Cars have served a vital and often crucial role in many iconic and memorable films; their breathtaking visuals can be nostalgia-inducing for audiences. Some of the most epic and intense cinema masterpieces put automobiles front-and-center, and showcase nail-biting car chases, gritty action and never-ending adrenaline that’s a delight for moviegoers. Car culture has been a cinema staple for decades, with Steve McQueen’s 1968 classic Bullitt setting a precedent for future car chase sequences. Movie studios know that if a picture contains spectacular automobiles and explosive visuals, chances are it’s going to be a hit at the box office.
Car enthusiasts love big screen extravaganzas that put the pedal to the metal and take them on a wild and thrilling ride. From edgy and hard-hitting flicks like Drive and Mad Max, to wonderfully over-the-top actions such as the nearly 10 The Fast and the Furious films and Need For Speed, the silver screen has become home to some pretty fantastic car-centric films. These are the best movies for car lovers.
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9 Rush
Universal Pictures
Esteemed filmmaker Ron Howard directed 2013’s biographical sports drama Rush, which focuses on the rivalry between two Formula One drivers; the Austrian Niki Lauda and the British James Hunt during the 1967 Formula 1 motor-racing season. Starring Daniel Brühl and Chris Hemsworth as the dueling drivers, the flick is an adrenaline rush for audiences and features exhilarating race sequences and plenty of car eye candy. Howard stunningly captures the nerve-wracking danger of F1 racing at the height of its era, when safety protocols weren’t really implemented and the drivers were considered true daredevils. Rush is jam-packed with gripping races, fast cars, and edge-of-your-seat action that truly makes it a thrilling and entertaining ride for moviegoers.
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8 Need For Speed
Based on the popular racing video game, 2014’s action thriller Need For Speed stars Aaron Paul as street racer Tobey Marshall, who embarks on a cross-country race in an effort to avenge the death of his close friend at the hands of his ex-partner and enemy, Dino Brewster. The fast and in your face film showcases myriad sports cars like the McLaren P1, GTA Spano and Lamborghini Sesto Elemento. Need For Speed relies heavily on eye-catching cars and extreme action sequences, and is a roaring good time for audiences. The adrenaline flick is exactly what fans of the video game would expect, with the characters taking a backseat to the explosive action and incredible vehicles.
7 Gone in 60 Seconds
Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
The 2000 action heist flick Gone in 60 Seconds is a loose remake of the 1974 H.B. Halicki film, and follows a retired car thief who finds himself back in the game when he’s tasked with stealing fifty cars in order to save his brother’s life. Nicholas Cage and Angelina Jolie headline the picture, which is without-a-doubt a tribute to car lovers across the world as it shows off fifty lavish automobiles. From a classic 1953 Chevrolet Corvette to a 2000 Porsche Boxster, Gone in 60 Seconds features a stunning array of vehicles that’s every hot rod lover’s dream. Fans of over-the-top Hollywood action and mindless good-natured fun will love the heist flick, if not simply for the aesthetic and thrilling car chase scenes.
6 Bullitt
Warner Bros.-Seven Arts
Acting legend Steve McQueen stars in the 1968 neo-noir action thriller Bullitt, which centers on tough-as-nails San Francisco cop Frank Bullitt who sets off to identify the underworld kingpin that killed a witness while in his protection. The car-lovers classic features McQueen in all his tough-guy glory, and is famous for its car chase scene through the streets of San Francisco that is widely regarded as one of the most influential in movie history. Bullitt is notable for its extensive use of actual locations and according to McQueen, “The thing we tried to achieve was not to do a theatrical film, but a film about reality.” The Highland Green Bullitt Mustang ‘559 Frank drove around and became synonymous with the film, which became a critical and commercial hit. Film critic Emanuel Levy declared in 2003 that “Bullitt contains one of the most exciting car chases in film history, a sequence that revolutionized Hollywood’s standards.”
5 Drive
FilmDistrict
The 2011 Nicolas Winding Refn action drama Drive stars Ryan Gosling as an unnamed Hollywood stunt driver who moonlights as a getaway driver, and finds himself in danger after he attempts to help his cash-strapped neighbor. The dark thriller earned a standing ovation when it made its debut at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, with Refn winning the festival’s highly coveted Best Director Award. With its sleek direction, hyper-stylized violence and stunning imagery, Drive features dynamite performances by Gosling as well as its supporting cast including Carey Mulligan, Bryan Cranston and Albert Brooks. With nail-biting car chases and riveting action sequences, the film earned praise for its direction, cinematography and true grit; Rolling Stone called Drive “a brilliant piece of nasty business.”
4 The Italian Job
Paramount Pictures
1969’s classic comedy caper The Italian Job tells the story of Charlie Croker, the leader of a Cockney criminal gang who devises a plan to steal a gold shipment from the streets of Turin by staging a traffic jam. The renowned Michael Caine portrays the suave Croker, and the film includes the additional talent of playwright Noël Coward, comedian Benny Hill and Raf Vallone. The heist escape cars are red, white, and blue Minis, with gorgeous automobiles like an orange Lamborghini Miura, Jag E-Types and Ashton Martin DB4 front and center in the flick. The Italian Job’s epic cliffhanger ending, in which the coachload of gold is suspended over the edge of a cliff, is one of the most discussed end scenes in cinema history. A remake of the caper was released in 2003, with Mark Wahlberg stepping in to Caine’s role, also featured some enviable vehicles on full display. However, the original has become a classic of its genre and has achieved cult status.
3 Death Race
Action hero Jason Statham headlines the 2008 dystopian action thriller Death Race, a loose remake of the 1975 flick Death Race 2000 that follows ex-con Jensen Ames as he is forced to compete in a brutal race where drivers must kill one another to win. Co-starring Tyrese Gibson and Ian McShane, the adrenaline-filled film is an entertaining and mindless escape brimmed with crazy car chases, gritty action and explosive visuals that leave viewers on the edge of their seats. Though it earned mixed reviews from some critics, The New York Times offered a positive response, stating “the movie is legitimately greasy, authentically nasty, with a good ole-fashioned sense of laying waste to everything in sight.”
2 Mad Max
Warner Bros.
The highly-revered Australian dystopian thriller Mad Max is one of the most successful films ever made, having earned a massive $100 million on a $400,000 budget. The action flick takes place in a self-destructing world and focuses on the vengeful Max Rockatansky, a policeman who sets out on a personal vendetta to stop a violent motorcycle gang that murdered his wife and son. The classic hit has cars featured prominently, with the titular character driving his yellow Interceptor that was a 1974 Ford Falcon XB sedan; other cutting-edge cars to appear include the Pursuit Special, Mazda Bongo and a 1959 Chevrolet Bel Air Sedan. Mad Max initially garnered polarizing reviews from critics but has since gone on to be considered a cinema classic and spawned a highly-lucrative franchise.
1 The Fast and the Furious
Universal Pictures
Undeniably one of the most successful franchises of all time, Fast & Furious is a series of action films that feature drool-worthy cars, epic heists, gritty street racing and gravity-defying stunts. The movie that started it all was 2001’s The Fast and the Furious, which focuses on undercover cop Brian O’Conner as he is tasked with determining the identity of a group of automobile hijackers led by Dominic Toretto. The action blockbuster memorably stars Paul Walker, Vin Diesel, Michelle Rodriguez and Jordana Brewster and is the quintessential car lover’s film, as it famously shows off a slew of luxurious and ultra-expensive vehicles like a 1994 Toyota Supra, Mazda RX-7 and a 1970 Dodge Charger R/T. Production attended illegal street races to accurately depict the racing culture, and it is also notable for its inclusion of street racers. Variety called the action flick “a gritty and gratifying cheap thrill, Rob Cohen’s high-octane hot-car meller is a true rarity these days, a really good exploitationer, the sort of thing that would rule at drive-ins if they still existed.”
