Python Hyena
The Love Bug (1968): Dir: Robert Stevenson / Cast: Dean Jones, Michele Lee, Buddy Hackett, David Tomlinson, Joe Flynn: Family film that crosses the line in terms of improbable silliness with charm. Title symbolizes our materialistic nature yet it is Volkswagen, Herbie that cherishes its driver. It comes into possession of a struggling race driver when it follows him home from a dealership where it was under threat with dismantlement. Ridiculous plot has too much idiocy that is never explained. It is never clear why Herbie has these abilities and our request to merely accept it is lazy on part of the screenwriter. Director Robert Stevenson is a veteran of Disney having made the wonderfully creative family film Mary Poppins and the pathetically overrated family crap Old Yeller. Dean Jones delivers correct bewilderment but doesn't exactly seek answers as to why his car acts more like a pet. It is obvious that he will win the race because of Herbie, and we are treated to a lame tree climbing joke that should have been scrapped the moment it was thought of. Michele Lee plays a potential love interest and that is about the height of her involvement. Buddy Hackett is the sidekick mechanic with all the personality of a can of motor oil. David Tomlinson and Joe Flynn are hilarious as over the top villains. It showcases one's love for automobiles in a whole new way. It also showcases one's desire for foolishness. Score: 5 ½ / 10
ma-cortes
Amusing and funny first installment with the ¨Wolkswagen Love Bug¨ racing the tracks . Love Bug's outing in which Herbie is racing in competitions , it is full of pranks and car stunts that are great fun to see . Agreeable Disney's love bug Wolkswagen plenty of action , slapdash , laughs and entertainment . This hilarious Herbie story concerns about The Love Bug falls 'hood-over-wheels' for a classy chassis! . It deals with a down-on-his-luck race car pilot named Jim Douglas (Dean Jones who also plays the role of the hippy in the drive-in scene), who lives in an old run-down fire mansion in San Francisco with his partner , an occasional alcoholic mechanic called Tennessee Steinmetz (Buddy Hackett) . One day, Jim goes to a car seller and surprisingly sees a rare Volkswagon Beetle with a unusual problem, it tends to drive on its own will . Then, Jim and Tennessee who dubbed the car "Herbie" fixed it and now is under control . After that , Jim used Herbie for notorious international races and he was rising to fame and fortune , turning more successful in racing . Later on , Thorndyke (David Tomlinson) wants Herbie back, but Jim refuses and Thorndyke wishes to compete against Jim in the races, then he sabotaged Herbie before a car race so , he can vanquish . As the backdrop in the race scenes is of the Riverside International Raceway . Then, a big race was coming up and Herbie, the Volkswagen Beetle with a mind of its own undergoes the famous international car race called EL Dorado but encountering all sorts of comical obstacles along the way . Jim and Tennessee along with Thorndyke's previous assistant named Carrol Bennet (Michelle Lee) , repaired Herbie before the race . The trio are determined to win Thorndyke in the El Dorado, but he will swindle and trap to make sure that they do not win . Fortunately, the couple of pilots have a sleeve in the form of Herbie , the fantastic car , as they take the magical Wolkswagen Bug with a mind of its own as both of them compete in the notorious race and attempt to beat . So the two rogue pilots (Joe Flynn , David Tomlinson) resort to all manner of cheats , legal or otherwise, to get it and are now attempting to get them back . There is one obstacle however : Herbie . Miraculous Herbie take them for a ride and stumbles into evil hoodlums who pursue through roads and race tracks . As always, Herbie the love bug , is helping the young couple (Dean Jones , Michelle Lee) find romance but encountering all sorts of hilarious problems along the way . Herbie with the number 53 intervenes in the biggest car race and win the Grand Prize , a challenge among top competitors circle the world's most famous racing circuits and quickly slipping in the ranking.This delightful Disney comedy displays great loads of amusement , fantastic race cars , slapstick , fun , giggles , chases are great fun to watch and being pretty entertaining . It's an enjoyable movie for kids and for those who enjoy cars racing round and round and bounds and leaps carried out by Herbie . Herbie The Love Bug was a 1963 Volkswagen Beetle deluxe ragtop sedan painted in Volkswagen L87 pearl white. Under normal circumstances, the interior would be a matching white. However, Herbie's interior was painted a special non-reflective grey color so the camera and studio lights would not reflect . The actors seem to enjoy immensely , as Dean Jones and Buddy Hackett play of sympathetic manner and the mean-spirited villains performed by David Tomlinson Joe Flynn are top notch. Colorful cinematography by Edward Colman and jolly soundtrack by George Bruns including the lively leitmotif , usual in the Herbie's series. This is a delightful film , this original entry is followed by ¨ Herbie rides again (1974)¨ also by Robert Stevenson and starred by Ken Berry , Stefanie Powers and Helen Hayes ; it's followed by ¨Herbie goes to Montecarlo¨ with Dean Jones , Don Knotts and Julie Sommers ; followed by ¨Herbie goes bananas¨ (1980 , or Herbie Torero) by Vincent McEveety starred by Charles Martin Smith and Cloris Leachman , among others and a 1997-for-television-movie with Bruce Campbell and John Hanna and a TV series , the most part filmed by Stevenson and Vincent McEveety and usually starred by Dean Jones . Furthermore recent version starred by Linsay Lohan , Justin Long and Matt Dillon , being directed by Angela Robinson. This first version " Love Bug ¨ results to be the best version , it is amusing story with lots of laughs but is a familiar film . The motion picture is correctly directed by Robert Stevenson . He's an usual craftsman from Disney productions who achieved for the famous company its greatest successes such as ¨Mary Poppins¨ , ¨Bednobs and broomsticks , ¨Gnome-mobile¨, ¨Herbie rides again¨ , ¨Absent-minded professor¨, ¨Son of Flubber¨, ¨Shaggy DA¨ , ¨That darn cat¨ , ¨One of our dinosaurs is missing¨ and many others . Rating : Acceptable , 6,5 , worthwhile watching . Amusing and engaging film with effective combination of primitive special effects , live action , adventure , fantasy and humor . The children will get a kick out of this typical Disney film ,it's a great fun to watch and there are loads of entertainment in this one . It' one of the best and funniest of ¨Herbie¨ series
David Brailsford
This movie has something for everyone, comedy romance back in a time when Disney knew how to make a family film. The Love bug is the story of a man who meets an extraordinary car and how said car changes his life. This movie has a bit of everything, comedy, appeal to kids, romance, racing, Disney villains who are as likable as they are bad. One of the essential to watch Disney movies in my humble opinion. The background music really went to support the film. The footage wasn't always best shots but hey it was the 60s and I think it helps keep the feel of that era looking like that. Overall this movie is the reason that people know who Herbie is today and the reason he has become as iconic as many of their cartoon characters.
