History Film / TheCar

Enter [[TheHero Sheriff Wade Parent,]] who must find out who's driving the damn thing, how to stop it, and hopefully protect his kids, girlfriend, and, well ''everybody else'' from this motorized menace.

* AutomatedAutomobiles: It is not exactly stated, but it seems The Car is [[DemonicPossession possessed]].
* BadassDriver: The Car demonstrates some tricky maneuvers. Wade also qualifies, given that he's the only guy in the movie who outmaneuvers The Car.
* CarFu: The Car is so adept at this that attempts to out-CarFu it fail utterly. Wade is GenreSavvy about this, and rather then try to take it out on a mere motorcycle, simply uses that to lure The Car into a trap.

* CoolCar: Aside from its appearance, The Car can shake ''cliffs'' by ramming them.
* CueTheSun: The sun rises just after The Car is destroyed.

* DoNotTauntCthulhu: At least twice, it is shown that taunting The Car is ''not'' advisable.

** A relevant passage in more ways then one: Not only is The Car [[DemonicPossession possibly demonic]], but its appearances are often preceded by an ill wind, [[SpottingTheThread as noted by Lauren]] a bit too late.
* TheEndOrIsIt: The end credits show The Car driving around New York, suggesting that it wasn't destroyed after all.

* EveryCarIsAPinto: Ray's police car explodes when The Car pushes him over the cliff, as do the other cop cars when The Car rolls over them. Funnily enough this even applies to The Car itself: [[spoiler: When it is defeated by falling into an explosive-rigged canyon, it sends up a huge, unearthly firestorm.]] Possibly [[JustifiedTrope justified]] when one remembers that [[spoiler: The Car is literally demonic.]]

* FlippingTheBird: John flips The Car off when it almost hits him. [[DoNotTauntCthulhu This probably wasn't a good idea.]]
* GoodHurtsEvil: They don't realize it at the time, [[SeekingSanctuary but running into the cemetery is specifically what saved Lauren and the kids]]- The Car cannot enter the cemetery, as it is hallowed ground.

* IShallTauntYou: When The Car traps the kids in the cemetery, Lauren starts taunting it to cause distraction. [[spoiler: [[DoNotTauntCthulhu This turns out to have been a bad idea,]] [[CarFu as The Car seeks her out in revenge.]]]]
* ImmuneToBullets: Shots fired at The Car mysteriously change their courses to miss it. This is dismissed as bulletproof glass and foam-filled tires, but the reality is quite a bit worse.

* KarmaHoudini: Amos. Might be {{justified|Trope}} in that [[spoiler:The Car is literally diabolic]] and as such would want to spare a wicked man so he can do more evil. [[HoistByHisOwnPetard This bites it on the tailpipe in the end, though.]]

* MagicalNativeAmerican: [[AvertedTrope Thankfully averted]] with Deputy Chas and Donna, both of whom are depicted as perfectly ordinary people who happen to be Navajo rather than as dispensers of ancient wisdom. Does come slightly into play with an elderly Navajo lady who sees Everett get killed and tries to get Chas to tell the other deputies that [[DemonicPossession "There was no driver in The Car."]]

* ScareTheDog: Before The Car crashes the parade, horses in it are shown to be scared.

* SuperWindowJump: How Wade eludes The Car in his garage.

* WindowPain: When The Car is in Wade's garage, it starts to make so much noise that garage's windows shatter.

A car appears in the [[NothingExcitingEverHappensHere fictional Utah town of Santa Ynez]]. But not just any car: It is a [[CoolCar heavily modified black 1971 Lincoln Continental Mark III]], which proceeds to mercilessly run down local citizens. The local police force is baffled by this, especially given sketchy claims from eyewitnesses that the car had no plates, and much more oddly, no driver...

* HollywoodNight

* ShirtlessScene

* VehicularAssault

* DyingLikeAnimals: For their part, people aren't particularly good at avoiding The Car.

The 1977 film '''''The Car''''' is exactly what would you get [[XMeetsY if you crossed]] ''Film/{{Jaws}}'' with ''Film/{{Duel}}'', minus the [[Creator/StevenSpielberg Spielberg.]]

A car appears in the [[NothingExcitingEverHappensHere fictional Utah town of Santa Ynez.]] But not just any car: It is a [[CoolCar heavily modified black 1971 Lincoln Continental Mark III]], which proceeds to mercilessly run down local citizens. The local police force is baffled by this, especially given sketchy claims from eyewitnesses that the car had no plates, and much more oddly, no driver...

** A relevant passage in more ways then one: Not only is The Car [[DemonicPossession possibly demonic,]] but its appearances are often preceded by an ill wind, [[SpottingTheThread as noted by Lauren]] a bit too late.

* KarmaHoudini: Amos. Might be [[JustifiedTrope justified]] in that [[spoiler:The Car is literally diabolic]] and as such would want to spare a wicked man so he can do more evil. [[HoistByHisOwnPetard This bites it on the tailpipe in the end, though.]]
* LoudOfWar: The Car's horn is extremely loud, and is variously used to intimidate victims and as a sort of PostMortemOneLiner, coupled with the equally loud engine. At one point, [[WindowPain it shatters some windows.]]

* NoKillLikeOverkill: The Car ''really'' hated that hitchhiker...

* StuffBlowingUp: When it's clear that CarFu and [[ImmuneToBullets bullets won't work,]] explosives are used to finally defeat The Car... and even that might not have been enough.

* {{Novelization}}: A surprisingly good one by screenwriters Dennis Shryack and Michael Butler, which features more backstory about the town and the characters, and also has a different, darker ending.

* TheAlcoholic: Deputy Luke ''was'' one, and he briefly falls off the wagon [[DespairEventHorizon when both Pete and the Sheriff get murdered on the same day]]. He gets it back under control after [[WhatTheHellHero he foolishly forgets to warn the local school not to hold their parade practice, leading to the deaths of six fellow deputies.]]

* MagicalNativeAmerican: [[AvertedTrope Thankfully averted]] with Deputy Chas and Donna, both of whom are depicted as perfectly ordinary people who happen to be Navajo rather than as dispensers of ancient wisdom. Does come slightly into play with an elderly Navajo lady who sees the sheriff get killed and tries to get Chas to tell the other deputies that [[DemonicPossession "There was no driver in The Car."]]

* OffscreenTeleportation: The Car appears in Wade's garage this way. This is also likely how it moved about the town unchecked in spite of police patrols and roadblocks.

* {{Jerkass}}: Amos, the local drunken lout who [[ChekovsGun handles dynamite]].

* GeniusBonus: The very idea of The Car being [[spoiler:powered by Satan]] may be a ShoutOut to certain legends told about especially clever man-eating animals like the [[BigBadassWolf Beast of Gevaudan]] being [[DemonicPossession possessed]].

* EveryCarIsAPinto: Ray's police car explodes when The Car pushes him over the cliff, as do the other cop cars when The Car rolls over them. Funnily enough this even applies to The Car itself: [[spoiler: When it is defeated by falling into an explosive-rigged canyon, it sends up a huge, unearthly firestorm.]] Possibly [[JustifiedTrope justified]] when one remembers that [[spoiler:The Car is literally powered by demonic evil].

* {{Jerkass}}: Amos, the local drunken lout who [[[ChekovsGun handles dynamite]].
* KarmaHoudini: Amos. Might be [[JustifiedTrope justified]] in that [[spoiler:The Car is literally diabolic]] and as such would want to spare a wicked man so he can do more evil. [[HoistOnHisOwnPetard This bites it on the tailpipe in the end, though.]]

* EveryCarIsAPinto: Ray's police car explodes when The Car pushes him over the cliff, as do the other cop cars when The Car rolls over them. Funnily enough this even applies to The Car itself: [[spoiler: When it is defeated by falling into an explosive-rigged canyon, it sends up a huge, unearthly firestorm.]]

* KarmaHoudini: Amos.

The 1977 film '''''The Car''''' is exactly what would you get [[XMeetsY if you crossed]] ''Film/{{Jaws}}'' with ''Film/{{Duel}}'', minus the [[StevenSpielberg Spielberg.]]

* BadassDriver: The Car demonstrates some tricky maneuvers. Wade also qualifies, given that he's the only guy in the movie who outmaneuvers The Car.

* CueTheSun: The sun rises just after The Car is destroyed.

* DoNotTauntCthulhu: At least twice, it is shown that taunting The Car is ''not'' advisable.

-->"Oh great brothers of the night, who rideth out upon the hot winds of hell, who dwelleth in the Devil's lair; Move and appear!"

* EveryCarIsAPinto: Ray's police car explodes when The Car pushes him over the cliff, as do the other cop cars when The Car rolls over them. Funnily enough this even applies to The Car itself: [[spoiler: When it is defeated by falling into an explosive-rigged canyon, it sends up a huge, unearthly firestorm.]]

* GoodHurtsEvil: They don't realize it at the time, [[SeekingSanctuary but running into the cemetery is specifically what saved Lauren and the kids]]- The Car cannot enter the cemetery, as it is hallowed ground.

* InfantImmortality: Played straight, but only just barely. The Car only didn't get at the kids because [[SeekingSanctuary they ran into the cemetery.]]

* LoudOfWar: The Car's horn is extremely loud, and is variously used to intimidate victims and as a sort of PostMortemOneLiner, coupled with the equally loud engine. At one point, [[WindowPain it shatters some windows.]]
* ObviouslyEvil: The Car is big and matte black, with huge fenders, a low-cut roof, and windows tinted so dark it's impossible to see the interior. It also has no license plates or handles on it's doors. Virtually the only thing disturbing the overall image is it's shiny grill and over-sized chrome bumper- almost giving the thing an EvilGrin.

The 1977 film '''''The Car''''' is exactly what would you get [[XMeetsY if you crossed]] ''{{Jaws}}'' with ''{{Duel}}'', minus the [[StevenSpielberg Spielberg.]]

* HellIsThatNoise: Lauren has this reaction to the sound of The Car's engine.
* HighOctaneNightmareFuel: At one point, The Car intentionally sends itself into a flip, in the process caving in the roofs of two cop cars. [[{{Squick}} With the cops in them.]]

* OrIsIt: The end credits show The Car driving around New York, suggesting that it wasn't destroyed after all.

* StuffBlowingUp: When it's clear that CarFu and [[ImmuneToBullets bullets won't work,]] explosives are used to finally defeat The Car... [[OrIsIt and even that might not have been enough.]]

* AntagonistTitle

Generally considered to be pretty bad. Or SoBadItsGood. Gene Siskel called it "The Cinematic Turkey of 1977."

The 1977 film '''''The Car''''' is exactly what would you get [[XMeetsY if you crossed]] ''{{Jaws}}'' with ''{{Duel}}'', minus the [[StevenSpielberg Spielberg.]]

* FlippingTheBird: John flips The Car off when it almost hits him.

* IShallTauntYou: When The Car traps the kids in the cemetery, Lauren starts taunting it to cause distraction. [[spoiler: [[TemptingFate This turns out to have been a bad idea,]] [[CarFu as The Car seeks her out in revenge.]]]]

A car appears in Santa Ynez, Utah. But not just any car: It is a modified black 1971 Lincoln Continental Mark III, which proceeds to mercilessly run down local citizens. The local police force is baffled by this, especially given sketchy claims from eyewitnesses that the car had no plates, and much more oddly, no driver...

* EveryCarIsAPinto: Ray's police car explodes when The Car pushes him over the cliff, as do the other cop cars when The Car rolls over them.

A car appears in Santa Ynez, Utah. It is a modified black 1971 Lincoln Continental Mark III, which runs over people. Local police force is baffled by this, especially at the claims from eyewitnesses that it had no driver...

The 1977 film '''''The Car''''' is exactly what would you get if you crossed ''{{Jaws}}'' with ''{{Duel}}'', minus the Spielberg.

* CarFu

* ChaseScene
* CoolCar: Aside from its apperance, The Car can shake ''cliffs'' by ramming them.

-->"Oh great brothers of the night, who rideth out upon the hot winds of hell, who dwelleth in the Devil's lair; Move and appear!"
* EveryCarIsAPinto: Ray's police car explodes when The Car pushes him over the cliff.

* IShallTauntYou: When The Car traps the kids on the the cemetery, Lauren starts taunting it to cause distraction.
* ImmuneToBullets: Bullets fired at The Car mysteriously change their courses to miss it.

* OffscreenTeleportation: The Car appears in Wade's garage this way.