It might not surprise you to hear that I have a lot of quirks. One of my wife’s least favorite ones is my inability to remember anyone’s name while at the same time knowing the exact make, model, year, color and option packages of the car that they drive.
Personally, I think that’s a great skill, since cars are the true window to the soul. Based on the vehicle a person owns, I can almost immediately tell if they’re confident or insecure, frugal or deeply in debt (note that I didn’t say “rich” or “poor”, since the painfully rich usually drive crap), and even if they have as many automotive screws loose as me. Let’s face it; if a parent shows up at my kid’s birthday party driving a beat up E90 stick station wagon, who gives a shit what his name is? We’re gonna be best friends.
Thanks to this strange skill of mine, with movies and television I’m a really harsh critic of car casting, particularly in smaller, supporting roles. Some get it just right while others flub it. Here’s some examples:
The show Breaking Bad really deserved some kind of award for car casting. The producers barely made any missteps, with the possible exception of Skylar’s Jeep Grand Wagoneer which is a bit too much of a “classic” car for a struggling family to own (a beat-up and worthless ZJ or WJ Grand Cherokee would have been a better choice). Everyone talks about the casting of Walter White’s Aztek as genius, but I think it might be too “niche” and trying too hard to be uncool. No, some of the bit players are better. Like this:
One of the best has to be dirty-deed-doer Mike Ehrmantraut’s black Chrysler Fifth Avenue. As we’ve mentioned before, Chrysler sedans always have an air of menace about them. Black Lincolns or Cadillac sedans are intimidating, but a Chrylser following you means your ass is certain to get kicked. The Volare/Lebaron-based Fifth Avenue is a bit pathetic compared to the Imperials of days past, and the condition is less than steller. That perfectly fits Mike’s character, an older guy that might be a bit past his prime and doing tasks he never thought he would, but sure as shit will get the job done, dammit.
The 1984 film Repo Man is a cult classic that featured the late, great Harry Dean Stanton so you can already guess that it was bizarre. The movie ultimately centered around an old, rather generic car with a strange, other-worldly cargo in the trunk.
The rather colorless 1964 Chevy Malibu was perfect: the kind of ubiquitous, almost-invisible car you’d see plying the streets of early eighties LA. Today, you’d cast a twenty-year-old bronze Camry with faded hood a dented bumper corner in the role.
The rather colorless 1964 Chevy Malibu was perfect: the kind of ubiquitous, almost-invisible car you’d see plying the streets of early eighties LA. Today, you’d cast a twenty-year-old bronze Camry with faded hood a dented bumper corner in the role.
To be honest, I found the lead character in the series Californication a bit insufferable. Hank Moody (played by X-Files actor, JFK Jr classmate and Yale PhD candidate David Duchovny) is a New York writer who moves to California with his family and tries to nurse his writer’s block with a slow descent into booze, drugs, and women. The degrading condition of the once-glamorous car that he purchases on his arrival to LA–a black Porsche 964 Cabriolet–matches the arc of the protagonist.
Like Hank, the car seems to get cooler as the filth and battle scars accumulate; far more so than if it were immaculate with a hokey personalized plate. Also, regardless of appearance both car and character can still function well enough to complete the tasks at hand.
What are similar Emmy- or Oscar-worthy car castings you can think of? Remember, you’re Autopians so forget even thinking about mentioning Bandit or KITT Trans Ams, A-Team Vans, Bluesmobiles, Delorean time machines. Other websites might be good with it but don’t bring that weak shit in here, people!
I’m talking about more obscure selections of vehicles that just perfectly enhance the characters and mesh with their raison d’etre. Don’t be afraid to call out some sacred cows either, like how could Jim Rockford afford new Pontiac Firebirds every year when he rarely if ever got paid for his work? Right?
Rick Simon’s Dodge in Simon & Simon
Since we’re doing deep cuts, I’ve always thought Banacek’s cars were pretty spot-on.
He’s often chauffeured around in a freakin’ Packard convertible, but there are a few times when he drives himself in a yellow Pantera. Both fit the ’70s gimmick mystery show format so well.
The various and assorted trucks parked in the backgrounds in Northern Exposure.
Some of them were quite various and assorted.
Joel’s ’74 Chevy (2wd!) pickup always bugged me, you’d think Maurice having paid for his med school in exchange for 5 years’ service as the town’s (and surrounding wide region’s) doctor, could shell out for something less than 20 years old, with 4wd and a covered/heated rear compartment that could work as a makeshift ambulance if only to get someone to an airstrip.
It must’ve bugged the writer’s as well since they burned it to the ground and replaced it with a Wyllis 4WD pickup.
Gotta admit, they did nail Cappra’s vehicle choice.
Maurice was the kind of guy who’d walk away from a deal because someone asked for $25 more than a car was worth, even if that meant settling for a second choice that was total garbage.
Paying $25 more than a car is worth is a bad deal. He’s right to walk away.
Besides have you seen what total garbage is worth these days? Nostalgia is a Hell of a drug.
Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner’s cars in The War of The Roses. He has little sophisticated 1960 Morgan Plus 4, and she has a brand new (For the time) 1989 GMC Jimmy SLX that is tricked out for off-roading with some monster tires.
He runs over her cat. She runs over his car!
Murderville and the ’82 Dodge Rampage
Forgot to mention Ozark, which did a really good job when casting characters. My memory includes a Ford SportTrac, Honda Odyssey, and an Old Cutlass
On the Oldsmobile front, Fargo had spot-on vehicles foe Bedmidji in the day.
Gene Hackman’s 1964 220SE convertible that has seen better days in Get Shorty. We know right away that the producer himself has seen better days, too.
Tim’s early ’80s, mint green on mint green Chrysler LeBaron sedan in Detroiters.
It just captures the overall feel of the show – two dimwits running a faded Detroit ad agency – so well.
You kind of wonder if it was his dad’s car before his dad showed up to a meeting in a suit that had no back half and a suitcase full of poop.
“Tim, did you know it was other peoples’ shit?”
“Dad, that makes it so much worse!”
I’m just going to say it. Val and Earl’s Jeep J-10 from Tremors. Back then it was just a discontinued brand of pickup that nobody wanted. Back then everybody wanted Fords or Chevy’s.
I generally dislike most car casting in that the cars that the characters are placed in make me disappointed in the characters. There are a few exceptions:
Eric Estrada (Firebird) and Larry Wilcox (Squarebody GM stepside) fit their characters (CHiPs) well, although early 80’s California probably should have had them in a Japanese or German car.
Mary Stuart Masterson’s Mini Cooper in Some Kinda Wonderful made me root for her through the whole movie.
Viggo Mortensen’s 1993 Bluebird in Captain Fantastic might have been a cliche, but every detail was spot on.
It is hard to argue against Dustin Hoffman’s Alfa Romeo in The Graduate as a fitting vehicle for the character.
I remember a couple of early episodes where Jon drove a mini. I did a quick search to test the integrity of my long term memory, and sure enough, from a FB post…Several people have asked about the Mini Cooper Jon drove in the first season. That was Larry’s idea. He loved the car and convinced the producers to let one be Jon’s car. (the original script had Jon riding a souped up VW Rabbit!) When they decided to make Jon’s character less of a nerdy type and instead reflect Jon’s own cowboy roots, they replaced the Mini with the blue GMC pickup we all love. Larry bought the mini, used it as a personal vehicle for awhile, and eventually passed it down to his oldest son, Derek.
I had no idea. A Mini or a hopped up Rabbit would have increased by respect for Jon by an order of magnitude.
It was right hand drive, too.
When they customized Ponch’s Trans Am with both the shaker scoop and the Formula Hood Scoops, my teenage mind was completely blown.
The recent (and excrable, if enjoyable) Wolfs starred George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and a mint BMW M5 — the V10 one.
An excellent choice to match the once-great, but now simply old character played by Clooney.
The Bluesmobile was as much of a character as Jake and Elwood.
That said, the Illinois Nazi’s Pinto was pretty much spot on as well.
Morpheus’ Lincoln was the perfect blend of intimidating and accommodating. I’ve lusted after one of those (black on black sedan w/suicide doors…no ragtops allowed) ever since.
I’m going with the ’73 Trans Am stolen by a very young Jeff Bridges at the beginning of “Thunderbolt and Lightfoot.” The El Dorado convertible that Clint Eastwood acquired after he was back in the money is pretty fitting as well.
Come to think of it, there are several notably well-cast cars throughout that movie if you’ve never had the pleasure of seeing it. Highly recommended.
Giving Tony Stark an R8 was a nice touch. Definitely matches his personality and now the car is all but known as an Iron Man Audi.
Cordell Walker (Walker, Texas Ranger) having a plain grey base model ’94 Dodge Ram helped sell him as a no-frills by the book cop.
If I may add something from the opposite spectrum, something I’ve brought up before. It’s November 7, 1986. You’re watching Miami Vice. You see a Lotus Esprit Turbo appear on screen. The door opens, and it’s fucking Willie Nelson. Never in my life have I seen such a mismatched paring of car and actor on TV/film.
Oohhh, the SJ Cherokee in “Misery” is a lovely choice. Thing looks menacing as fuck coming up the driveway, really helps set the panic that the main character is feeling upon seeing the car return.
The battered Ford station wagon owned by Nicolas Cage’s asshole boss in Raising Arizona.
Raising Arizona | Station Wagon Forums
Actually all of the American iron in that film was great- even the briefly-seen bustle back Seville owned by what I assume was Nathan Arizona’s wife. Cohen brothers do a good job of car casting.
Any car in any Andrew Niccol movie. Like In Time’s Lincoln or the Facel Vega at the opening of Anon.
Owen’s Olds Toronado has to be the best-ever cinematic use of that model.
AH !
That one. Indeed.
I also remember Uma Thurman driving I think a Citroen convertible in Gattaca?
Plenty of DS’es in Gattaca indeed.
I’d put most of the original run of Veronica Mars in that category. Class and perception thereof was a consistent theme (“Neptune, the town without a middle class”), and the cars absolutely supported that.
Veronica’s LeBaron is a great example, of course, but I still can’t see a Nissan XTerra in that yellow without thinking about Logan Echolls.
Thomas Crown’s custom designed Meyers Manx in the Steve McQueen original of the “Thomas Crown Affair.” The McQueen spec-ed dune buggy was the perfect combination of California cool, danger, and the entitlement perks money can buy. Kinda like McQueen himself. The movie vaulted the Meyers Manx to stardom extending far beyond off-road racing and surfing.
Agreed. It was exactly the right choice for the character’s weekend car – raw and visceral – as a counterpoint to his stately (but still a coupe) daily Rolls.
Axel Foley’s “crappy blue Chevy Nova” was pretty spot on.
“Be careful, because all this shit happened last time I was here”
I wonder if that dialog was ad-libbed because Eddie throws out the line so perfectly.
1968 Dodge Dart GTS Convertble to start Mannix
You could do an article or two on the cars featured.
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/features/curbside-tv-the-cars-of-mannix/
The sinisterly black and muddy 1972 Renault 12 station wagon driven by the goons pursuing the young postal worker who unwittingly has evidence of police corruption might not have had extensive screen time in the 1981 French action thriller film Diva but it fit the goons (an unlikely pair consisting of an older film noir-ish type and a young punk/skinhead type) quite well and memorably:
http://imcdb.org/i068249.jpg
http://pics.imcdb.org/1306/R12.jpg
Not to mention Serge’s Citroen Traction Avants that he describes as perfect for the bent cop since they were popular with both police and criminals. The 924 was also fitting for the Japanese record execs looking for the other tape Jules has.
The car casting in Better Call Saul is also spot on.
Although, I did question why his 1998 Esteem was such a clapped-out beater in 2002
At least in my area, most Esteem sedans started life as rental cars. (Esteem wagons’ first owners kept them for 10 years plus and either pristine or covered in bumper stickers).
That’s right! My favourite match might be Lalo’s Monte Carlo, suave and menacing as the man himself.
While not on screen for long, I greatly enjoyed seeing the 1960 Imperial Crown Limo as Olaf’s car in Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events.
My kids watch the TV series and Olaf in that (played by always- enjoyable Doogie Hauser Neil Patrick Harris) drives a 1968 Toronado with the sinister front end
And Tatra 603 in the 2004 film version…
Danny McBride’s Daewoo Lanos in Pineapple Express was perfect. Also created that great line, “You just got killed by a Daewoo Lanos, mutha fukka!”