Deathrace 2000 (1975)

 

A satire set in a dystopian future with quips, violence ànd a young Sylvester Stallone?

And you wonder why I like this little gem so much. Tsk, tsk. 

During the 1970s, most sci-fi was pretty gnarly and downbeat: humans were worthless, society had collapsed and the ghost of totalitarianism was prevalent throughout. Maybe they did get it sort of right in the end, then. 

Anyway...

The United States have become a totalitarian state with a president for life who has pretty much conquered the entire planet. The one thing most people look forward to is a race across the US (panem et circenses, right?) where the contestants not only need to finish first, but also score points by killing pedestrians. Babies/kids and the elderly score the highest, by the way. This is all televised and interspersed with interviews and the like.

Several colourful characters enter the race, but our main focus lies with Frankenstein, apparently a driver who has survived numerous crashes and replacement of limbs. We won't find out until later that Frankenstein is the government approved driver and every year they get another one from one of their training centres. But this year, it will be different. For starters, there is a rebel movement that wants to abolish the race and put an end to the president's reign of terror; this Frankenstein is also different in that he intends to win and kill the president with a handgrenade embedded in his fake right hand. 

But how will it all play out, when Frankenstein's navigator is linked to the rebels? 

This film is a blast from start to finish. It doesn't overstay its welcome, clocking in at a sparse 80 minutes, but the characters are so colourful, it doesn't matter. Every car and driver is extremely distinct and they don't waste time with elaborate exposition. Everything is laid on so thick even a total numbnuts would get it. Or should get it. David Carradine is nice and cool as Frankenstein, Stallone is hilarious as the short tempered Machine Gun Joe Viterbo, Roberta Collins as Matilda The Hun (a nazi in every way) hits the spot and so on. Every single actor is on point, including those from the tv-station that all feel like very recognisable people (even today). It's sidesplitting how Grace Pander (Joyce Jameson) always introduces everyone she interviews as 'a dear personal friend of mine'. 

And then there's the incredibly memorable scenes! Euthanasia day at the home for the elderly! Viterbo throwing a hissy fit every time things don't go his way (which is often)! Nero the Hero (Martin Kove) who wants to kill a baby yet gets blown up because decoy with explosives! Exclamation points! It never ends!

Not too mention that all the ladies are absolutely incredibly hot. Sure, you could call this a sexist remark, but hot damn, it's true. And because 70s, there's not a lot of plastic surgery involved, which is nice. 

In short, this one is a hoot. And the points it wants to make still hit home, even this many years later. So I guess the adage 'the more things change, the more they stay the same' really does ring true.