Corvette Summer (1978)

How sad is this?

best movie i've ever seen.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

Kenny Dantley Jr. (Mark Hamill) is on a school trip to the junkyard when he rescues a trashed Corvette. He brings it back to his L.A. school. The students fix it up and trick it out with the help of shop teacher Ed McGrath (Eugene Roche). The class takes it out for a ride when it gets stolen. Everybody including the cops write it off and then a traveling salesman tells him about seeing it in Las Vegas. He hitches a ride from Vanessa (Annie Potts) who is going to Vegas to go pro as a hooker.This is a fun little film with plenty of 70s kitsch, car-obsession, and an early Annie Potts. She's the fun that keeps the movie interesting and more than a flat B-movie. It's Hamill's first film after his unexpected stardom from Star Wars and probably filmed before that. He's a cute leading man but he's a bit overshadowed by the outrageous Potts. She's cute, funny, and a compelling character. At least, I care about her much more than the car.

I know no one cares, but I do. This film is historic for one reason. It is the unity of two heroes from two great seventies sci-fi films. Well, one is great, and one is quite bad. The great one is truly great, in fact it's the best. The bad one is truly bad, in fact it's the worst. Of course of the great I refer to "Star Wars" and it's star Mark Hamill, aka "Luke Skywalker", who is the hero of this film about a kid who gets his Vette swiped and then goes to Vegas (on a lead) and after a whole lot of adventures, eventually recovers it. (Since he's into fixing cars I guess you can call him "Lube Skywalker"). Along the way he meets a hooker with a heart of gold, and ends up facing off with a character played by Kim Milford, the hero from the seventies sci-fi cult film "Laserblast", which is, as I've hinted at earlier, the worst sci-fi film ever made. Milford plays the lead baddie whom Hamill must steal his car back from. I realize that no one cares about this meeting of two great sci-fi heroes, but I do. And I also must say that this is one of the best/worst movies of all time. Mark Hamill's acting needs the force, the plot needs extensive Jedi training, and the character of the hooker played by Annie Potts just might be the most annoying character of all time, ever, in any film I've ever seen. But it's a fun movie to watch on a weekend day, or a weekday night, late at night, very late. It's one of those films that meanders, looking for something but without quite finding it and yet, at the same time, it's entire purpose is, like free-form jazz, to simply exist as is. And it does. And what is, isn't that great, but you can't say it isn't entertaining, because for an hour and a half you might feel ripped off, but you won't feel cheated. So turn off your mind, relax, and enjoy this muddled gem without any expectations, and may the force be with you, always.

Corvette Summer is a delightful piece if you see it with kid's eyes. There's a pretty innocence in the whole story. This movie was made partly to exploit Hamill's success at that time. But if you know nothing about Mark you may simply enjoy it, after all it has fabulous muscle cars and a sympathetic premise and over all things it doesn't try to be more than it is. This is like a children's tale in the late 70's, don't misunderstand this as something derogative. The plot has many similarities with Jack the giant killer (lucky those guys that find valuable things in the streets!!) and it is good that old children's tale are reinvented from time to time. Mature people can have problems with this and think it absurd, but sometimes it is better believe we can find what can change our lives in a dumpster or walking on the street than believe we will be unhappy adults for the rest of our lives.It's positive the simplistic story that presents Summer of Corvette, there's no abundance of subplots, it's a linear plot. Also it's nice find a movie about a guy who's got no money and suddenly can have all what he wanted. If you don't like this, there are lots of Hollywood products with people with fancy cars, and some of them justify car robbery probably a realistic way for people of the lower classes to get classy cars. Sometimes it's good been a bit unrealistic.

When you're tired of all those boring, dime-a-dozen mainstream comedies out these days, I'd recommend looking for this movie to pop in the VCR (or DVD player if it made it that far) one weekend afternoon. 'Corvette Summer' is a semi-teen adventure in the style of something like 'Rock N'Roll High School' (the Ramones movie, not that Corey Feldman comedy), minus the rock music theme. And, even though I rarely enjoy Mark Hammil's performances, and even despite his not looking much like a high school teen (he was 27), he and Annie Potts had great chemistry in this light-hearted road adventure comedy.Hammil plays a recent high school grad who's obsessed with a Corvette he helped fix up as the final auto shop project. But, one night, while he and his classmates take the cherry auto for a joyride on the strip, it is stolen. Everyone is ready to give up, because hell, what are the chances of finding a car like that again? Especially in one piece. But, Kenny (Mark Hammil) is persistent, and tracks down any leads he can find, which take him all the way to gambling country--Las Vegas--where he latches on to a clever scheme (that shatters the kid's idealism) and where he also befriends an eccentric drifter-turned-prostitute named Vannessa (played by Annie Potts who can always make me laugh), who also gets involved in Kenny's relentless search for his famed Corvette. For laid back good times, and a bit of reminiscing, I'd recommend catching Corvette Summer--even if you're not into cars (like myself). It's an appreciable little comedy that does well thanks to its quirky stars--Hammill and Potts.