Cars (2006)

A hot-shot race-car named Lightning McQueen gets waylaid in Radiator Springs, where he finds the true meaning of friendship and family.

Directors:

John Lasseter, Joe Ranft

Writers:

John Lasseter (original story), Joe Ranft (original story),

Stars:

Owen Wilson, Paul Newman, Bonnie Hunt

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 19 wins & 19 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Owen Wilson	...	Lightning McQueen (voice)
Paul Newman	...	Doc Hudson (voice)
Bonnie Hunt	...	Sally Carrera (voice)
Larry the Cable Guy	...	Mater (voice)
Cheech Marin	...	Ramone (voice)
Tony Shalhoub	...	Luigi (voice)
Guido Quaroni	...	Guido (voice)
Jenifer Lewis	...	Flo (voice)
Paul Dooley	...	Sarge (voice)
Michael Wallis	...	Sheriff (voice)
George Carlin	...	Fillmore (voice)
Katherine Helmond	...	Lizzie (voice)
John Ratzenberger	...	Mack / Hamm Truck / Abominable Snow Plow / P.T. Flea Car (voice)
Joe Ranft	...	Red / Jerry Recycled Batteries / Peterbilt (voice)
Michael Keaton	...	Chick Hicks (voice)

Storyline

While traveling to California for the dispute of the final race of the Piston Cup against The King and Chick Hicks, the famous Lightning McQueen accidentally damages the road of the small town Radiator Springs and is sentenced to repair it. Lightning McQueen has to work hard and finds friendship and love in the simple locals, changing its values during his stay in the small town and becoming a true winner.

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Plot Keywords:

car | race car | friendship | california | route 66 | 

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Taglines:

I got gas, dude

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Genres:

Animation | Adventure | Comedy | Family | Sport

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Certificate:

G

Details

Official Sites:

Buena Vista International [de] Disney [jp]

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian Japanese Yiddish

Release Date:

9 June 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

Cars: Race to 3D

Box Office

Budget:

$120,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£2,668,968 (UK) (28 July 2006)

Gross:

$244,052,771 (USA) (13 October 2006)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Pictures, Pixar Animation Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS DTS Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Lightning McQueen's original number was to be 57, director John Lasseter's birth year. It was later changed to 95 to represent the year that Toy Story was released. The car in the final film who has the number 57 (who wins the race in the first teaser) vaguely resembles McQueen, and is probably an earlier production design for that character.

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Goofs

Pit crew chiefs and other cars use headsets similar to those of humans to communicate with their race cars. The race cars themselves, on the other hand, are able to communicate with their pit crew chiefs without any visible headsets. The need for those awkward headsets, which the cars can't put on without someone's help (having no fully functional hands), is never explained.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Lightning McQueen: Okay, here we go. Focus. Speed. I am speed. One winner, forty-two losers. I eat losers for breakfast. Breakfast? Maybe I should have had breakfast? Brekkie could be good for me. No, no, no, focus. Speed. Faster than fast, quicker than quick. I am Lightning.

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Crazy Credits

The credits contain a dedication and retrospective of characters voiced by Joe Ranft, a Pixar writer who died in 2005.

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Connections

Referenced in The Pixar Shorts: A Short History (2007)

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Soundtracks

"Rollin' in the Rearview"
Written & Produced by Bruno Coon
Performed by Jabu

User Reviews

Pixar and Disney did it again!

Without giving away any of the story, here's my take. I attended the premiere of CARS at LMS on Friday, May 26. True to Disney form, the premiere itself was spectacular. Four giant screens, live entertainment,lots of fireworks, great inclusion of military personnel, and as good of a red carpet as you can do with chain link fenced areas... This movie rates right in the middle of Pixar releases for me. I place it above Monsters Inc, A Bug's Life and Toy Story 2, but not as good as the "original", the best ever, Toy Story, and The Incredibles. Everything just looks so real in this movie. The dust stirred up when Lightning drives off, the scenery around Route 66 (well, maybe not those mountains that look like the fins of old cars). Even the shine on the clean cars looks so real. As an adult, I enjoyed the story line. I can't tell you how the kids would like it, as by the time the movie finally started, my kids were asleep. As always, don't leave your seat until all of the credits roll. Sometimes they are some of the funniest clips in the movie! You'll love them this time, as they tie back to prior Pixar movies, in a car sort of way. This is definitely a movie we'll add to the DVD collection. I really hope this movie does well since it's the first release since Disney bought Pixar. Don't go in looking for the action or adult humor of The Incredibles. If you do you'll be disappointed. Just go in looking for the "Disney always has a good moral behind its animated movies" type of movie and you will really enjoy it. Paul Newman and Larry the Cable Guy really have the best characters in the movie. And while John Ratzenberger's character doesn't have a lot of screen time, I really enjoyed him! I'll be going back to see it when it releases in theaters so I can get a better feel for the sound, as it wasn't the best in an outdoor setting. In my opinion, it easily beats the other animated movies released over the past year or so.