There are people who swear NASCAR didn’t stop being a regional sport until the death of Dale Ernhardt during the Daytona 500 in 2001. Others will testify that things took off in the summer of 1990 when Tom Cruise got behind the wheel in Days of Thunder. Far as I can tell, the world of stock car racing became a national sport in the mid-60s. Tom Wolfe’s profile “The Last American Hero Is Junior Johnson. Yes!” in Esquire magazine’s March 1965’s issue got readers curious to see the thrilling motor sport (that started in 1948). They didn’t have to wait too long. In November, a major movie studio with a legendary director took audiences even deeper into the world of NASCAR. Howard Hawks had already made Bringing Up Baby, The Big Sleep, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and Rio Bravo when he visited the Daytona 500. What could he bring to this new world of stock car racing? Red Line 7000 is about the relationships in the most dangerous sport in America.
The danger is immediately felt when driver Jim Loomis (Camelot‘s Anthony Rogers) dies during a race. He pushed the car too hard so that the needle was over the 7,000 RPM red line on the dashboard. His girlfriend Holly McGregor (Gail Hire, Miss Bacon on Batman) arrived late to the race. She missed his final lap. Team owner Pat Kazarian (Transformers: The Movie‘s Norman Alden) and his surviving racer Mike Marsh (The Godfather‘s James Caan) visit the somewhat distraught Holly at the Holiday Inn. While she’s a bit sad, she has her senses. She isn’t too excited that Jim made her the beneficiary of his life insurance. She doesn’t want the money, but eventually uses it to be a partner in a NASCAR themed restaurant run by Lindy (Man’s Favorite Sport?‘s Charlene Hold). Pat finds himself hiring a newbie racer in Ned Arp (John Robert Crawford) after Pat’s sister (Chamber of Horrors‘ Laura Devon) takes a shine to the rookie. A third driver shows up when Dan (Skip Ward – producer on The Dukes of Hazzard) returns from Europe. He brings along his French girlfriend Gabby (The Godfather Part II‘s Marianna Hill). Pat has a pretty good race team for the season although things begin to fall apart quick with his drivers and the women in their lives.
Red Line 7000 doesn’t actually get too gearheaded for the audience. Mechanic Kato (Star Trek‘s George Takei) doesn’t spend hours giving complicated engine talk. We learn that it’s not good to race in the red. We’re not stuck in the pits too much. Most of the movie centers around the Holiday Inn and the Lindy’s restaurant. Making things tighter, all three racers have expansive rooms at a place near the Daytona racetracks. The NASCAR themed restaurant is rather posh affair with a slot racetrack in the middle. They even have a band for when Holly breaks out a song about a racer with Terri Garr (After Hours) as part of her backup singers. This place is swankier than any modern theme NASCAR restaurant. There is quite a bit of stock car action on the screen. You’ll get to see the speedways before they became massive structures. We even get a glimpse of Richard Petty in his car as he gets beat by the trio.
Even with all the drivers on his tail, James Caan doesn’t let anyone cut in front of him. He plays Mike Marsh perfectly as a cocky racer earning his way to the top on the circuit. His ego shows at one point when it’s pointed out that a woman he likes is newly single. He has no desire to date her because he refuses to have anything used in his life. There’s a connecting vibe between the way he plays Marsh and Jonathan in Rollerball that came out a decade later. The roles have Caan going around and around on wheels. Both men are in a sport where the fans show up expecting to see death on the track. Ultimately, they’re in a sport where the individual sort of matters, but you can easily be replaced if something bad happens. Even Richard Petty’s 43 is racing with a different guy behind the wheel. If anything, Red Line 7000 is the origin story for Jonathan that ends in Rollerball. He’s a man who lives on the edge of death.
What makes Red Line 7000 interesting is that this isn’t merely about the drivers. The harder emotional elements of the film are centered on the women. What does it take to love a man who is on the edge? The ladies live with the fear that on any weekend afternoon, they can watch the man of their dreams go up in a fireball. Hawks added this perspective to the movie to make it more than just a racing film. Red Line 7000 is a full throttle rush on the track and back at the Holiday Inn.
The Video is 1.85:1 anamorphic. The 1080p transfer looks great. You will easily tell when they’ve swapped to stock footage of stock cars on the screen. The Audio is LPCM 1.0 mono. The levels are good for crashing and singing. The movie is subtitled.
Audio commentary by Julie Kirgo and Nick Redman is an archival track. Julie’s dad was George Kirgo, the screenwriter of Red Line 7000. She has so many stories to share about how her dad landed the gig even though he had no idea about NASCAR. Howard Hawks found her dad by watching a TV show he wrote. Krigo would also write the script to Elvis Presley’s racing movie Spinout. We learn why Gail Hire only did this movie and two episodes of Batman.
Bruce Kessler: Man in Motion (45:25) is a new interview with Bruce Kessler. He was the second unit director on Red Line 7000.
Gas, Gears, Girls, Guys & Death (36:23) a visual essay by filmmaker and critic Howard S. Berger. He talks about Howard Hawks use of four new actresses in the film. He points out how the actors playing the race car drivers have a certain interchangeable quality. This works since people are showing up to watch the men destroy each other at the racetrack.
A Modern Type of Woman (19:48) is a visual essay on the “Hawksian Woman” by film scholar Kat Ellinger. She points out that the female characters have more depth that the male racers. She views it as less of a sports film and more of a film about women. She points out how Hawks was attracted to strong wrong. Ellinger goes deep on each leading female character.
Image gallery features 35 photos of the posters from around the world, lobby cards, and stills. You’ll see how they faked the racing.
Double-sided foldout poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Sam Hadley is suitable for framing.
Illustrated collector’s booklet with an essay by film critic Martyn Conterio.
Arrow Video presents Red Line 7000: Limited Edition. Directed by Howard Hawks. Screenplay by George Kirgo. Starring James Caan, Laura Devon, Gail Hire, Charlene Holt, John Robert Crawford, Marianna Hill, Skip Ward, Norman Alden, George Takei and Terri Garr. Running Time: 111 minutes. Not Rated. Release Date: July 30, 2024.
