Gone in 60 Seconds
Short description
Gone in 60 Seconds is a 1974 American action crime film written, produced, directed by and starring H.B. Halicki. Halicki plays Maindrian Pace, an insurance investigator who leads a double life at the head of a professional car theft ring. Approached by a South American drug lord to supply dozens of specific cars within a matter of days, Pace and his crew set about filling the order, picking the locks and outrunning the law across Los Angeles. One vehicle remains outstanding: a 1973 Ford Mustang known as Eleanor. Unknown to Pace, a dispute with an associate has put the police on his trail, and the delivery of the final car becomes a citywide pursuit.
The film was Halicki's first as director, and he surrounded himself with a large credited cast and crew that included family members and friends. Marion Busia, Jerry Daugirda, James McIntyre, George Cole and Ronald Halicki appear alongside him. Made for about one million dollars, it returned roughly forty times that amount at the worldwide box office, a result driven by its extended car chase, which the production staged with real vehicles rather than miniatures or process shots.
On IMDb it holds a rating of 6.3 from around 11,000 votes, and on TMDB 6.2 from roughly 200 votes. A critics' rating of 5.1 from 14 reviews places it below both audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- In some shots, it is noticeable that Eleanor has a three-spoke sports steering wheel instead of the original.
- A total of 93 cars were wrecked during 97 minutes of screen time.
- The police officers, firefighters, medics, and bystanders were all real people. Many didn't even know they were filming a movie, so their reactions to what was happening were genuinely authentic.
- An official script for the film never existed. There were only a couple of handwritten pages with a few dialogues. G.B. Galitsky provided most of the cars used in the filming.
- The mayor in the film is the actual head of the city of Carson – Sak Yamamoto.
- Sometimes filming would be halted for a couple of days so that G.B. Galitsky could attend to his main business – repairing used cars, all in order to earn money and continue film production.
- At the beginning of the film, they show the site of a train crash. It wasn’t arranged by G.B. Galitsky; an incident simply occurred on the eve of filming, and the director decided to include this episode in the film.
- Parnelli Jones still owns the Big Oly Ford Bronco, which is stolen in the plot.
- In 2000, a remastered version of the film was released on DVD. It was cleaned of grain and other artifacts of 70s film. The sound effects were completely updated. The soundtrack was replaced, which caused outrage among fans of G.B. Galitsky. The original film features country music, while the remastered version features more instrumental music. A DVD for Europe, including Russia, was released in 2005.
- The license plate of the "Rolls-Royce" reads HBH. In honor of director, screenwriter, and actor G.B. Galitsky.
- The collision of 'Eleanor' with a pole on the highway was not planned. The Cadillac driver, having been cut off by G.B. Galitsky, failed to regain control and hit a Mustang, which caused it to spin and rip out the pole with its front left wing.
- Only one Ford Mustang (not in the 'Mach 1' modification) was used for filming (unlike the remake). A safety cage and racing belts were installed in it. The 5.7-liter '351 Windsor' engine was modified by G.B. Galitsky himself.
- In 2008, Denis Shakaryan Galitsky won a lawsuit against Carroll Shelby regarding the copyright to the name 'Eleanor,' which had been used by numerous auto shops creating replicas of the 1967 'Shelby Mustang' featured in the remake.
- Actor J.S. Agajanyan Jr. nearly died during filming when 'Eleanor' crashed into his detective's car. The scene made it into the film.
- There is a scene in the film where several Cadillacs lined up in a row are smashed at the Moran Cadillac dealership. G.B. Galitsky first wrecked the brand-new cars and only then bought them from the dealer.
- The 'Muscle Car' 1972 Plymouth Barracuda is stolen from famous NASCAR driver Richard Petty.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
