vaughn ("Emergency Plan Alpha") was a popular race queen of the period; among other things, she did a season of personal appearances for Hurst Corporation as "Miss Golden Shifter".

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: While being pelted with bugs, Lapchick lifts his right hand off the throttle to wipe his visor. He should have immediately slowed and the tone of his engine should have changed. Proof that the motorcycle and Lapchick were being towed on a trailer while being filmed.

Quotes:

Jane - Porsche Team: Alright, the lights are set to 32 miles per hour, just keep going on Sepulveda!
Alice - Porsche Team: OK, hang on!
[starts to downshift and floor the throttle]
Alice - Porsche Team: [Two motorcycle cops pull up on either side to check out the girls, and Alice holds up] Smile!
Jane - Porsche Team: How fast are we going now?
Alice - Porsche Team: [with a large fake smile on her face] 32 miles an hour.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Mischief 3000 (2002) (V)

The True Purpose of the Movie

I remember articles about the movie when it was still being shot. It was supposed to be a light hearted romp across the country with the cars being the stars. With that in mind, it succeeds greatly. My son and I have watched the "Garage Scene" over and over again. This movie is to car nuts what a porno is to sex nuts. It's hard to believe you can indulge yourself this much in front of the family without feeling guilty. :^)

Also, I've read a few of the comments and would like to make corrections here. The transmission in the Cobra (yes it was a real 427 Cobra) was a four speed "Toploader" transmission, not a 5 speed Tremec. There were no replica Cobras in those days. Also, the Ferrari was a 365 GTS/4. I also remember reading that the first Ferrari rented for the movie was totaled and they had to get another to take its place. However, that was over 30 years ago.