TrueJoshNight
Truly Dreadful Film
InformationRap
This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.
Allison Davies
The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.
MartinHafer
"The California Kid" is the 200th installment of "The ABC Movie of the Week" and as such you would have thought that they would have shown one of their very best movies. Instead, it was a film with a few exciting moments...and a lot of padding. In essence, the film could have been condensed to half an hour!The story begins with Michael McCord (Martin Sheen) going through a crappy little town near the state line. The cops here lie in wait and the town is just a gigantic speed trap. But with one cop (Vic Morrow) it's more. He LIKES it when a speeder tries to outrun him and cross the state line...as he gives chase and runs them off the road to their death. He gets off on doing this. But despite ticketing McCord, McCord doesn't even try going full bore towards the state line...until the sadistic cop kills once again.This DOES sound exciting, doesn't it. Well, it isn't. The pace is the problem...it's just too slow, too padded and never really delivers.
lewisemanuel1946
In my original review of this film, I mistakenly referred to the vehicle's owner as "Jake Jacobs". Somehow, I got Mr. Jacobs confused with his partner and friend, Mr. Pete Chapouris, for which I apologize to both gentlemen.It should be noted that Mr. Chapouris is the builder of "The California Kid" and he is also a well-known and respected hot-rodder out of California.(The original coupe is on display at "Pete & Jake's Hot Rod Parts", in Peculiar, MO, under the care of Mr. Jerry Slover. According to reports, the "California Kid" and its stable mate, "Jake's Coupe" have been driven more than 250,000 miles since their original construction as hot-rods).
spwyner-569-31055
Did honorable Sgt Saunders go home after the war and run for sheriff of a small California town? Somehow this made for TV movie from 1974 eluded me. See pre-liberal panty-waiste Martin Sheen in a James Deanesk role avenging the murder of his motorist brother take on an anything but honorable Vic Morrow playing a sleazy and corrupt town sheriff who hates speedsters and will do anything it takes to run them off the road with the front bumper of his '57 Plymouth. This jewel which takes place in 1957 but filmed in 1974 is filled with goofs and anachronisms galor and solid acting by the above as well as Nick Nolte and former Mama Phillips taking up time and space as the local coffee shop waitress and Rockford Files alum, Stewart Margolin playing it straight as Morrow's lacki deputy.
lightninboy
In 1958, Clarksberg was a famous speed trap town. Much revenue was generated by the Sheriff's Department catching speeders. The ones who tried to outrun the Sheriff? Well, that gave the Sheriff a chance to push them off the Clarksberg Curve with his Plymouth cruiser. For example, in the beginning of the movie, a couple of servicemen on leave trying to get back to base on time are pushed off to their deaths, if I recall correctly. Then one day, a stranger drove into town. Possibly the coolest hot rodder in the world. Michael McCord. Even his name is a car name, as in McCord gaskets. In possibly the ultimate hot rod. A black flamed '34 Ford coupe. The colors of death, evil and hellfire. He gets picked up for speeding by the Sheriff on purpose. He checks out the lay of the land. He is the brother of one of the Sheriff's victims. He knows how his brother died. The Clarksberg government is all in favor of the Sheriff. There's only one way to get justice served for the killing of his brother and to fix things so "this ain't a-ever gonna happen again to anyone": recreate the chase and settle the contest hot-rodder style to the death. He goes out to the Curve and practices. The Sheriff knows McCord knows. The race begins... This is a movie to be remembered by anyone who ever tried to master maneuvering on a certain stretch of road.
