The Van (1977 film)
| The Van | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Directed by | Sam Grossman |
| Produced by | Paul Lewis Marilyn Jacobs Tenser (executive producer) |
| Written by | Celia Susan Cotelo Robert J. Rosenthal |
| Starring |
Stuart Getz Deborah White Danny DeVito Harry Moses Marcie Barkin Bill Adler Stephen Oliver Connie Lisa Marie |
| Music by | Steve Eaton Sammy Johns Michael Lloyd |
| Distributed by | Crown International Pictures |
|
Release date
|
April 7, 1977 |
|
Running time
|
92 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Box office | $4.5 million or $19 million |
The Van is a low-budget teenage comedy film directed by Sam Grossman, primarily released to drive-in theaters in 1977. The titular van was customized by George Barris, along with several other vans appearing in the film. It was released at the height of the vansploitation genre, and was followed by the 1978 film Malibu Beach, in which Stephen Oliver reprised his role as bully Dugan Hicks.
The film tells the story of the high-school graduate Bobby, who buys a customized 1977 Dodge D300 Tradesman van (including a waterbed), with his college savings, in order to use it to pick up women. Bobby's desperate quest to have sex leads him into a number of disappointing experiences. His ultimate goal is to win over Sally, the blonde bombshell girlfriend of his arch Dugan. Dugan is a burly, tough, and heavily tattooed neighborhood bully who seems determined to have the fastest van in town.
Bobby and his best friend, Jack, sabotage their high-school graduation ceremony by rigging the stage to collapse. After leaving the graduation ceremony, Bobby and Jack (Harry Moses) drive up to another van and notice Sally (Connie Lisa Marie), his secret high-school crush, sitting alone inside, eating ice cream. Bobby cannot look away from her and expresses his fantasy to "be with" her just once. Dugan returns to the van and disapproves of Bobby's attention. Bobby and Jack run across Sue (Marcie Barkin) and Tina (Deborah White), and they attempt to arrange dates with them that evening. Sue is interested in Jack, but Tina states she is neither interested in Bobby nor other boys because they only care about sex.
Bobby works in a car wash. Bobby's boss Andy (Danny DeVito) is also a bookmaker, who refuses taking a high-risk bet from an old lady called Bertha. Bobby's co-workers send his convertible into the car wash with the roof down, but Bobby plans buying a van anyway - not just any van, but a custom van with items like a waterbed, a ceiling mirror, a refrigerator, a toaster, an 8 track and multiple television sets. Bobby then gets revenge on his co-workers while showing off his new van by giving them beers spiked with laxatives.
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