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 (co-director)

Writers:

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

Stars:

Owen Wilson, Bonnie Hunt, Paul Newman

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 28 wins & 32 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 | car movie | route 66 | truck | tow truck | 

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Taglines:

Just Penguin it, Dude.

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Genres:

Animation | Family

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Certificate:

G

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Pixar

Country:

USA

Language:

English Italian Japanese Yiddish

Release Date:

9 June 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

Route 66

Filming Locations:

Pixar Animation Studios - 1200 Park Avenue, Emeryville, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$120,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$60,119,509, 11 June 2006, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$244,082,982

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$461,981,126

Company Credits

Production Co:

Pixar Animation Studios, Walt Disney Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

SDDS DTS (Digital DTS Sound) Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

THEORY: I'm talking about the part where Lightning almost got hit by the train, and no, I'm not explaining the A113 Easter egg. So you all know, there are supposed to be no humans in the Cars world. Well, guess what. I found a human. So, I watched the video by Crazy Nate where he explained The Incredibles (2004) Easter eggs. When he explained the A113 Easter egg, he showed parts of A113 in other Pixar films, and one of those films was this movie, and it was the train part. Well, it zoomed in on the right side of the train to show A113, and I saw the full right side, and on the rest of the side, I saw a painting of a human who looks like Guy Fieri.

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Goofs

In the "outracing the night-train" scene, McQueen is still hundreds of yards away from the crossing when the locomotive first looks horrified; without headlamps or other exterior lights of any kind, though, it is unlikely that McQueen would have been visible to the locomotive yet, since it was a pitch-dark night and McQueen was still so far off to the side of the track and therefore well out of the illumination "coverage" or "range" of the loco's "funnel-cone of light" thrown by its powerful nose-mounted headlights.

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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

During credits, Mack (John Ratzenberger) watches car-versions of earlier Pixar hits, commenting on the fine actor in each scene before realizing it's the same actor (John Ratzenberger) playing different characters in each movie. There is an additional scene at end of credits, as with last year's Chronicles Of Narnia.

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Alternate Versions

"Cars" was released theatrically in the widescreen aspect ratio of 2.39:1. The full-screen version was digitally re-rendered shot by shot, moving characters and objects closer together where necessary, to reframe and fit them into the 1.33:1 TV screen.

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Connections

Referenced in Mad: Addition Impossible/New Gill (2012)

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Soundtracks

Route 66
Written by Bobby Troup
Performed by John Mayer
Produced by Steve Jordan and John Mayer
Recorded and Mixed by Niko Bolas
John Mayer appears courtesy of Aware/Columbia Records

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.