Herbie Rides Again (1974) Reviews

• Just fun. Perfect for kids

  jtskiles2005-02-13

  I grew up on Herbie movies. I even "met" Herbie in the Panama Canal Zone during the filming of Herbie Goes Bananas. (Thank you Mrs. Kelstom!) I hadn't seen a Herbie movie in 25 years. They're exactly as I remember. These films were made back when Disney still had a keen eye on children's imaginations. Is the film cheesy? Absolutely. Intentionally so. How else could a movie about a "living" car turn out? Helen Hayes is charming. Stephanie Powers is spunky. Keenan Wynn is almost perfect in his role as the over-the-top Disney villain. OK - the flashbacks to Herbie's racing career are too long. But the film is strong enough to succeed despite that setback. This film is classic early Disney - full of impossible fantasy and magical inventions. If you have children - this film is a must.

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• Love Bug's second entry with pranks and car stunts that are great fun to see

  ma-cortes2011-08-07

  Agreeable Disney's love bug Wolkswagen plenty of action , slapstick , laughs and fun . This comical Herbie story concerns about Alonzo Hawk (Keenan Wynn) who is an ambitious property developer who has bought lots of blocks of land in the Downstreet district in order to build a shopping mall and apartments . There is one obstacle however ; an old woman , firefighter's widow named Steinmetz ( Helen Hayes) who won't sell the one remaining lot that Hawk needs to carry out with his gigantic plot . So Hawk resorts to all manner of traps , legal or otherwise, to get it. Fortunately, the elderly widow Steinmetz has an ace under her sleeve in the form of Herbie , the fantastic car which she receives from her niece , as she takes a magical Wolkswagen Bug named Herbie with a mind of its own . Miraculous Herbie takes her for a ride and stumbles into Hawk's evil hoodlums who pursue through skyscrapers , bridges and buildings . As always, Herbie the love bug , is helping the young couple (Ken Barry , Stefanie Powers) find romance but encountering all sorts of hilarious obstacles along the way . Meanwhile Herbie with the number 53 dreams that intervenes in the biggest race cars located in Daytona to compete in the Grand Prize , a challenge among top competitors circle the world's most famous racing circuits and quickly slipping in the ranking. This ordinary Disney slapdash film displays great loads of amusement , fun , giggles , race cars and is pretty entertaining . It's an enjoyable movie for kids and for those who like cars racing round and round and bounds and leaps by Herbie . The actors seem to enjoy immensely , as Ken Berry and Stephanie Powers play of sympathetic manner and the mean-spirited owner Keenan Wynn , as excessive villain , is top notch . Colorful cinematography and jolly soundtrack including the lively leitmotif , usual in the Herbie's series. This is a delightful film , the original film turns out to be : ¨The love bug¨ (1969) by Robert Stevenson , followed by ¨ Herbie rides again , Herbie goes to Montecarlo , Herbie goes bananas ¨ among others and a 1997-for-television-movie 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 " Herbie rides again ¨versi on is amusing and with lots of laughs but is a familiar film . The motion picture is correctly directed by Robert Stevenson .Worthwhile seeing , 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 .

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• Good – but not the best of the Herbie movies

  bob the moo2002-05-08

  Willoughby Whitfield comes to work for his uncle Alonzo Hawk in a development company. His first job is to force the owner of an old fire station to shift off land earmarked for development. However Willoughby makes friends with the owners, including their eccentric car Herbie, and finds out about his Uncle's dirty tricks to move the residents on and joins with them to stop his uncle. This is a late Herbie movie – but really his appeal never goes away (they just remade The Love Bug). However here much has changed since his original appearance. Here the story doesn't involve him that much until the last half – up till then it could easily be any movie, and his scenes feel forced into the plot. That's not to say it's not good – but the story isn't as interesting as his race-car incarnation. There are some funny bits, like the dream sequence of Mr Hawk, but even the silly stuff that has Herbie driving up suspension bridges will please kids! Also where `Herbie Goes Bananas' benefited from a good support cast – this has no one to speak of. Not only has Dean Jones left (a big, big loss to the film) but no-one is good enough to provide any human interest. Berry makes a dull figure who can't do comedy, and Stefanie Powers is only of interest because, well, because it's Stefanie Powers! The only interest comes from Wynn's bellowing bad guy and Hayes' sweet grandmother. Herbie is OK but he is in charge the whole time and has maybe lost a touch of the `lovable little guy' appeal that he had in The Love Bug. Overall kids will love it, and it isn't a bad Herbie movie – it's just not as good as the first couple. But really – you know what to expect and it delivers nothing more.

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• The best of the series.

  matt-811999-07-17

  "The Love Bug" runs this entry a very close second, but the energy of "Herbie Rides Again" makes it perfect for kids. There are many great scenes and sequences that appeal to the younger set, and the normally 'bo-ring' opening credits are spiced up with stock footage of buildings being demolished. That immediately made me pay attention when I was a little whipper-snapper! Disney should have stopped this series at this point. The next film, "Herbie Goes to Monte Carlo," was pedestrian, and only saving grace was that it, A) features Don Knotts, and B) is 1,000 times better than "Herbie Goes Bananas," the only good thing about which is the whacky title.

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• Love that Volkswagon!

  pazuzu-21999-06-12

  Herbie the Volkswagon is one of my childhood favorites and this is the movie I discovered Him. Seeing this movie again, I ended up loving it all over again and think it is a pretty good family movie. A weird thing about this movie is that even though it was filmed in 1973, it looks like it was made in the mid sixties. I guess it was Stephanie Powers's character's sense of style and the heavy use of sets and rear projection. The Volkswagon beatle has always had a persona to it and the Herbie movies highlight it. "The Love Bug" and "Herbie Rides Again" are great examples of the child like spirit of Disney at their best.

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