Firebird 2015 A.D. is a 1981 Canadian science-fiction film directed by David M. Roberson and starring Darrin McGavin, Doug McClure, Robert Wisden, George Touliatos, Mary Beth Reubens, Alex Diakun and Barbara Williams.
It was a black day on August of 1992 when the United States Government commanded that all fuel would be for use of the military and law enforcement only, and anybody caught driving a car would as a result be arrested by the newly-formed Department of Vehicle Control (D.V.C.).
It is now 2015 A.D. and "Burners" (people who continue to drive motor vehicles) have organized into a resistance movement to occasionally steal gasoline from the government and just drive to their hearts' content. There is a light at the end of the tunnel: a senator wishes to make cars legal again with 10 states following his lead.
And in the middle of all this mess, a teenager named Cameron discovers his father Red is a Burner, one of the Burners who are to drive the Senator to his meeting, and meets a young Burner named Jill. It's going to be an eventful few days…
This film provides examples of:
- Artistic License – Gun Safety: DVC officer Shana first appears on screen doing some target shooting while McVain (her superior officer) is in the line of fire. McVain doesn't chews her out over this, being more concerned about an approaching Burner.
- Big Bad: McVain, the leader of the DVC team hounding the area.
- Cool Bike: The bright red Can-Am Qualifier III dirt bikes the DVC officers use.
- Cool Car: The "Firebird" the title refers to is Red's restored 1980 Pontiac Turbo Trans Am (with signature fire bird hood decal). We also have the Plymouth Barracuda driven by Red's friend Indy and the dune buggy driven by Indy's daughter Jill. Another Burner appears with a very nice 1960s Mustang — pity the DVC blows it up (with its driver).
- Cool Garage: Red's garage where he stashes his hoarded fuel and restored Trans Am is located within an abandoned mine. Jill however is disappointed because, looking up to Red as she is, she expected a copycat Batcave.Jill: Well, I don't know. I kinda expected something bigger.
Cameron: Bigger? Like what?
Jill: You know, banks of electronic equipment, supplies for hundreds of years, tons of materials… you know, that kind of thing. - Disproportionate Retribution: Don't you dare own or drive a car in America, if you wish to stay out of jail.
- Double Entendre: Jill does not even tries to pretend her teaching Cam to drive isn't flirting.
- The Dragon: The role is split between DVC officers Dolan (the most violent and effective member of the team) and Shana (the confidant) to McVain's Big Bad.
- Dystopian Edict: No gasoline for civilians. All people caught driving automobiles will be arrested.
- Expospeak Gag: Jill's day job is "silicon chip engineer", or she explains to Cam, she puts together calculators.
- Extremely Short Timespan: The events of the film take place over the course of two days, at least 24 hours spread between them.
- Falling-in-Love Montage: Between Cameron and Jill, as they drive around in the buggy, to an extremely cheesy ballad.
- First-Name Basis: All the Burners are only known by their first names (and we don't know if "Red" and "Indy" are examples of Only Known by Their Nickname). The closest we get to an on-screen explanation is when Cam asks Jill for her last name and she answers "we don't use last names 'round here. Ask me anything else and I'll tell ya." In contrast, almost all of the named DVC officers go on a Last-Name Basis.
- Freudian Excuse Is No Excuse: A weird example: after a whole film with no information, overt or implied, of why the hell Dolan is so deranged, Shana drops his Freudian Excuse right in the middle of her conversation with McVain in the film's third act (Dolan was beaten to near-death by a bunch of racist Burners a little while ago) and immediately follows up with her telling McVain that it does not justifies the brutal extremes he reaches with the Burners.
- Greater-Scope Villain: The United States Government, which created the mandate that fuels the plot, created the DVC to enforce it, and are not too happy about the senator's initiative from the news we hear at some points in the film.
- Leitmotif: Three; "D.V.C." for the DVC, "Riding for my Freedom" for the Burners and war cries for Dolan.
- Hero's Classic Car: All of the Burner vehicles, with Red's Trans Am getting the (somewhat) titular importance. Justified because no cars have been allowed to roam America since 1992.
- Info Dump: Both the opening "The Villain Sucks" Song and a radio broadcast immediately after it explains the complete situation of the world as it is and what are the stakes.
- Naïve Newcomer: Cameron needs to have everything explained to him, needs to be taught how to drive, and is initially very reluctant to even have a Burner for a father but sticks around because Jill is very hot.
- Only Sane Employee: Shana is the most notable member of the DVC strike team who does not likes how things are going out of control, especially regarding Dolan, and the whole "shoot people driving cars" thing in general as the film goes on. She quits the DVC in the epilogue.
- Oppressive States of America: They definitely are, if you like to drive cars. It's implied that it doesn't stops there (the government's explanation that gasoline is limited as the reason they have outlawed driving is pointed out by Red to be propaganda), but the film doesn't focuses on that.
- Post-Peak Oil: Cameron mentions early in the film that the government outlawed cars because of "limited resources", but Red makes clear that it's propaganda.
- Psycho for Hire: Dolan is the craziest member of the DVC team, blowing up Burner cars with grenade launchers and killing Burners, running around like he is in a Native American war party and almost raping Jill. Shana demonstrates she is the Only Sane Employee by calling out McVain for employing this madman and McVain tries to justify it as Dolan being good at his job, and even then he starts to feel doubts by the end.
- The Savage Indian: Dolan (because of his derangement) acts like a sci-fi version of one, running around in a loincloth and warpaint and a grenade launcher, most of his lines (and his Leitmotif) being war cries and "scalping" trophies off the cars he blows up. Said attitude is beginning to unnerve his fellow enforcers.
- Serious Business: Driving. Justified because civilian use of gasoline (in general, and this activity in specific as a side-effect) was made illegal by the Oppressive States of America.
- The Silent Bob: Aside from a lot of war cry whooping, Dolan talks in only two scenes: when he is defending his actions to McVain near the film's climax, and to tell McVain he's sorry he screwed up as he is dying at the climax.
- Stock Footage: The opening credits/"Dee-Vee-Cee" sequence repeats footage of the unnamed Burner's Ford Mustang crossing a bridge twice (notably during the song's chorus).
- There Is No Kill Like Overkill: The other DVC officers bring M-16 rifles to their car hunts. Dolan brings a grenade launcher.
- "The Villain Sucks" Song: The opening credits song, "Dee-Vee-Cee", calls the DVC a bunch of corrupt, tyrannical jerks who "can't catch a rabbit".
- Wrench Wench: Jill is handy at fixing her dune buggy.
- Weaponized Car: Frankenstein's Monster it is not, but for the climactic raid on the DVC camp the heroic Burners add a bull bar to the Trans Am with lights sticking out a few feet to the left so the DVC officers will aim at that and not at the car (the climax happens during a very dark night). Dolan becomes a victim of said bull bar.
- Your Terrorists Are Our Freedom Fighters: Burners are constantly called "terrorists" by the media and the DVC, but the ones we follow only have committed the crime of being Speed Demons (and hoarding fuel, probably obtained from less savory Burners, although Red mentions he could synthesize fuel from bullshit if he needed to).
