Bad Georgia Road / Mag Wheels

I’m betting Smokey and the Bandit wouldn’t have been a pop-culture sensation if Burt Reynolds had raped Sally Field in the backseat. But that’s the tactic used in Bad Georgia Road (1977), released the same year, which pits an uptight city girl against a hooch-running roughneck trying to outwit the authorities and the competition.

Carol Lynley plays Molly, the heiress of a moonshine business run by Leroy (Gary Lockwood) and Arthur (Royal Dano) who aren’t exactly thrilled by the idea of a New Yorker cutting in on their half of the profits. But Molly is inexplicably turned on by Leroy’s misogynistic shenanigans, setting up a series of meet-cute, fish-out-of-water escapades until finally she’s fornicated into submission.

Yep, it’s that creepy. Even setting aside the rape-as-seduction scene (which is impossible), Bad Georgia Road flubs almost every chance to be entertaining. A Dukes of Hazzard-style country cop who dresses up in drag to catch the boys in the act has some potential, but the film frustratingly runs out of gas. It’s really only notable for Lynley’s second starring role opposite a crew member from the Discovery One (2001: A Space Odyssey), the first being the far superior Bunny Lake is Missing with Keir Dullea.

Mag Wheels (1978), aka Summer School, manages to work in an attempted rape as well, but at least provides some entertaining ‘70s slang and nostalgia along the way. Anita (Shelly Horner) is the new girl in school who attracts the attention of the big man on campus along with the ire of his jealous girlfriend. This sets off a feud between rival street cruisers: souped-up passenger vans versus tricked-out pick-up trucks.

Padded with endless shots of teens playing frisbee, frolicking in the ocean and pulling ollies at the skatepark (set to a catchy soundtrack by The Word), director Bethel Buckalew gets by with a bit of T & A and lots of burning rubber. The film manages to capture the California scene circa 1978 almost better than a straight-up documentary, from the car culture wars to extinct catchphrases (“Are you shining me on?”). It’s a fun little timewaster with more narrative skill than you’d expect from the man who made The Pig Keeper’s Daughter.

Packaged as a Blu-ray/DVD combo, VCI’s Hot Rods and Hot Chicks set includes both films along with a commentary track on each from Rob Kelly, joined by lead actor John Laughlin on Mag Wheels, which makes for a much more worthwhile listen. While the audio can sound a tad crushed on each feature, the transfers are way above average. A poster gallery and the original trailers completes the extras.