MovieChat Forums > Van Nuys Blvd. (1979) Discussion > Just got done watching this and I must s...

Just got done watching this and I must say

posted 13 years ago by phatpaidx
17 replies | jump to latest

I really enjoyed it.. Of course I also really enjoy alot of movies that I think are great timepieces to the 70s or 60s or whatever decade. Seeing all these cars and outfits and style really helped me enjoy the movie.

On my personal scale of Movie entertainment I rate this a 7 out of 10

1 = shut off mid movie and only speak of it in hushed whispers to friends looking for the worst form of entertainment

5 = average but still a good watch ...usually with friends

10 = The top form of entertainment value to me. I might watch this twice in a day... extremely rare

so a 7 for me was entertaining and will show to friends. Might watch again in a week if a friend wants to see it and will still enjoy it.

I dont do the normal top ten scale. I go by entertainment value... not age or looks or budget or other things people might judge a movie on. I do value script and plot but I can let those slide if i'm entertained enough.

Works great for me

[–] Mr Blue-4 13 years ago

You must be easily entertained....this was closer to a 2 for me. Nothing happens! Bad acting, nothing funny, stupid situations.... I guess back in the days of the drive-ins all you needed was 90 minutes in focus, a car crash, some female nudity, and not much else.

[–] phatpaidx 13 years ago

I am very easily entertained....I wont deny that statement. And i know many will disagree with my statements about movies like this. I will watch it again soon and see if it's still a 7 after a few months. then i might repost my thoughts

[–] SunCanyonRoad 13 years ago

A 1 or 0 for me... and I generally like 70's schlock, but this is beyond bad.

[–] Renowriter77 13 years ago

I enjoyed it, too. I have some issues with it overall, but the main chracters are all really good and likeable. The scenes where they're all together just pulled me in.

Also, I thought Cyndi Wood was great in this movie. Can't believe she didn't do more acting.

"Meet you on the boulevard..."

NO EXPECTATIONS = NO DISAPPOINTMEN

[–] OKLacoste 13 years ago

Great soundtrack, and likeable characters.

Nothing lasts Forever but the Earth and Sky

[–] cole-jim 11 years ago

I thought it was funny, especially the fight at the gas station, and you probably do need to have been around during this time period to appreciate all the scenes in this movie. Cruising was awesome, Magic Mountain was great back then, the Malibu grand prix was a blast every time I went there, the van craze was a little strange (I have always been into muscle cars, not vans), but the public interaction that we had back then is completely gone now, and young people today just don't have any idea how much fun it was. Today its just a bunch of computer nerds.
I wish cruising would make a come back, but there are too many idiot city council members that like to tell everyone else what we can and can't do today, and there are also too many bad apples these days that ruin it for the rest of us. For us in the Bay Area, the low rider culture killed it, with all the stabbings, fights, and vandalism. The cops, and businesses, and city councils just couldn't take it anymore. Cruising prohibited. The people we all hung out with would maybe get a speeding ticket or drag racing ticket at the worst. That was it. Oh well. The good ol' days.

[–] ReturnofSlurry 12 years ago

This is one of the worst exploitatation movies from Crown. There is far too much filler to pad out a poor excuse for a story.

[–] WarpedRecord 12 years ago

This film was obviously made for the drive-in crowd, and it loses quite a bit watching it at home on DVD. It's very much the last gasp of the '70s, the type of film that was out of date within a couple years. There were certainly better Crown International films – but there were also much worse ones. 6/10 stars from me based on entertainment value.

[–] pumasgoya 12 years ago

I really like this movie too, along with The Van. I liked it because i was a kid in the 70s. I like the cars, I love Camille and I like the memories I never had because I was too young in 79. I like the idea of the Chooch, but can't stand that they destroy the van in the end...all in the name of conformity. I also enjoyed that they go to Magic Mountain and feature the Revolution back when it was the scariest ride there (it's almost wimpy now). I don't look to movies to either all be great artistically or blockbusters. Sometimes all you need is a little fun to make a great movie watching experience.

[–] Woodyanders 11 years ago

I thought this film was a real easy'n'easy blast of pure carefree 70's fun. 8 out of 10 from me.

I'm a totally bitchin' bio writer from Mars!

[–] hockeyhrs 9 years ago

I would never grade low-budget exploitation movies on the same scale as mainstream movies (that have real budgets & real talent). They're just totally different animals.

So by my "low-budget exploitation movie" reference criteria, I grade VNB as a 10. It's got

(a) plenty of gratuitous nudity
(b) likable characters who I might have enjoyed hanging out with
(c) likable situations/activities I might have enjoyed doing

[–] schwa88 9 years ago

I remember this movie from when it came out, specifically the theme song that went "Van Nuys!" Is there anywhere to get this movie?

[–] TheXmanCometh 9 years ago

You can get "Drive-In Cult Classics: Volume 3" for under $1 per movie and this is one of the 8 movies in the set.

[–] schwa88 9 years ago

Cool, thanks.

[–] TheHungryAndAngryShow 9 years ago

I agree with some of your rating system. One thing I am in agreement with is movies are rated by how entertained you are, not things like budget or success. I also feel you must rate for the genre, or type of movie. You can't compare this movie to a drama or a horror movie, they are in a different class. You have to rate for what something is.

As for the numbers, to me a 7 is an average enjoyable movie, something I liked enough to say I liked it or it was ok, but not very good or amazing. Many movies I see get a 7. If it gets a 6 or lower, I was not entertained, didn't enjoy it, or it was too flawed. 8 would be very good, 9 excellent, 10 is a movie I can watch over and over, and brings me great joy.

All that being said this movie gets a 5. I wanted to like it, I saw The Van the other day and that one was thoroughly enjoyable and I gave it a 7. Normally a movie like this would get a 6, but it was so boring it started to put me to sleep. It probably deserves a 4 or less, but the girls were cute and very naked.