Robert Zemeckis released an R-rated comedy starring Kurt Russell called Used Carswhich is surprisingly very dark. Zemeckis is best known for his incredibly popular and classic films such as Forrest Gump, Back to the Future, and Cast Away. Zemeckis made his feature film debut with 1978's historical comedy I Wanna Hold Your Hand, which follows two fans who try to sneak into the Beatles' hotel in New York City before their American debut on The Ed Sullivan Show.
While Zemeckis is known for his collabs with Tom Hanks, he has also worked with several other stars such as Kurt Russell in Used Cars, which was just his second directorial effort. Used Cars is one of Russell's career-best comedic performances, even though the actor is best known for his dramatic roles in classic movies such as Tombstone, Escape From New York, and Miracle. While Zemeckis has made plenty of comedy movies, none of them have been rated R besides Used Cars.
Used Cars Is Robert Zemeckis' Darkest Comedy Movie
It's his only comedy movie with an R-rating
Used Cars is by far Robert Zemeckis's darkest comedy movie. It is the only film he has directed that received an R-rating until 2012's Flight starring Denzel Washington, which is obviously by no means a comedy. Because of this, Used Cars belongs in a rare category of Zemeckis films that push the envelope of conduct within its content. While today's standards might give Used Cars a PG-13 rating, it was given a rating of R in 1980 by the MPAA for depictions of sexual situations and profanity.
2024's Here sees Robert Zemeckis repeat an interesting career trend, although it is much worse than what he attempted nearly four decades ago.
Since Zemeckis was still young in his directorial career, it makes sense that if he were going to have an R-rated comedy it would appear in the early stages of his career. Used Cars was mostly appreciated by critics, earning it a Rotten Tomatoes critic score of 77%. Vincent Canby of The New York Times wrote in his review of Used Cars, "A foul-mouthed, bumpercrunching farce that is often funnier in theory than in fact but, even so, is a movie that has more laughs in it than any film of the summer except Airplane!" It did not win over Roger Ebert, however, who said that the "two young filmmakers seem to be higher on kinetic energy than on structure and comedic instinct."
Used Cars Is Still Robert Zemeckis' Only R-Rated Comedy
Zemeckis is mostly considered a kid-friendly filmmaker
Because Zemeckis has only made two R-rated films in his career, Used Cars and Flight, it's unlikely that he will enter that territory again. His most recent film Here was a PG-13 drama and he hasn't made a true comedy since Used Cars. With other works such as Romancing the Stone and The Polar Express, Zemeckis is essentially regarded as a family-friendly filmmaker, which makes Used Cars a clear outlier in his filmography. Regardless of how it stacks up to his other more notable works, Used Cars is still a classic deep cut from the early years of the believed director.
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Used Cars is a comedy directed by Robert Zemeckis, featuring Kurt Russell as Rudy Russo, a cunning used car salesman. The film portrays Russo's attempts to outsmart his unscrupulous competitors and save his dealership from foreclosure. Characterized by its satirical take on the used car business, the film also stars Jack Warden in a dual role as competing brothers Roy L. Fuchs and Luke Fuchs.
Release Date
July 11, 1980
Runtime
113 Minutes
CastKurt Russell
, Jack Warden
, Gerrit Graham
, Frank McRae
, Deborah Harmon
, Joe Flaherty
, David L. Lander
, Michael McKean
, Michael Talbott
, Harry Northup
, Alfonso Arau
, Al Lewis
, Woodrow Parfrey
, Andrew Duncan
Character(s)
Rudy Russo
, Roy L. Fuchs / Luke Fuchs
, Jeff
, Jim the Mechanic
, Barbara Fuchs
, Sam Slaton
, Freddie Paris
, Eddie Winslow
, Mickey
, Carmine
, Manuel
, Judge Harrison
, Mr. Ghertner
, Charlie
English (US) ·