Repo Man (film)
Repo Man is a 1984 cult film about a white suburban punk teenager living in Los Angeles who becomes a repo man and tries to repossess a strange '64 Chevy Malibu for a reward of $20,000.
- Written and directed by Alex Cox
Miller
[edit]- A lot of people don't realize what's really going on. They view life as a bunch of unconnected incidents and things. They don't realize that there's this, like, lattice of coincidence that lays on top of everything. Give you an example, show you what I mean: suppose you're thinkin' about a plate of shrimp. Suddenly someone'll say, like, "plate," or "shrimp," or "plate of shrimp" out of the blue, no explanation. No point in lookin' for one, either. It's all part of a cosmic unconsciousness.
- There ain't no difference between a flying saucer and a time machine. People get so hung up on specifics they miss out on seeing the whole thing. Take South America for example. [In] South America, thousands of people go missing every year. Nobody knows where they go, they just, like, disappear. But if you think about it for a minute, you realize something. There had to be a time when there was no people, right? Well where did all these people come from, huh? I'll tell you where. The future. And where did all these people disappear to? [Otto: The past?] That's right! And how did they get there? Flying saucers. Which are really..? Yeah, you got it, time machines. I think a lot about this kind of stuff.
- The more you drive, the less intelligent you are.
J. Frank Parnell
[edit]- Beautiful evening. You can almost see the stars!
- Ra-di-a-tion. Yes, indeed. You hear the most outrageous lies about it. Half-baked goggle-box do-gooders telling everybody it's bad for you. Pernicious nonsense! Everybody could stand a hundred chest X-rays a year! They oughta have 'em, too.
Otto Maddox
[edit]- [While watching the Circle Jerks grind out a slow, swinging version of the normally raucous "When the Shit Hits the Fan"] I can't believe I used to like these guys!
Dialogue
[edit]- [Otto is eating out of a can labeled "Food - Meat Flavored"]
- Mrs. Maddox: Put it on a plate, son. You'll enjoy it more.
- Otto Maddox [blankly]: Couldn't enjoy it any more, Mom. Mm, mm, mmm.
- [Duke hurts his hand trying to open the trunk of the Malibu.]
- Archie: Aw, Dukie Wookie hurt his wittle hand.
- Duke: Fuck you, Archie! Just for that, you're not in the gang any more.
- Archie: I'm taking over now.
- Debbie: Oh, leave it!
- Archie: King Archie! The Invincible!
- Duke: Shut up, Archie!
- Archie: Hey Debbie! Watch this!
- [Archie opens the trunk and is vaporized by the contents.]
- J. Frank Parnell [blankly]: Oh, my. What a shame.
- Debbie: Duke, let's go do those crimes!
- Duke: Yeah. Let's get sushi... and not pay!
- Bud: Credit is a sacred trust. It's what our free society was founded on! Do you think they give a damn about their bills in Russia? [Otto does not answer] I said, "Do you think they give a damn about their bills in Russia?"
- Otto Maddox: They don't pay bills in Russia. It's all free.
- Bud: Free, my ass. What are you, a fuckin' Commie?
- Otto Maddox: No, I ain't no Commie!
- Bud: I don't want no Commies in my car!... No Christians, either!
- [Duke has been shot in a botched holdup.]
- Duke: The lights are growing dim. I know a life of crime led me to this sorry fate... And yet, I blame society. Society made me what I am.
- Otto Maddox: Bullshit! You're a white suburban punk, just like me!
- Duke: But it still hurts!
- Otto Maddox: You're gonna be all right. [Duke groans pitifully] Maybe not.
- Leila: What if he's innocent?
- Agent Rogersz: No one is innocent. Proceed.
- [Miller is in the glowing car and gestures to Otto to come with him]
- Leila: What about our relationship?
- Otto: [after a pause] What?
- Leila: Our relationship!
- Otto: Fuck that! [gets up and walks towards the car]
- Leila: [angrily] You SHITHEAD! I'm glad I tortured you!
Cast
[edit]- Emilio Estevez - Otto Maddox
- Harry Dean Stanton - Bud, Repo man
- Olivia Barash - Leila
- Tracy Walter - Miller, Repo lot groundskeeper
- Sy Richardson - Lite, Repo man
- Tom Finnegan - Oly, Repo man
- Fox Harris- J. Frank Parnell
- Susan Barnes - Agent Rogersz
Taglines
[edit]- ...It's 4 A.M., do you know where your car is?
- Meet Otto. He's a clean-cut kid in a dirty business. He's a Repo Man. He steals cars legally. Now, he's out to repossess a '64 Chevy Malibu...with an amazing reward of $20,000. But Otto is not alone. There are others who want the car and will do anything to get it. The risks are great, because hidden in the trunk is something so incredible it could destroy them all. We'll give you a hint... it glows in the dark.
