#202. Used Cars (1980)

Directed By: Robert Zemeckis

Starring: Kurt Russell, Jack Warden, Gerrit Graham




Tag line: "TRUST US"

Trivia:  This is Robert Zemeckis's only R rated movie to date

There’s an old joke that asks how can you tell when a car salesman is lying?  

His lips are moving.

Used Cars, Robert Zemeckis’ bawdy, outrageous comedy, succeeds in proving time and again, and always in hilarious fashion, that this joke’s punch line is 100% accurate. 

Used car salesman Rudy Russo (Kurt Russell) believes his skills are being wasted, and decides it's time to pursue his real dream: running for public office.  Unfortunately, the “application fee” to enter the upcoming election is $10,000, and Rudy is a bit short on funds. His kindly boss, Luke Fuchs (Jack Warden), agrees to front Rudy the money, but shortly after making that promise, Luke dies, a tragedy indirectly caused by Luke's manipulative twin brother, Roy (also played by Jack Warden).  

See, Roy owns the competing car lot just across the street, and by getting rid of Luke, he stands to inherit his brother’s worthless property, which may yet become lucrative once the new highway is constructed. 

Faced with the reality of losing their jobs, Rudy and his co-workers (played by Gerrit Graham and Frank McRae) hide Luke’s body, telling everyone he’s alive and well, but vacationing in Florida. Things go from bad to worse, however, when Luke’s estranged daughter, Barbara (Deborah Harmon), shows up out of the blue, and inquires how she might go about getting in touch with her ‘vacationing’ father. 

Kurt Russell is at his slimy best as Rudy, whose dishonesty is established in the film’s opening scene when he rolls back the mileage on a recent arrival, then places a “like new” sign on the car's windshield. Jack Warden is also excellent in a dual role, playing both the kind but sickly Luke Fuchs and his mean and nasty brother, Roy. As a cheat, Roy can match Rudy lie-for-lie.  When the bribe money he’s been paying to the Mayor fails to bring about results, Roy laments, “In the old days, when you bought a politician, the son of a bitch stayed bought!” 

Every new scene in Used Cars promises to be more shocking, and more uproarious, than the last. In a stunt that would have had the FCC pulling their hair out, Rudy and his co-workers interrupt the broadcast of a professional football game to air an illegal commercial, which features both foul language and sudden nudity. 

And how did a shocked American public react to this tasteless display of commercialism? The next day, their lot was full of potential customers!

If you ever thought of becoming a used car salesman, then I strongly recommend you sit down and watch Used Cars. Then, if you still want to sell cars for a living, well… I hope to hell I never walk onto your lot!