The Cars That Ate Paris

The Cars That Ate Paris (1974)

Runtime: 91 minutes

Directed by: Peter Weir

Starring: John Meillon, Terry Camilleri, Chris Haywood, Bruce Spence, Kevin Miles

From: Several Australian companies

Today's the day for me to catch up here. I'll post another review in a few minutes-tonight will be the third and final one: 

Gymkhanas were around long before Ken Block.

This is another one of those movies I've known of for years but had never seen... who can forget such a title? The only reason why I checked it out late last night on Turner Classic Movies was that I saw a review here on Letterboxd from a mutual who compared it to a motion picture I have on Blu & haven't watched yet but hope to sometime this month. I understood the movie is rather odd, and I wasn't misled there. What a strange little movie where even I am unsure how to describe it.. is it a sci-fi western, arthouse, horror, satire, or maybe a combination of all those things... I dunno.

A dude and his brother get in a car accident near the tiny town of Paris, Australia. Due to circumstances he is unable to leave and he gets to know the residents... eventually he figures out that the only way this town survives is by diverting traffic to their area then causing accidents. Parts gathered from the crashes are used for barter and that I can comprehend... people who survive those wrecks becoming lobotomized is something else entirely, yet that also occurs here. Yet even this hamlet has disenfranchised youth and they turn vehicles into murder machines that look to be straight out of Death Race 2000; I guess that's appropriate as Corman was asked if he wanted to release this in the United States. He thought this was far too odd so that didn't happen but he must have been inspired by the final act, which turns bloody as what was supposed to be a gymkhana instead became total mayhem... and had such things as a Volkswagen Beetle covered with huge spikes.

While I don't love this like some do, this definitely is unique; of course “unique” doesn't always mean “good” but here I can say this curio was at least fine. I imagine I'd get more out of this if I was an Aussie (whether now or back in the 70's)-as a dumb American, I can note how this must have been an inspiration for Mad Max. Furthermore, I did get laughs out of the black humor and various absurd situations, along with various social comments that were made about consumerism-that was the key message-and other things. Definitely, a town surviving when it's not on a big highway... in the United States various places withered away and usually died when the Interstates happened and those hamlets were not by an exit.

It was interesting seeing the first feature film of a heralded director like Peter Weir, and something this quirky was honestly expected considering his future work; he literally did go on to bigger and better things.