Maximum Overdrive (1986)

User Rating:

4.6/10   

Director:

Stephen King

Writers:

Stephen King (short story "Trucks")
Stephen King (written by)

Release Date:

25 July 1986 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Horror | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Who Made Who?

Plot:

A group of people try to survive when machines start to come alive and become homicidal.

Plot Keywords:

Truck | Machine | Truck Stop | Earth | Comet

Awards:

3 nominations

Cast

Emilio Estevez	...	Bill Robinson
Pat Hingle	...	Hendershot
Laura Harrington	...	Brett
Yeardley Smith	...	Connie
John Short	...	Curtis
Ellen McElduff	...	Wanda June
J.C. Quinn	...	Duncan
Christopher Murney	...	Camp Loman
Holter Graham	...	Deke
Frankie Faison	...	Handy
Pat Miller	...	Joe
Jack Canon	...	Max
Barry Bell	...	Steve
John Brasington	...	Frank
J. Don Ferguson	...	Andy

Also Known As:

8 Days of Terror (Mexico) [es]
Brivido (Italy) [it]
Es begann ohne Warnung (West Germany) (video title) [de]
La rebelión de las máquinas (Spain) [es]
Maksymalne przelozenie (Poland) [pl]
Maximum Overdrive (France) [fr]
Maximum Overdrive (Greece) [el]
Rhea M. - Es begann ohne Warnung (West Germany) [de]

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Germany:16 (re-rating 2006) | Singapore:NC-16 | Finland:K-16 | Australia:R | Norway:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:18

Filming Locations:

Wilmington, North Carolina, USA

Company:

De Laurentiis

Trivia:

In the game room of DIXIE BOY truck stop, they had a Bally Night Rider pinball game, and a Williams Pokerino (also had a few video games: A Cinematronics Star Castle, Atari Tempest Cocktail and a Konami Time Pilot '84 in a Stern cabinet). Fairly early on in the movie, the Night Rider playfield glass smashes itself, and very late in the movie, for a split second, you can see the games being plowed into by a semi truck.

Goofs:

Continuity: When Duncan is killed by the Truck there is a little bit of blood all over the front grill and bumper. Moments later you see the Truck and there is a lot of blood.

Quotes:

Man At Cashpoint: [First lines]
[as the ATM machine is calling him an asshole]
Man At Cashpoint: Honeybun! This machine just called me an asshole!

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Cinemania: Stephen King: O vasilias tou tromou" (2009)

"Who made Who?"

For those of us who like Maximum Overdrive, we are apparently in the minority. I view it as a funny and entertaining, B-grade action/sci-fi flick. There's mass destruction and tons of carnage as everything on-screen is blown to bits...plus it's got Emilio Estevez. What's better than that? The movie does require major suspension of disbelief as some of the story elements don't work (for example: the honeymooner's car works just fine, but every other machine on earth, from lawn-mowers, electric knives, trucks, and even steam-rollers, go haywire). But then again, this movie is all about fun. The best part of the movie (besides Emilio) is that no one is shown any sympathy...not even kids; in one stand-out scene, a steam-roller comes out of nowhere and completely squashes this innocent kid. Maximum Overdrive is a cool and outrageous cult classic that Stephen King should be proud of. Sadly, I feel that King will never direct again.

Note for genre buffs: C.H.U.D. alumni Frankie Faison and J.C. Quinn star in the movie. King himself also cameos as the ATM guy.