Repo Man (1984)

Young punk Otto becomes a repo man after helping to steal a car, and stumbles into a world of wackiness as a result.

Director:

Alex Cox

Writer:

Alex Cox

Stars:

Harry Dean Stanton, Emilio Estevez, Tracey Walter

2 wins & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Harry Dean Stanton	...	Bud
Emilio Estevez	...	Otto
Tracey Walter	...	Miller
Olivia Barash	...	Leila
Sy Richardson	...	Lite
Susan Barnes	...	Agent Rogersz
Fox Harris	...	J. Frank Parnell
Tom Finnegan	...	Oly
Del Zamora	...	Lagarto
Eddie Velez	...	Napo
Zander Schloss	...	Kevin
Jennifer Balgobin	...	Debbi
Dick Rude	...	Duke
Miguel Sandoval	...	Archie (as Michael Sandoval)
Vonetta McGee	...	Marlene

Storyline

Frustrated punk rocker Otto quits his supermarket job after slugging a co-worker, and is later dumped by his girlfriend at a party. Wandering the streets in frustration, he is recruited in the repossession of a car by a repo agent. After discovering his parents have donated his college fund to a televangelist, he joins the repossession agency (Helping Hand Acceptance Corporation) as an apprentice "repo man". During his training, he is introduced into the mercenary and paranoid world of the drivers, befriended by a UFO conspiracy theorist, confronted by rival repo agents, discovers some of his one-time friends have turned to a life of crime, is lectured to near cosmic unconsciousness by the repo agency grounds worker, and finds himself entangled in a web of intrigue concerning a huge repossession bounty on a 1964 Chevy Malibu driven by a lunatic government scientist, with Top Secret cargo in the trunk.

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Plot Keywords:

cult film | independent film | repossession | punk | ufo | 

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Taglines:

A repo man is always intense... but only a fool gets killed for a car.

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

Alex Cox

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish

Release Date:

2 March 1984 (USA)

Also Known As:

El reclamador

Filming Locations:

Los Alamos, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$95,300, 4 March 1984, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$3,569,083

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$3,750,080

Company Credits

Production Co:

Edge City

Technical Specs

Runtime:

92 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When Duke is first seen, he is wearing a Sid Vicious t-shirt that says "I Did It My Way," referencing The Sex Pistols bassist's version of the Frank Sinatra classic "My Way." Two years later, Alex Cox directed Sid and Nancy (1986). That movie featured a scene that included a recreation of the video for "My Way."

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Goofs

When driving over the bridge in the repossessed red Camaro, Lite lights his cigarette twice.

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Quotes

Lite: You like music, listen to this. I was into these dudes before anyone. Wanted me to be their manager. I called bullshit on that. Managing a pop group is no job for a man.

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Crazy Credits

Credits scroll down instead of up

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Connections

References Vega$ (1978)

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Soundtracks

Lite's Theme
Performed by The Juicy Bananas

User Reviews

Brilliant Sci-fi Satire

This was a surprise for me, I really didn't expect 'Repo Man' to hit such a chord with me, and alas it succeeded in making me a fan. I was admittedly a little put off by the film's supposed punk outset but was glad to find that it didn't take itself seriously and often had its tongue planted firmly in the cheek.

What Alex Cox delivers here is a timeless classic that has seemingly influenced a lot of my favourite films to date, and of course was influenced itself by other personal favourites. So not only was it natural for me to love 'Repo Man', but it won me over on its own rights with its wonderfully satirical tone and hilarious yet interesting dystopian science fiction themes.

Although incredibly annoying at first, the film's characters eventually won me over and by the end of the film I had learned to love every one of them. This was thanks to the effective and focused characterisation dealt with by Cox, allowing his characters to grow from being dislikable idiots to harmless jesters. Indeed if it wasn't for the characters, 'Repo Man' wouldn't be as funny as it is and it wouldn't even be as interesting. In key with the writing, the cast also do a great job with the handling of their characters, all turning in solid and memorable performances.

If there is one complaint I have it is that the pacing sometimes goes a little out of balance and leads to the story to getting caught up in trivial scenes that either should have been cut or been made more progressive to the plot. Nevertheless, I absolutely loved this film (especially that brilliant ending!) and recommend it to fans of science fiction comedy or satires. Granted not everyone will enjoy at as much as I did, but it certainly deserves a watch.