History Film / TheCarsThatAteParis

* {{Gaslighting}}: When Arthur keeps mentioning that he saw lights before the crash, the Mayor assures him that it's just a delusion caused by the physical and mental stress of the accident. In fact, using lights to blind victims is one of the Parisians' main methods to cause accidents, so the Mayor is trying to avoid a HeKnowsTooMuch situation with Arthur.

* SpikesOfVillainy: The film's most enduring legacy is the image of the Volkswagen Beetle customized with porcupine spikes. It features on the film poster.

* {{Affably Evil}}: The Mayor is a pleasant, fatherly man, who just happens to endorse murder and thievery on the part of his subjects.

* KarmaHoudini: By the end of the film, no one is held legally accountable for their crimes. However, it's averted in that the conflict between the local greasers and the older generation has led to several village buildings demolished and people killed. This in turn leads the villagers to abandon their homes. However, FridgeLogic sets in when you consider that when Arthur finally talks to the authorities (who were lead to believe he was dead and his car destroyed) there may be an investigation.

* LondonEnglandSyndrome: Averted. This Paris is in the Australian Outback. There's even a local eatery called the Eiffel Tower Cafe.

* {{Mooks}}: The Mayor's henchmen all wear orange hi-visibility jackets.

''The Cars That Ate Paris'' (also known as ''The Cars That Eat People'') is a 1974 UsefulNotes/AustralianNewWave film that marked the directorial debut of Creator/PeterWeir.

* ShoutOut: The song played on the piano at the Mayor's party is My Ding-A-Ling by Chuck Berry.

* CorruptHick: The Mayor, but when everyone's distressed over the pastor, he reminds everyone in town that they're all equally guilty of corruption.

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* NonIndicativeName: The title might imply that it's a campy AttackOfTheKillerWhatever movie about [[SentientVehicle Sentient Vehicles]], but it's really a BlackComedy about a remote town, and the "ate" part is more about the conscience of the townspeople than anything else.

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: The song played on the piano at the Mayor's party is My Ding-A-Ling by Chuck Berry.

The Paris of the title is a tiny town in the New South Wales countryside (so not ''[[UsefulNotes/{{Paris}} that]]'' UsefulNotes/{{Paris}}]]). It's surrounded by treacherous roads that are prone to car accidents. The Waldo brothers become a victim of one of these accidents. George dies, but Arthur (Terry Camilleri) survives. After recovering in the local hospital, he's persuaded to stay in town by Mayor Kelly (John Meillon). But it becomes apparent that beneath the placid exterior of Paris lies a harsh truth: the car accidents are caused intentionally by the town's residents, and they make their livings by scavenging the parts.

The Paris of the title is a tiny town in the New South Wales countryside. It's surrounded by treacherous roads that are prone to car accidents. The Waldo brothers become a victim of one of these accidents. George dies, but Arthur (Terry Camilleri) survives. After recovering in the local hospital, he's persuaded to stay in town by Mayor Kelly (John Meillon). But it becomes apparent that beneath the placid exterior of Paris lies a harsh truth: the car accidents are caused intentionally by the town's residents, and they make their livings by scavenging the parts.

* {{Adorkable}}: Arthur is a meek simpleton, bordering on ManChild.

* EvenEvilHasStandards: Yes, the townspeople cause crashes, steal, kill and lobotomize people. But, the Mayor is visibly disturbed and angry when he finds that one of the townspeople had literally blown off the head of the visiting Pastor. While there's some PragmaticEvil involved, as shooting a regular visitor in broad daylight is harder to explain than a stanger at night, the Mayor still calls the perpetrator "irreligious".