Rally Car Movies

[Maribeth Seagers]

Very nice build and a cool old movie. I built one years ago and it could be a twin (same color and sidepipes). A cool conversion would be to make a Supersnake with the twin Paxton super chargers and the hood with the massive scoop.

Good looking Cobra, and one of my favourite movies. It will look great on the shelf alongside a red Ferrari Daytona roadster. Actually, lots of cool model subjects in the Gumball Rally. It would be fun to build the whole lot, including the rabbit's T-bucket hot rod.

The most obvious difference between two current movies, "The Gumball Rally" and "Cannonball," is that the first is about an illegal road race from New York to California, and the second is about an illegal road race from California to New York. If the two movies had gotten into a terrific collision somewhere in Missouri...but never mind, never mind.

Both movies have all the standard ingredients, however: Two laconic leading men, two all-girl teams, one ethnic driver, one dumb law enforcement officer, several exploding gas tanks, no end of incompetent highway patrolmen, a helicopter and a car that breaks in half. The movies are so similar in content, in fact, that the differences between them are instructive: "The Gumball Rally" is an easily forgettable entertainment, but at least it has a certain amount of class. "Cannonball" was straight exploitation.

An example. In "Cannonball," the German's speedometer hits 165 m.p.h. and a concealed bomb blows up his car. In another scene, drivers die horribly in flaming wreckage. In still another, a marksman with a high-powered rifle (these guys don't mess around) is pinned under his car and crushed to death.

In "The Gumball Rally," on the other hand, there's an attempt to neutralize the violence with comedy. When a camper van runs into a fireworks store, for example, the three people in the van dive for safety and wind up in a neat little row on the ground before the fireworks go off. When the mad Hungarian motorcyclist goes up a ramp and through a billboard, he lands safely - and the billboard advises travel by, train. These aren't exactly terrific sight gags, but at least they're not horrifying to younger audiences. So, what was the rating? Exactly the same - PG. Humor and taste must not be programmed into the MPAA's criteria.

"Return of a Man Called Horse," reviewed Thursday, ALSO got a PG rating, despite a scene lasting at least 20 minutes in which characters had their pectoral muscles pierced by eagle's talons and were then suspended by their chests. All the PG means I guess, is that there aren't any naked ladies . . .

But let's not get started on ratings. What I meant to say, before interrupting myself, is that although we are all going to have the greatest difficulty even remembering the name of "The Gumball Rally" in three months' time, it is a pleasant, slick, inoffensive entertainment. It contains some difficult and well-coordinated stunt driving. It has a fairly good cast. And it never makes you want to flee the theater.

Audi radically altered the course of stage rally with the introduction of its Quattro all-wheel-drive system. Anyone with a modicum of motorsports knowledge knows this, but the story of Lancia's last stand against the AWD revolution isn't quite as widespread. A new movie hitting theaters in January might change that, and frankly, we hope it's as good as this trailer makes it out to be.

Titled Race for Glory: Audi vs. Lancia, the movie chronicles the battle between Lancia and Audi in the 1983 World Rally Championship. This was just one year into the infamous Group B era, and Audi was the manufacturer to beat with its Quattro A1. Lancia debuted the 037 a year prior as the successor to the legendary Stratos, though it retained a rear-wheel-drive layout. At the time it was seen as non-competitive versus the AWD Audi, but we know how that story ended. Spoiler alert: Lancia won the manufacturer's title that year.

The film stars Riccardo Scamarcio, Daniel Brhl, Katie Clarkson-Hill, and Volker Bruch, the latter of whom plays Lancia driver Walter Rhrl. Rhrl famously only competed in a limited number of races for the 1983 season, as he was not interested in securing another driver's championship. The trailer suggests the movie will focus largely on Rhrl, though Lancia's ultimate victory was certainly a team effort.

The mid-engined 037 was generally superior in tarmac events and longer stages with fewer turns. Meanwhile, team Audi held an AWD advantage on loose, twisting surfaces. As such, the brands took turns sweeping the podium at different events throughout the season.

It's worth noting that the trailer description calls this movie an "action-packed sports drama inspired by true events," meaning it's not a pure documentary, but rather an exciting piece of fiction based on the truth. There are some admittedly cringe moments in the two-minute clip, like the obligatory side-by-side racing that doesn't doesn't happen in stage rally unless something's really gone wrong. We also get the "why do they risk their lives" soundbite, and the obligatory crash scenes.

While I was working on My Octopus Teacher, I was diving literally every single day for three or four years. Craig, who was the subject of the film and my co-collaborator, and I really made the film together on a very ordinary iMac.

We never dreamed that the project would get that successful, and we were in no way prepared for what that success would mean. Suddenly, I found myself living on Zoom, going from interview to panel discussion, to talk, to online awards ceremony. I just started to live in this virtual Zoom space, all through COVID.

And then the whirlwind of flying to the Oscars. And eventually coming back from all of that and being deeply, deeply grateful that the film had resonated in the way that it had. But also feeling a bit lost and overwhelmed and totally and utterly burned out.

Zhi is brave, curious, and determined. He protects his friends who are in danger. Gnash is a supportive mentor who cares for Zhi. Granny Bai is a loving grandmother. Shelby learns to tell the truth and stand up for what she thinks is right.

The animal characters (and their voice actors) represent the international community: The main character is from China, others are from other parts of the world. The slow loris community is intergenerational, and Zhi is being brought up by his grandmother.

Animal characters fight one on one, brawl, and crash into one another in their racing vehicles. In one scene, a multicar accident threatens the lives of several characters, including the expecting seahorse couple.

Parents need to know that Rally Road Racers is an animated adventure centering on an epic race along the famous Silk Road route. The main character is a young slow loris named Zhi (voiced by Jimmy O. Yang) who, in order to save his family from eviction, places a bet against a reigning racing champion. With training and help from veteran racer Gnash (J.K. Simmons), Zhi learns to use his skills and cultivate friendships on the road. It's pretty mild overall, but you can expect a few fight scenes, a multicar near-crash that leads to a perilous situation, and a little romance between two slow lorises who dance, flirt, and eventually kiss (briefly). There's no language other than "what the..." (unfinished), a couple of uses of "heck," and some insults/threats. Most of the animal characters hail from different parts of the world and sport a variety of accents. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails.

RALLY ROAD RACERS opens with a young slow loris, Zhi (voiced by Jimmy O. Yang), who dreams of being a champion race car driver like his idol, Archie Vainglorious (John Cleese). Years later, the orphaned Zhi, who is being raised by his grandmother, Granny Bai (Lisa Lu), practices racing skills on a dirt track. When he notices an eviction notice on Granny's door, Zhi makes a bet with Vainglorious that he can win the legendary Silk Road Rally, an arduous road race. Vainglorious is confident that he will win -- but he also tries to sabotage Zhi. In order to win, Zhi teams up with Gnash (J.K. Simmons), a philosophical old goat who used to be a driver and is now a mechanic who's happy to train Zhi. During the big race, Zhi meets zany competitors and fellow slow loris Shelby (Chloe Bennet), who distracts him with her beauty and cool-girl personality.

This cute animal adventure has a plucky underdog protagonist and plenty of charming supporting characters. While not as adult-friendly as the movies it's most reminiscent of -- like Cars and Zootopia -- Rally Road Racers is a sweet, simple story that emphasizes the importance of community and teamwork while also allowing characters to make amends for their mistakes. Zhi is a classic hero, requiring the mentorship of a sage elder (Gnash even collects inspiring adages), the backing of a proud village, and the love of good friends and a special girl. But it's the races that will delight younger viewers (and one nostalgic, if out-of-context, black-and-white sequence tribute to the a-ha song "Take on Me" is a fun wink-wink joke for anyone who remembers the 1985 video).

Granny Bai and Shelby stand out as the two women in Zhi's life, each of whom wants him to find happiness and peace. The funniest supporting characters are husband-and-wife seahorse team Wet Lightning -- who are expecting babies carried by the husband -- and the two female announcers on the race circuit, who are voiced by Sharon Horgan and Catherine Tate. Zhi's journey may not be as memorable as the movies it takes after, but it's fun and inspiring and will undoubtedly entertain kids and tweens.

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