The Cars That Ate Paris (1974)

Director:

Peter Weir

Writers:

Peter Weir (story) &
Keith Gow (story) ...

Release Date:

June 1976 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

They run on blood.

Plot:

The small town of Paris, Australia deliberately causes car accidents, then sells/salvages all valuables from the wrecks as a means of economy.

Plot Keywords:

Small Town | Car Accident | Outsider | Crash | Automobile Chase

Cast

John Meillon	...	The Mayor
Terry Camilleri	...	Arthur Waldo
Kevin Miles	...	Dr. Midland
Rick Scully	...	George Waldo
Max Gillies	...	Metcalfe
Danny Adcock	...	Policeman
Bruce Spence	...	Charlie
Kevin Golsby	...	Insurance man
Chris Haywood	...	Darryl
Peter Armstrong	...	Gorman
Joe Burrow	...	Ganger
Deryck Barnes	...	Al Smedley
Edward Howell	...	Tringham
Max Phipps	...	Mulray
Melissa Jaffer	...	Beth

Also Known As:

Cars
Cars That Eat People (USA)

Runtime:

91 min | USA:74 min (cut)

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Netherlands:16 | USA:TV-MA (cable rating) | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Sofala, New South Wales, Australia

Company:

Australian Film Development Corporation, The

Trivia:

The opening scenes that feature a couple driving in a car and smoking prominently displayed cigarettes were a parody of a commercial aired on Australian television at the time of the film's original release.

Goofs:

Continuity: At the end of the movie (when the people leave the village) you can see a green Austin A30 Van. The same car is crashed earlier by a car trying to jump over the Austin using a ramp. The whole front is crushed so there is now way it can be repaired.

Quotes:

Arthur Waldo: I can drive!

Movie Connections:

Featured in Not Quite Hollywood: The Wild, Untold Story of Ozploitation! (2008)

not-so-gay Paree

Before Peter Weir got really famous, he made this strange but worth seeing flick about a small town in Australia whose local economy centers on car wrecks, and how they draw an outsider in. "The Cars That Ate Paris" doesn't star anyone whom you would recognize, and there's no big action scenes here, but that actually gives the movie a more realistic feeling.

I should identify that this is not a movie for those with short attention spans. It's not likely to stick heavily in your memory the way that most of Peter Weir's movies do (it's certainly not my favorite of his movies). But still, it's something to check out as a historical reference if nothing else.

"I can drive!" You'll probably feel like you can too.