Deadline Autotheft (1983)

Rating: **
Review Date: 1/2/00
Written, Directed, and Produced by: H.B. Halicki
Cast: H.B. Halicki

I was pretty excited when I saw this film, until I saw H.B. Halicki's original "Gone In 60 Seconds" (1974). This film is a shoddy cut-and-paste effort made out of clips from "Gone In 60 Seconds" and additional footage that was shot for "The Junkman" (1982). No wonder it's confusing and looks so dated. The benefit of editing these two films together is that the pacing is sped up considerably. The downside, of course, is that there are awkward continuity flaws and the dramatic plot elements are completely abandoned, making the film seem needlessly stupid and confusing. (much like the horribly re-edited American versions of Jackie Chan's films) Regardless, the car chases are still fantastic, and that's the real reason to watch the film in the first place. But if you're really into this kind of stuff, do yourself a favor and watch the original "Gone In 60 Seconds" instead. You'll be glad you did.