Pink Cadillac (1989)

Skip tracer Tommy Nowak is tracking Lou Ann McGuinn for a bail bondsman in California. Lou Ann is also being chased by her husband Roy McGuinn and his birth right/neo-nazi friends for ... See full summary »

Director:

Buddy Van Horn

Writer:

John Eskow

Stars:

Clint Eastwood, Bernadette Peters, Timothy Carhart

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Clint Eastwood	...	Tommy Nowak
Bernadette Peters	...	Lou Ann McGuinn
Timothy Carhart	...	Roy McGuinn
Tiffany Gail Robinson	...	McGuinn Baby
Angela Louise Robinson	...	McGuinn Baby
John Dennis Johnston	...	Waycross
Michael Des Barres	...	Alex
Jimmie F. Skaggs	...	Billy Dunston
Bill Moseley	...	Darrell
Michael Champion	...	Ken Lee
William Hickey	...	Mr. Barton
Geoffrey Lewis	...	Ricky Z
Gary Howard Klar	...	Randy Bates (as Gary Klar)
Dirk Blocker	...	Policeman #1
Leonard R. Garner Jr.	...	Policeman #2 (as Lenny Garner)

Storyline

Skip tracer Tommy Nowak is tracking Lou Ann McGuinn for a bail bondsman in California. Lou Ann is also being chased by her husband Roy McGuinn and his birth right/neo-nazi friends for taking their counterfeit money. Nowak eventually captures Lou Ann in Reno, but agrees to stop at her sisters on the way back to see her baby. There she finds her husband and his whacked out friend. A struggle begins and Roy takes off with her baby. Now it's up to Tommy to get the baby back.

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Plot Keywords:

baby | counterfeit | motor car wash | pistol | tough guy | 

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Taglines:

It takes a real man to bring in a lady in a pink Cadillac.

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Genres:

Action | Comedy | Drama

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

26 May 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cadillac Cor-de-Rosa

Filming Locations:

Carson City, Nevada, USA

Box Office

Gross:

$12,143,484 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Malpaso Productions, Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

122 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In constant dollars, this picture was the least successful Clint Eastwood movie at the box-office since The Beguiled.

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Goofs

(at around 31 mins) A boom mic's reflection can be seen in the car's window.

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Quotes

Flasher: Whadda think?
Lou Ann McGuinn: Looks like a penis to me - only smaller.

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Connections

Featured in Siskel & Ebert: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade/Miracle Mile/Pink Cadillac/Road House/Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills (1989)

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Soundtracks

"Any Way the Wind Blows"
Written by John McFee and Andre Pessis
Performed by Southern Pacific
Courtesy of Warner Bros. Records Inc.
(end title)

User Reviews

Cadillac Clint meets Pink Peters

Someone who, as the result of long military deployment at the end of the Cold War, saw nearly every theatrical release of the time is familiar with the Eastwood Mayoral Late Bubblegum Period. Scholars define this as Clint's tenure as mayor of Carmel, between the Marine anthem "Heartbreak Ridge" in 1986 and Clint's Western opus "Unforgiven" in 1992. In 1988 he put a belated end to Dirty Harry in the "Dead Pool," in 1990 he had a PG-13 bondage scene with Sonia Braga in "The Rookie," and in between there was this streetwise chase caper that was, to our loss, his only work with Bernadette. Bounty hunter Tommy (euphemistically a "skip tracer" since he's chasing a girl) captures bail jumper Lou Ann in Las Vegas and becomes caught up in the chase for a cash stash hidden in her pink '59 Caddy convertible by her drug-addict husband & his white supremacist, counterfeiting friends. Clint is at his most likable in these average-Joe tough-guy roles, men who survive only by their wits in seedy jobs (bounty hunter, bank robber, detective, street boxer) & take their lumps when they fall for lost causes or damsels in distress. Peters is fantastic in a humdrum role, going from sullen to sassy to sexy to sensitive without letting us down for an instant. The film is pure fun for its first two thirds, featuring little besides the two stars (Clint mimicking Bernadette's unique soprano is not to be missed). Geoffrey Lewis, an essential in all Eastwood movies like this, is entertaining as ever, this time as an addled hippie forger. The story follows the formula of several movies of this period, the best of which was "Midnight Run" (Cop/bounty hunter finds initial quarry, who's a patsy holding the key to bringing down a really nasty criminal/terrorist outfit). Unfortunately, the bad guys are too psycho-nasty for the light-hearted script, which also features Lou Ann's baby as a hostage. The pre-"Sopranos" mob bad guys of "Midnight Run" brought just the right amount of humor to distill their menace, but if you can find anything funny about neo-Nazi redneck drug addict survivalist militiamen who kidnap babies, please seek therapy. Clint actually gives it a shot near the end, so never let it be said he's not up for a dramatic challenge. "Pink Cadillac" isn't worthy as the only vehicle for the Broadway star and the greatest tough guy of his day, but it was a pleasant way to spend a couple of hours at sea. Compliments to "Speed Channel's" Lost Drive-in for bringing this & other forgotten car movies back to the small screen.