The Greatest Road Movies...

[Hal]

I want to watch a few, study 'em, see what makes a road movie great. Best way to do that is to watch some that were done with skill and creativity. I'm guessing that I'll get a bunch of good suggestions here at IC.

Some movies get labeled "road movie" when, IMO, they really aren't. For instance, I recently watched "Down By Law," by Jim Jarmusch, which was in the category of road movie on a website, but really wasn't. A great movie, yes, but it didn't have nearly enough "travelling" in it for my satisfaction. So, the main qualifier would be, after being an excellent, well-made, movie, it should have some serious mileage being traversed from beginning to end.

Apologies if this has already been discussed in a thread(s) previously...I did a search for road movie and nothing came up.

Also, if possible, when offering suggestions, if you could give a short blurb about why you think its great, that would be helpful to me when deciding what to select from my Netflix friends.

 

[PazVerdeRadical]

hello Hal

what came to my mind at this moment is a latin american movie about Ernesto "Che" Guevara called Diarios de Motocicleta (motorcycle diaries), where Che and a buddy start to travel on a motorcycle from Argentina all the way up to Venezuela. it is a nice watch, plus it really happened.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Motorcycle_Diaries_(film)

peace

 

[Payaso]

What about the On The Road with Gypsy Nirvana videos... nothing like watching him go to Jamaica and Morocco to make hashish!

 

[Hal]

Great suggestion, Paz! I remember hearing about that movie, and wanting to watch it because folks were saying it was a great movie, period...the fact that it is a road movie as well fits perfectly for my endeavor! Thanks for offering it up

Hehehe...Payaso! Where do I find these Gypsy Nirvana movies? Netflix? Maybe I need to get a subscription with Budflix?

 

[Weedman Herb]

Cannonball Run

 

[SomeGuy]

Fandango
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089126/
Classic sleeper of a road movie. 5 guys circa 1971 fulfling a tontine.


Wise Blood
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080140/
Not classic road movie format but a story from getting to point A to B. One of my all time faves
"A man don't NEED to be justified as long as he's got a good CAR!"

Welcome to Woop Woop
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120491/
Very weird, escaping then ending up with oddballs in Outback Australia

 

[Stoner4Life]

'Vanishing Point'

A cult classic from '71. This is one of my favorite movies. If you haven't seen this one yet you'll be raving about it when you're done. It has an awesome soundtrack, great cast (Cleavon Little as 'Super Soul' a blind radio dj), very cool desert scenery, lots of action.

Barry Newman as 'Kowalski' is an ex-cop, ex motorcycle & former race car driver who is transporting (driving) a 1970 Dodge Challenger from Denver to Frisco. He's being chased by state patrols almost constantly, great run ins with people he meets and needs along the way, best 'Road Movie' ever made imo.......

From Wikipedia:
Vanishing Point is notable for its scenery from filming locations across the American Southwest and its social commentary on the post-Woodstock mood in the United States. It is beloved by Mopar enthusiasts because it is one of the most significant movies ever to feature a classic Dodge muscle car. The film continues to be popular to this day and is considered a cult film.

Synopsis:
Barry Newman plays a car delivery driver named Kowalski (his first name is never given throughout the movie) who works for Argo's Car Delivery Service in Denver, Colorado and is assigned to deliver a white 1970 Dodge Challenger to San Francisco. Flashbacks which appear throughout the movie hint that he has either lost everything he has ever wanted and was reduced to taking the job of a car delivery driver as a last resort, or he is (what is called today) an adrenaline junkie. He is a Vietnam veteran, a former law enforcement officer, former race car driver, and former motorcycle racer. He lost his job as a cop apparently after being framed in a drug bust, in retaliation for his preventing his partner from raping a young girl.
=======================================================


'Futurama'

Australian flick about a 12 yr old kid driving cross country in a vintage Mustang, his mission is gassing up and collecting game pieces from the oil company's promotion hoping to win the top prize before the promo ends. An interesting flick for sure.

Good luck finding this one with all the animated Futurama stuff online.......

 

[SrPlantManager]

Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man


Cherry 2000


Easy Rider


Step into Liquid (a surfing documentary)


Saving Grace (the BBC movie)

 

[hyposomniac]

Smokey and the Bandit.
Darjeeling Limited.
Midnight Run.
Lost in America.

 

[SomeGuy]

'Vanishing Point' <------ One of the best!

Paris, Texas
Another totally weird road story. I happen to like Harry Dean Stanton and Dean Stockwell.

Wild at Heart
"This, is a snakeskin jacket! And for me it's a symbol of my individuality, and my belief... in personal freedom."
The motel in the desert with Bobby Peru and the porn crew is CLASSIC weirdness.
"My dog barks some. Mentally you picture my dog, but I have not told you the type of dog which I have. Perhaps you even picture Toto, from "The Wizard of Oz." But I warn you, my dog is always with me. WOOF!"

True Romance
"Hey! Get some beer ..... and some cleaning products!"

 

[RudolfTheRed]

this is not a road movie perse but defiantly a travel movie and its Stand By Me.

 

[Hal]

Great suggestions everyone....keep 'em coming!

 

[NOKUY]

Natural Born Killers

 

[RudolfTheRed]

the darjeeling limited is another one i just thought of

 

[Linenoise]

Wild at Heart
"This, is a snakeskin jacket! And for me it's a symbol of my individuality, and my belief... in personal freedom."
The motel in the desert with Bobby Peru and the porn crew is CLASSIC weirdness.
"My dog barks some. Mentally you picture my dog, but I have not told you the type of dog which I have. Perhaps you even picture Toto, from "The Wizard of Oz." But I warn you, my dog is always with me. WOOF!"

Another great quote from that movie...

Nick Cage is walking down the street and a gang of thugs approach and circle him. They act like they are gonna kick his ass.

He says, "What do you fags want?"

And then gets his ass kicked.

Afterwards he says (while all bloodied) "I'd like to apologize to you gentlemen for referring to you all as homosexuals. You taught me a valuable lesson in life. "

 

[Sky-King]

......................

 

[Payaso]

Gypsy's Videos should be available again very soon thru this site!

We have recently come across the masters and are checking out getting them produced now...

We will make an announcement soon!

~Payaso

 

[Smooth B]

The movie Road Trip with Tom Green

The movie Road Trip with Tom Green



I feel like this when I run out of weed...

 

[steppinRazor]

suprised nobody mentioned Into The Wild

pretty decent flick, bout this dude who takes off onto the road shortly after graduating high school.. some pretty good parts and some amazing scenery..
definately worth watchin

 

[NOKUY]

suprised nobody mentioned Into The Wild

pretty decent flick, bout this dude who takes off onto the road shortly after graduating high school.. some pretty good parts and some amazing scenery..
definately worth watchin

yeah that ones my fav!

...how 'bout "planes, trains, and automobiles"...lol