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"USED CARS" (1980) (Kurt Russell, Jack Warden) (R) QUICK TAKE: Comedy: Crooked car salesmen resort to dirty tricks as they duel for customers. PLOT: Used car salesmen Rudy Russo (KURT RUSSELL) needs $10,000 to run for State Senate. His boss, Luke Fuchs (JACK WARDEN) agrees to front him the cash, but then has a heart attack as a result of a dirty trick perpetrated by his brother, Roy (WARDEN, in a duel role), who runs the rival car dealership across the street. Roy believes he will inherit Luke's car lot and has already paid off the local mayor so that an interstate will run through his part of town and bring him a plethora of customers. Rudy, though, isn't willing to bow to Roy. He and his two co-workers, salesmen Jeff (GERRIT GRAHAM) and mechanic Jim (FRANK McRAE), hide Luke's body and launch an all-out war of dirty tricks and illegal sales tactics to put Roy out of business and give Rudy enough cash to buy his way onto the ballot. In the midst of all these hijinks, Luke's estranged daughter (DEBORAH HARMON) shows up in town, and Rudy immediately takes a liking to her. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? Older teens may hear there is a lot of nudity and swearing in the film and may be curious on that level. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: R The film was released in 1980 before the MPAA specified why it would rate films G, PG, R, and so forth. Clearly, though, the R rating is for language, sexual situations, nudity and violence. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: KURT RUSSELL plays an unscrupulous, heavy-drinking used car salesman who swears often, has no problem lying to customers, selling them unsafe vehicles and playing dirty tricks on the competition if it means making a sale and earning quick cash. He has dreams of running for State Senate and reaping all of the crooked rewards that come with politics. JACK WARDEN plays the owner of a used car lot who looks past the double-dealings of his two star salesmen. He has a heart condition and is estranged from his only daughter. JACK WARDEN, in a dual role, plays his own brother in the film. He is the ruthless owner of the rival car dealership across the street who is profane, violent, drinks heavily and is prone to angry outbursts. He has bribed the local mayor in order for an interstate to run through his part of town and dreams of taking control of his brother's lot by any means necessary. GERRIT GRAHAM plays a crooked used car salesman and colleague of Rudy's, who drinks and swears often and bases a good deal of his life around superstition. FRANK McRAE plays a mechanic on Luke's car lot, who helps Rudy and Jeff in their illegal activities. He is probably the most profane man in the movie. DEBORAH HARMON plays Luke's generally good-hearted daughter, who comes looking for her father after he goes missing to patch up their differences. She ends up falling for Rudy. DAVID LANDER and MICHAEL McKEAN play a couple of profane criminals who are gifted at hacking TV signals so that Rudy, Jeff and Jim can break into live broadcasts and air profane commercials touting their car deals. JOE FLAHERTY plays the crooked mayor who is not above being bribed by Roy and altering public works projects. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: The following is a brief summary of the content found in this comedy that's been rated R. Profanity consists of at least 26 "f" words, while other expletives and colorful phrases are uttered throughout. Nudity and sexual situations are also depicted. Violence consists of a few fistfights and brief scuffles, played mostly for laughs but often with bloody results. There are multiple sequences involving vehicles being driven irresponsibly resulting in human injury, but no death. A climactic race involving dozens of cars and trucks includes multiple characters fighting on the hoods of the moving vehicles and in the back of a pick-up truck. Bad attitudes are present, along with some incredibly unscrupulous behavior on the part of car salesmen. There is some potentially imitative behavior, too, along with various thematic elements. Drinking is quite prevalent, as is smoking. If you're still concerned about the film and its appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home who may be interested in seeing it, we suggest that you take a closer look at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. For those prone to visually induced motion sickness, the multiple sequences involving cars being driven at high speed may cause some distress. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE Luke is shown taking medication for a heart condition. Rudy's refrigerator is stocked with beer, and his trailer home is stocked with bottles of whiskey and other spirits. Rudy is shown consuming alcohol -- everything from beers to a margarita to a martini -- in no less than 10 scenes throughout the movie. When he is not partaking, there are moments where you can see beer cans -- both empty and otherwise -- in the background of scenes at his home and workplace. Rudy litters by throwing an empty beer can on the ground. Barbara Jane and Rudy have martinis at a bar. The camera pulls back to show multiple empty martini glasses, indicating they have consumed several additional ones before the scene started. Barbara Jane has what looks like a margarita or a pina colada on a dinner date with Rudy. A bar customer is shown passed-out drunk. One character throws a beer at a TV set. Jeff brags that he is full of valium and is then offered a sleeping pill. Roy drinks a glass of liquor and toasts what he thinks is a victory. BLOOD/GORE Luke's lifeless corpse is shown as Rudy, Jeff and Jim bury him. Jeff is bloodied on his face after fighting Roy, whose knuckles are also bloodied. Jim unearths Luke's lifeless corpse to be used in a staged accident. Rudy suffers a bloody nose after being punched by Roy. DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE Rudy lies to a customer repeatedly during a sales pitch. In disgust, Roy spits on one of the cars for sale on his lot. He does realize the wrong of this action and wipes off his saliva. Jim and Jeff are shown sleeping on the job. Jim is actually shown twice doing this. The first time, he has left a paint spray apparatus on. The second time, he has left a blowtorch on. Roy openly covets his brother's car lot and engages in underhanded tactics he hopes will affect his weak heart. His hope is that Luke will have a fatal heart attack and he will inherit the dealership. Rudy needs money to buy his way onto the ballot for State Senator. He dreams of a life in politics and all of the corrupt activities he can get involved with in office. Rudy hugs Luke and then unknowingly throws him to the ground, causing the older man to have chest pains. An elected official suggests arson to collect insurance money. Jeff directs a woman to bend over just so he can look at her behind. An employee of Roy repeatedly calls Luke "old man" to his face. This same employee takes Luke out for a test drive of one of his vehicles. The man then proceeds to drive like a maniac through town, maneuvering the vehicle at an exceedingly high rate of speed into oncoming traffic, scraping it against highway barriers, and causing multiple accidents before ultimately crashing the car into Luke's car lot. The whole episode causes Luke to suffer a fatal heart attack. The driver is neither prosecuted, nor does he show any remorse. Instead of alerting the authorities that Luke has died, Rudy enlists Jim and Jeff to secretly bury the man on the dealership lot so Roy will not inherit the property. It should be noted that Luke is buried with a crucifix and a small statue of Jesus Christ. Rudy gives a disrespectful eulogy that reads like a used-car sales pitch. Rudy bribes a school official to accept a fleet of vehicles he knows are in various stages of disrepair. Rudy employs two criminals who know how to tap into live TV signals. They do so twice in the movie -- once during a football game and once during a Presidential speech -- to air live, profane commercials. Rudy "talks jive" when trying to sell a car to an African-American couple. The "N" word is used twice to refer to an African-American. Jeff is overly superstitious, believing in lucky rabbits' feet and such. When Rudy needs a miracle ending to a football game or else he loses thousands of dollars, Jim brings bad luck on the opposing team he bet on by breaking mirrors in a bar, emptying salt shakers, and opening multiple umbrellas indoors. Jeff lies to the FBI that a prank was pulled by Iranian students. Barbara Jane listens to Rudy's private answering-machine messages. Rudy, Jim and Jeff dig up Luke, place his corpse at the wheel of a car, then rig the automobile to drive at top speed into an electrical transformer destroying the car in a fiery explosion. A crowd of on-lookers believe Luke has killed himself by driving erratically. Roy has a TV commercial doctored so it appears that Barbara Jane makes a false advertising claim. Barbara Jane's breasts are fondled against her wishes by a man as he helps her out of a vehicle. The actions of one female driver causes a police car to crash and become upended. The driver flees the scene. Barbara Jane lies to an elderly woman in the hopes that she will buy a used car. FRIGHTENING SCENES Scenes listed under "Violence" and "Blood/Gore" may be unsettling, suspenseful or scary to younger viewers and/or those with low tolerance levels for such material, although most of that's played for comedy. The drive that Luke is taken on through town that ultimately kills him is fairly jarring. It's at night and the actions of the uncaring driver place multiple motorists and pedestrians in mortal jeopardy. Luke in his death throes is quite drawn out and freaks out several characters in the film. This is played for dark comedy. As a station wagon is driving off Rudy's lot, its back door falls off and two kids come tumbling out. They quickly recover and try to chase down the vehicle as their father drives off apparently unaware. Roy briefly uses a shard of broken glass to scare Jeff after the two have brawled. GUNS/WEAPONS Jeff uses a shotgun to shoot large price tags on car windshields during a live commercial. He then "shoots" Jim during the same commercial, but it is quickly revealed that it is fake. Jim lights dynamite and blows up an expensive car on Roy's lot during a live TV commercial. One character waves a handgun at Rudy, Barbara Jane and Jim during a car chase. IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Phrases: "Oww, f*ck!" "Aren't you a little big to be playing in the f*cking mud?" "What are you, a f*cking parrot?" "What the f*ck is this?" "That's too f*cking high." "I knocked them m*therf*ckers right on they asses!" "For Christ's sake, we're f*ckin' with the President of the United States." "I know where the f*ck Miami Beach is, dummy." "Holy sh*t! "Bullsh*t," "Horse-sh*t," "It had better run like a wet dream." "I'm gonna have your balls in a sling." "What in the Hell are you using?" It's a red chariot to take my ass straight to Hell!" "You suck-ass son of a bitch!" "You bastard!" "Jesus Palomino!" "Jesus, Mary and Joseph!" "Oh my God!" "What the Hell?!" "Colored kid." "Pea-brained ignoramus." "Scum suckers." "Broad" and "bitch" (both in reference to a woman). The "N" word is used twice to refer to an African-American. Rudy manages to get under the dashboard and roll back the mileage on a used car for sale. He then places a sign in the car's window that reads: "JUST LIKE NEW." Rudy uses chewing gum to fix a broken bumper on a car for sale. Rudy litters by throwing a gum wrapper on the ground. Rudy places a sign over a busted windshield, hiding the damage so customers won't see. Rudy sprays the interior of a used car with a can marked "New Car Smell" to give the illusion the vehicle is not as old as it is. Rudy gives a flat tire a temporary fix and pretends the tire is just fine to interested customers. Manuel delivers a bunch of problem cars to the lot, including a taxi that has been spray-painted a different color. Rudy litters by throwing an empty beer can on the ground. Rudy attaches a $10 bill to a fishing line and lures one of Roy's customers across a busy thoroughfare, causing accidents and nearly killing the customer. One of Roy's employees takes Luke out for a test drive of one of his vehicles. The man then proceeds to drive like a maniac through town, maneuvering the vehicle at an exceedingly high rate of speed into oncoming traffic, scraping it against highway barriers, and causing multiple accidents before ultimately crashing the car into Luke's car lot. The whole episode causes Luke to suffer a fatal heart attack. The driver is neither prosecuted, nor does he show any remorse. Rudy employs two criminals who know how to tap into live TV signals. They do so twice in the movie -- once during a football game and once during a Presidential speech -- to air live, profane commercials. Children tussle and jump on the roof of a parked car. Rudy "talks jive" when trying to sell a car to an African-American couple. Jeff fakes that a customer has run over his beloved dog to get that customer to buy a vehicle. The pup is on the scam. One character throws a beer at a TV set. Rudy fakes choking at a restaurant so Barbara Jane doesn't see the TV scam Jim and Jeff are about to pull. Jeff lies to the FBI that a prank was pulled by Iranian students. Police officers drive erratically and at high speed near a crowd of people during a non-emergency situation. They end up having a fender bender. A child is shown uttering a profanity ("asshole"). Rudy and Gerrit bet on a football game. Rudy, in fact, bets his entire savings of $40,000. Jeff is overly superstitious, believing in lucky rabbit's feet and such. When Rudy needs a miracle ending to a football game or else he loses thousands of dollars, Jim brings bad luck on the opposing team he bet on by breaking mirrors in a bar, emptying salt shakers, and opening multiple umbrellas indoors. One character brags about paying off witnesses and even the opposing attorney prior to a trial. Rudy implores Barbara Jane to lie under oath. A character named Manuel helps Barbara Jane out of a vehicle and briefly fondles her. A kid hangs out the window of a moving vehicle. Manuel grabs his crotch. Rudy and Barbara Jane stand up and remain in the back of a speeding pick-up truck. Rudy orders a convoy of cars and trucks to speed up to 75 miles per hour, well over the speed limit in the film. Rudy then leads the convoy off-road to avoid a police roadblock. Roy intentionally crashes through the police roadblock. Jeff drives at top speed off-road, as does a car carrying Roy and his henchman. Rudy hops from speeding car to speeding car after falling off a truck. Cars crash through a garage and other structures on the way to their destination. Jeff walks backwards across a road as a car approaches. Jeff races to cross train tracks before an approaching locomotive cuts him off. When the train proves too fast, Jeff uses the angled ramp of a flatbed truck to jump over the train. JUMP SCENES None. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) None. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) The theme song "Used Cars" plays over the end credits, extolling the dishonest behavior just seen throughout the movie. The lyrics repeatedly tell car buyers to go to Hell. PROFANITY At least 26 "f" words (9 used with "mother"), 33 "s" words, 2 slang terms using male genitals (d*ck" and "little head"), 2 slang terms for breasts ("t*ts"), 43 hells, 18 asses (7 used with "hole"), 15 S.O.B.s, 7 damns, 1 crap, 14 uses of "G-damn," 8 uses of "Jesus Christ," 7 uses of "Jesus," 3 uses of "Christ," 2 uses of "For Christ's sakes" and 1 use each of "God in Heaven," "Jesus, Mary and Joseph." "Jesus Palomino" and "Oh my God." SEX/NUDITY Jeff directs a woman to bend over just so he can look at her behind. Jeff is shown on top of a female customer as they loudly have sex in a car. You briefly see Jeff's bare behind. During a live TV commercial, a woman's bare breasts are exposed while children and others at home watch in amazement. During that same commercial, a couple is shown under bed sheets having paused their sex while the TV is on in the background. When Luke tells a potential customer that a car "runs like a dream," the customer responds: "It had better run like a wet dream." Rudy employs at least a half-dozen female strippers to entice customers away from Roy's lot. The strippers dance suggestively on top of parked cars and trucks, eventually baring their breasts and behinds. The women wear pasties and thongs. Jim has one customer sign a contract on a stripper's bare behind. Rudy and Barbara Jane are shown in the aftermath of lovemaking. She rests topless on top of Rudy's bare chest, with a sheet covering her breasts at all times. After receiving a phone call, Rudy jumps out of bed and briefly shows the camera is bare bottom. Manuel helps Barbara Jane out of a vehicle and briefly fondles her clothed breasts. SMOKING Rudy, Jeff and Roy are shown smoking in multiple scenes throughout the film. I counted at least two dozen instances where one or a combination of these characters either smoked cigars or cigarettes on camera or had a butt smoldering in an ashtray nearby. TENSE FAMILY SCENES Luke gets a phone call from his daughter after many years of not talking to one another. Alas, he dies before she can come visit him. Roy covets his brother's car lot and plots to kill him so that he can inherit the property. TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT The often unscrupulous tactics of car salesmen. The perils of unsafe driving. Political corruption, especially in small towns. VIOLENCE One of Roy's employees takes Luke out for a test drive of one of his vehicles. The man then proceeds to drive like a maniac through town, maneuvering the vehicle at an exceedingly high rate of speed into oncoming traffic, scraping it against highway barriers, and causing multiple accidents before ultimately crashing the car into Luke's car lot. After trying to run Jeff over with a car, Roy engages the man in a fight in which several punches are exchanged, glass is broken, Jeff is hit from behind with a chair, then tackled and threatened with a shard of glass. Police officers drive erratically and at high speed near a crowd of people during a non-emergency situation. They end up having a fender bender. Roy punches Rudy in the face, tackles him, and elbows Jeff. Barbara Jane slaps Rudy hard across the face. A school official slaps Rudy for selling his Driver's Ed students bad cars. Rudy then scuffles with him. A bartender roughs Jeff up, picking up and tossing him across the bar so that he lands hard on the floor. Roy intentionally crashes through the police roadblock. The actions of one female driver causes a police car to crash and become upended. The driver flees the scene. While driving, Jim punches a guy off the hood of his car. Roy wields a metal chain and attempts to whip Rudy with it. Roy threatens Barbara Jane with a wrench. Rudy knees Roy in the groin and then punches him in the face, causing him to fall off a moving truck. Cars crash through a garage and other structures on the way to their destination. Reviewed off DVD / Posted August 8, 2009