Main Cast: Michael Sarrazin, Norman Burton, Gary Busey, John Durren, Susan Flannery
Release Year: 1976
Country: US
Run Time: 106 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG
Plot
For better or worse, The Gumball Rally was the catalyst for a short-lived cycle of "illegal cross-country race" flicks. As thick-headed cop Roscoe (Norman Burton) does his best to stop the titular rally, a vast and varied contingent of contestants prepare to burn rubber from New York to California. The best-looking of the racers is played by top-billed Michael Sarrazin; Franco, a delightfully narcissistic Italian road jockey played by Raul Julia, also competes. Producer/director Chuck Bail was formerly a stunt coordinator, which helps to explain the incessant car crashes and near-misses in the film. Surprisingly, the doggedly low-budget Gumball Rally was produced by First Artists, a company formed by such major stars as Dustin Hoffman, Barbra Streisand, and Steve McQueen for the purpose of creating "prestige" film fare. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
Although it has been eclipsed by the better-known The Cannonball Run, The Gumball Rally is a better version of the comedic car-race movie. Writer Leon Capetanos and director Chuck Bail wisely treat the film like a live-action cartoon; Capetanos punctuates his madcap storyline with plenty of sense-defying stunt set pieces and gives the characters colorful personalities to match the story's wild tone, while Bail conducts the onscreen mayhem with a fine sense of slapstick-comedy timing and an eye for color (both the comedic and visual kinds). It's also worth noting that the film boasts a catchy, jazz-inflected score by Dominic Frontiere that adds immensely to the film's "Looney Tunes" feel. However, the fun quotient of The Gumball Rally is truly sealed by engaging performances from a game cast: Raul Julia is the obvious standout as the amorous Italian driver, but Michael Sarrazin does a good job delivering icy cool as the race's leader, and Gary Busey fully indulges his wild-man persona as a demolition-derby driver. The end result is light entertainment, to be sure, but it never pretends to be anything else and goes about its business with a knowing wink toward the audience. As a result, The Gumball Rally remains a fun example of the action comedy. ~ Donald Guarisco, All Movie Guide
Harvey Jason - Lapchick; Steven Keats - Kandinsky; Tim McIntire - Smith; Joanne Nail - Jane; J. Pat O'Malley - Barney; Tricia O'Neil - Angie; Lazaro Perez - Jose; Nicholas Pryor - Graves; Vaughan Taylor - Andy; Wally Taylor - Avila; Raul Julia - Franco; Edward Ansara - Head Waiter; Colleen Camp; Rod Colbin; Chuck Courtney - Motorcycle Rider; Ann Doran - Mrs. Ontley; Med Flory; John Furlong - Man on Freeway; Whitey Hughes - Corvette Team; Casey Kasem; John Lawlor - Jake; Gary Littlejohn - Motorcycle Rider; Ken Scott; Larry Silvestri - Corvette Team; Joe Tornatore; Wes Dawn - Jaguar Team; Eddy Donno - Mel (Van Team); Gray Johnson - Truck Driver; Lou David - Mugger; Jack Oliver - Oscar; John Morton - Jaguar Team; David Hinton
Credit
Walter M. Simonds - Art Director, Dodie Shepard - Costume Designer, Frank Beetson - First Assistant Director, Chuck Bail - Director, Stuart H. Pappe - Editor, Maury Winetrobe - Editor, Gordon Scott - Editor, First Artists Productions - Executive Producer, Dominic Frontiere - Composer (Music Score), Richard C. Glouner - Cinematographer, Chuck Bail - Producer, Morrie Hoffman - Set Designer, Les Fresholtz - Sound/Sound Designer, Michael Minkler - Sound/Sound Designer, Arthur Piantadosi - Sound/Sound Designer, Bill Randall - Sound/Sound Designer, Charlie Picerni - Stunts, Eddy Donno - Stunts Coordinator, Chuck Bail - Screen Story, Leon Capetanos - Screen Story, Leon Capetanos - Screenwriter
The film begins as Michael Bannon (Michael Sarrazin), a wealthy but bored businessman, issues the code word "Gumball" to his fellow automobile enthusiasts, who gather in a garage in New York City to embark on a coast-to-coast race "with no catalytic converter and no 55-mile-per-hour speed limit." Their nemesis, NYPD Lieutenant Roscoe (Norman Burton), also learns of the race and most of the film is devoted to the adventures of the various driving teams and Roscoe's ineffectual attempts to apprehend them. A number of running gags ensue - the Jaguar that won't start and Italian race driver Franco Bertolli's (Raul Julia) constant detours to seduce beautiful women are two - as well as some splendid stunts and driving sequences. The race ends at the Queen Mary in Long Beach, California, where the finishers celebrate their adventures and the defeated Roscoe sulks off to one side - until a fleet of police cars and tow trucks arrive to impound the illegally-parked vehicles. Bannon congratulates Roscoe on his final victory and again utters the command "Gumball" to initiate a race back to New York.
With the exceptions of the opening scenes of the race in downtown New York City and the finale in Los Angeles, the movie was filmed in Arizona.
The Jaguar-that-wouldn't-start gag is actually reflective of backstage matters - at first, the producers were going to have the two sexy girls in the Porsche 911 driving a Jaguar E-Type. Jaguar's PR people, however, did not want a Jaguar being used and were reportedly very matter-of-fact about it. So, as a bit of an "up yours", the producers instead had the two girls drive a Porsche Targa and used an E-Type Jaguar as a running joke throughout the race as the car that wouldn't start - and its two drivers clueless as to how to get it running.
The AC Cobra in the film was played by two different 427 cars, serial numbers CSX 3243 and CSX 3255.
Most of the cars are equipped with Cibie driving lights; a young female helper to one of the crews is wearing a form-fitting Cibie t-shirt in the beginning of the movie.
The New York City scenes were filmed early on a Sunday with the streets closed briefly.
The Mercedes-Benz 300SL that J. Pat O'Malley drove during the film smoked noticeably as he sped through Manhattan. O'Malley was not too adept at driving the Mercedes in a racing manner and over-revved the engine while shifting gears, damaging the engine in the Mercedes - which belonged to producer Chuck Bail.
