MovieFreak.com - "Gone in 60 Seconds: 2 / Deadline Auto Theft" DVD Review by John Teves

DVD REVIEW

Gone in 60 Seconds: 2 / Deadline Auto Theft (1983)

Starring: H.B. Halicki, Hoyt Axton, Lang Jeffries

Director: H.B. Halicki

Rating: NR

Distributor: Navarre Corporation

Release Date: September 2, 2003
Review posted: September 25, 2003

Spoilers: Minor

Reviewed by John Teves

Synopsis

Gone in 60 Seconds: 2

H.B. Halicki reprises the role that made him famous in this never-before released sequel to the car chase classic, Gone in 60 Seconds. As a legendary car booster, Halicki fearlessly wrecks anything on four wheels while trying to flee from a group of killers and the police in a stolen semi tractor-trailer. After Halicki destroys half the city in the chase, he takes off in the "The Slicer." In an attempt to make Gone in 60 Seconds: 2 one of the most amazing car chase film ever produced, Halicki bought more than 400 cars, destroying almost three times as many cars as in the original.

Deadline Auto Theft

Halicki, the number one car thief in America, is at it again. But when he makes the fatal mistake of stealing a beautiful car that belongs to the LAPD Captain's daughter, Halicki's case turns into a personal vendetta. With an all-out war waged against Halicki and the city's cops under strict orders to stop him at any cost, the streets of Los Angeles are overrun with gear-shattering, full throttle, high-speed chases. It's a nail-biting race to the end with Halicki determined to be the man standing at the finish line.

Critique

H.B. "Toby" Halicki, known throughout the world as "The Car Crash King," wrote, produced, directed and starred in three films which, according to critics, defined the car chase/crash genre with their electrifying realism and ability maximize what a car can do without special effects or CGI. In the summer of 1989, Halicki began production on his fourth movie, Gone in 60 Seconds: 2.

As with all his other films, he shot the film's finale, a 40-minute car chase before he filmed any of its other scenes. However, on August 20, 1989, Halicki was killed when a 160-ft water tower collapsed suddenly while he was shooting on of the most dramatic stunt sequences. Luckily for fans, most of the out-of-control car crash scenes—the essence of all Halicki's movies—were completed and appear here for the first time.

Where Gone in 60 Seconds co-starred "Eleanor", a fast and furious Ford Mustang that couldn't be caught, Gone in 60 Seconds: 2 co-stars something new, "The Slicer," a one-of-a-kind Halicki custom-designed vehicle that simply has to be seen to be believed. It's a real, unstoppable wedge car that cuts through everything in its path, flipping & spinning cars and other vehicles, without the use of special effects.

This DVD is a tribute to Halicki's enduring popularity over the past three decades that led producer Jerry Bruckheimer and Touchstone Pictures to pay homage to the original Gone in 60 Seconds with a 2000 remake that starred Nicolas Cage, which grossed more than $350 million worldwide.

Video / Audio

Video: Full Frame 1.33:1

Audio: English Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS

The Extras