Why drive a Mercedes?
One thing has always struck me as strange about this film. It's supposed to be about an American gigolo, so why didn't he drive an American sports car like a Corvette or a Mustang? Why a German Mercedes?
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MovieChat Forums > American Gigolo (1980) Discussion > Why drive a Mercedes?
Also, why did he speak French with Michelle at first or wear Armani?
Should have spoken Redneck and wore Wranglers.
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I can tell you that in 1980, German cars were prized by seemingly hip people. I worked at a university and many professors and directors liked BMWs. I had a Chevy Impala with a V-8 engine and was often asked to load boxes and carry things. To this day. I have an antipathy toward these cars.
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Many believe that a foreign upscale car is more of a status symbol than a domestic.
I would agree.
The Corvette maybe, but no other American car of that era had the cool factor for Gere's character. The Mustang was a glorified Pinto in those years.
shareIn 1980, American cars had no luxury or sports appeal. Cadillacs and Lincolns were for old white people, and were downsizing, too.
The 450 ragtop coupe is about ideal for his character in that era. He needed to blend into the luxury places he went professionally and he needed something high end enough so that his clients were comfortable and didn't feel out of place; their perception was part of the product he sold.
About the only other choice might have been a Porsche 911, but that might have been just a little too butch and flashy, as would have been more exotic cars like a Ferrari. A Rolls Royce would have been too over the top. He might have gotten away with an Alfa Romeo Spyder, but it probably wouldn't have been quite enough of a luxury statement. About the only other car if the era might have been a Jaguar XJS.
The bottom line is that in 1980, there wasn't a lot to choose from. The economy had stunk for years, Detroit was in the toilet. Audis were basically Volkswagons, no Lexus, Land Rovers were trucks for Africa. Even the Mercedes he drove had a kind of Teutonic sparseness. My uncle owned one and it wasn't plush but it drove well. I liked his Jaguar a lot more.
Mercedes was the perfect car for Julian. An Italian exoctic would have been OVER the top for a male hooker. I don't see him driving a Trans Am or Mustang convertible and stay stylish the way he did. It was all about the style and you can see a lot of thought and work went into this film. It wasn't just thrown together at the last minute. 🚗🚓
Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded. Yogi Berra
It had upper scale class and sporty look.
The right car for the 80s'.
We're forgetting about the possibility of product placement. While E.T. The Extraterrestrial was famous for putting Reese's pieces in the film as a story element, it could be that producers got Mercedes to pay for the placement of their car in the film as a symbol of both sophistication and virility.
I don't think a Senator's wife in her late 30s wants to be seen getting into a Corvette. Those are for impressing kids.