Hot Rod Gang

John Abernathy III is a street racer with his hot rod. He hides his rock-n-roll hot rod lifestyle from his rich conservative family.

This is a nothing movie but the cars are darn nice. I love the old hot rods. I wish that the movie would be in color to show off the cars more. The music is fine early rock and rockabilly although I don't recognize any of the songs. This is almost a time capsule. As a movie, it's of limited value and the comedic attempts are really annoying. It's more fascinating as an artifact of a certain time.

No, it's no classic, but it has one of the greatest lines ever (heard in narration, it pretty much sums up the film): "This story is true--only the facts have been changed." Honest!

Hot Rod Gang (1958)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Fun teen stuff from AIP has John Ashley playing John Abernathy III, a cool teen who drives a fast car and even manages to get the pretty new girl (Jody Fair) in town. However, trouble happens when his gang of friends are about to be thrown out of the place they hang out so they decide to use their band to make some money and they also get some help from Gene Vincent. If you're looking for a film that will change your life or change your views on certain topics then HOT ROD GANG certainly isn't for you. If you're just wanting some cheap fun from the 1950s drive-in craze then this film offers up a pretty good time. I thought the story was actually one good enough to where you could get wrapped up in what was going on. Yes, it's pretty far-fetched and you could argue that it was silly but in a teenage guys life is there anything more important than a girl, a car and a place to hang out? I thought director Lew Landers (THE RAVEN) did a very good job at keeping the film running at a nice pace and he also added in some nice touches with the supporting characters. I really liked how eccentric, weird and rather silly all of the adults were. This is something that happened in most of these films but here it's done in a way that was pretty funny to watch and especially the two aunts. The performances really weren't all that bad with Ashley once again playing the type he's best remembered for and he even gets to sing a couple songs. Fair made for a good love interest even though she wasn't all that energetic. Future Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Gene Vincent gets to do a few tunes including his final hit Dance to the Bop. Again, HOT ROD GANG isn't going to change your life but it's fast and fun entertainment.

The main reason I decided to watch this movie was because since I've been recently reviewing movies featuring '50s Rock stars, I had to check this one out after finding out Gene Vincent was in it. Unlike previously in The Girl Can't Help It in which he only sang, here he also has some speaking lines as he's a friend of the leading lady, Jody Fair. John Ashley is the leading man and he sings quite a bit of songs as well. Maureen Arthur is the only other singer here though she only has one number. While there are plenty of hot rod races, there's also an eccentric group of supporting characters related to Ashley's character that provide many laughs. To tell the truth, I couldn't keep up with the plot since so much was going on! Still, I very much liked Hot Rod Gang. P.S. Another reason I decided to watch this was because this was the only other movie in which Kay Wheeler did a dance, her other one was Rock Baby - Rock It.

Someone had the brilliant idea to make John Ashley stretch as an actor. Instead, I pulled a muscle trying to keep from tossing my cookies.

The film opens with Ashley in his hot road, challenged by Steve Drexel in his hot rod. Ashley goes through a puddle and splashes an old geezer, played by Lester Dorr as an old fusspot named Philpott. Dorr yells for a cop. Russ Bender, who usually plays a motorcycle cop, plays a motorcycle cop. Bender questions two other witnesses, a father and daughter played by Doodles Weaver and Jody Fair. Fair seems to think she can recognize the culprit. Somehow they end up in Ashley's hot rod hangout, and Ashley hides out in a closet. Had he stayed there, the film would have been mercifully over. Instead, he sings. And sings. And sings some more. His finger-snapping, head-wagging, faux-Elvis style of singing is the pits. So the charges against him rise from vehicular assault to impersonating an entertainer.

Ashley turns out to be a rich kid named John Abernathy III. He lives with his two aunts, dons a pair of glasses, and pretends to be the studious type. Coincidentally, Dorr, Weaver, and Fair show up at his house for some pre-arranged meeting to fix up Ashley with Fair. Ashley tries to impress everyone with his violin skills, but his wisecracking maid, played by Claire Du Brey, will have none of it.

"I've been wrestling with Mendelssohn's Concerto in E-flat minor," Ashley informs everyone.

"Mendelssohn lost," Du Brey responds.

Fair recognizes Ashley, but, of course, isn't going to turn him in. She wants to hear more of his singing, so they sneak off to the hangout where Ashley bores us some more.

In a subplot, Ashley's gang needs money to build a hot rod for the big race. Fair informs everyone she knows singer Gene Vincent, and offers to ask him to put on a show. Vincent is impressed with Ashley's singing ability (apparently Vincent was well-paid for the part). But Ashley doesn't want to go on television because he might get recognized. So Fair makes up him with a beard and a beret. If you ever wondered how Fidel Castro would look in Paris, this is your chance to find out. Ashley is an instant hit as singer "Jackson Dalrymple." If you are keeping score, that's three roles for Ashley. In a running gag, Ashley's aunts see him sneaking into the house with his beard on, and think it's the ghost of John Abernathy I. I say it's a running gag because every time it happened, I got the runs.

In another subplot, Drexel is stealing hot rod parts and trying to frame Ashley. There is the inevitable rumble at the end (which is really just a good excuse to interrupt Ashley singing yet again), Ashley is cleared, and everybody dances to a recording of Ashley.

If you fast-forward past the singing, you can get through this opus in about 60 minutes.

This is just a mishmash of comedy, music (mostly bad), racing, and non-action. Vincent sings a few songs, and he's better than Ashley, but that's not saying much. Fair is average. Character actor Dub Taylor has a few moments playing some part which escaped me. Maureen Arthur sings something called "Choo Choo Cha Poochie," which, I believe when translated, means "Hey boys, get a load of these." On the other hand, Ashley actually does a decent job with his multiple personalities. Usually, he's just dull; however, here, he manages to rise to the level of mediocrity. Perhaps this film should have been called "The Three Faces of Ashley." But then, it would be the members of the audience, and not the star, who would need psychiatric help.