Supervan (1977)

I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much

Thanks for the memories!

Such a frustrating disappointment

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

Mark Schneider ('Santa Barbara') stars as Clint Morgan, a young man who wants to strike out on his own rather than follow the path that his father has set for him. He plans on entering his van in a "Freakout Competition" for vanners, with his eyes on the $5000 grand prize. However, his van gets totalled after he saves Karen (Katie Saylor, "Invasion of the Bee Girls") from being raped, and her attackers give pursuit. But good fortune comes his way: good friend Bosley (TV veteran Tom Kindle) has designed a futuristic, solar powered "super van" dubbed "Vandora" which he lets Clint use. This puts Clint at odds with Karens' arrogant fat cat father T.B. Trenton (Morgan Woodward, "Moonshine County Express"), an auto industry hot shot who's already entered his own "Trenton Trucker" into the event."Supervan" is no great shakes; it doesn't have much of a story, for one thing. But it's still pretty good fun for lovers of 1970s drive-in cinema. It's got a respectable amount of vehicular action and stunts, a healthy dose of comedy, a wonderful soundtrack, and is overall an amiable, appealing portrait of "vanner" culture in the 70s. Some of these vans are quite impressive in their designs and art. Legendary custom vehicle creator George Barris designed the title mode of transportation, and also appears in the film as himself. Director Lamar Card ("The Clones") keeps it all reasonably upbeat and never too unpleasant, while still understanding the requirements of an exploitation picture from this era. (There are several loving close-up shots of ladies in wet T-shirts.) Adding a goofy, science fiction element is the fact that this van is equipped with a laser gun (!), allowing for a few cheesy effects.Attractive couple Schneider and Saylor are engaging leads, and Kindle is likewise endearing in his key supporting role. Len "Uncle Leo" Lesser turns up as a cop, and Bruce Kimball ("Drive In Massacre") as Trentons' flunky. But the show is often stolen by excellent veteran character actor Woodward, who seems to be relishing the opportunity to chew on the scenery in some scenes.If you're into vans, or just exploitation cinema in general, you're sure to have a decent time with this one.Seven out of 10.

A strangely affable piece of fluffy-headed 70's drive-in comedic piffle which lazily coasts along on the faintest whiff of a plot. The story as far as it goes centers on a spacey solar-powered futuristic supervan equipped with lasers and a plush interior created by your standard flaky inventor (amiable nerd Tom Kindle). Evil corporate head T.B. Trenton (white-haired perennial bad guy thespian Morgan Woodard doing his patented so-slimy-he-slides-when-he-walks villainous bit) wants the supervan for himself so he can win a big annual van contest. Starry-eyed working class zhlub dreamer Morgan the Pirate (impish Mark Schneider) makes off with both the supervan and Trenton's rebellious teen daughter Karen (cute, spunky, buxom brunette Katie Saylor). The expected wacky comic hi-jinks and crazy, careening slapstick car chases ensue.Sure, the admittedly skimpy story ain't much and the loosey-goosey pace meanders all over the place, but what this mama lacks in intricate and sophisticated narrative substance (plenty, to be brutally honest) it surely compensates for in giddy, good-natured, just-give-the-audience-what-they've-paid-to-see eager to please stupidity. For instance, there's a totally gratuitous, but still welcome wet t-shirt contest. Moreover, a nearly endless barrage of funky-throbbing disco songs about vans and van culture blares away on the soundtrack throughout. Irv Goodnoff's pretty, hazy, sunshine-soaked cinematography boasts a few fine sinuous tracking shots and radiates a distinctly 70's warm'n'fuzzy glow (coincidentally, Goodnoff also shot the equally asinine, but still awesome "The Van"!). Blustery custom car king George Barris puts in a guest appearance and a sweetly mellow laid-back vibe permeates the entire feature. Why, we even got slack direction from Lamar Card, a sappy romantic sub-plot, lots of filler footage of the van contest, so-loving-they're-downright-fetishistic close-ups of resplendently tacky van decals, dated CB lingo ("We're doin' it to it"), a gang of hostile bikers, a jailbreak, delightfully politically incorrect comic relief lisping homosexuals, and absolutely no pretense to get in the way of the enjoyably goofy'n'silly fun.

Well, what to say? The first time I saw it, I think I was completely speechless. And I think I still am, actually. Man, this sux! BigTime! Horrid story, crappy craftsmanship, etc.I am not eve sure that it's a good turkey. But a turkey it is, most certainly! I rated a 10 to it, because I really think people should see it to se how it's NOT supposed to be done!

Well, maybe not. I don't know because I haven't seen "Smokey..." since I was, I think, ten..? Anyway, this film is a curious document of the '70s, a real time capsule. The best parts (to me) are the semi-verite portions when the camera wanders around the fairgrounds where they're holding the big van 'freak-out' and just records the goings-on of this peculiar gathering. These segments, for me, capture something very essential about the '70s, moreso than just about any other film I've seen in a long time.