Days of Thunder
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| Days of Thunder | |
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| Directed by | Tony Scott |
| Produced by | Jerry Bruckheimer Don Simpson |
| Written by | Robert Towne |
| Starring | Tom Cruise Robert Duvall Randy Quaid Nicole Kidman Cary Elwes Michael Rooker |
| Music by | Hans Zimmer |
| Editing by | Robert C. Jones |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
| Release date(s) | 27 June 1990 |
| Running time | 107 min. |
| Country |  United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | US$60,000,000 |
| IMDb profile | |
Days of Thunder is an auto racing drama film released in 1990 by producers Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer and director Tony Scott. The cast includes Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, Robert Duvall, Randy Quaid, Cary Elwes and Michael Rooker. The film also features appearances by real life racers, such as Rusty Wallace and Neil Bonnett. Commentator Dr. Jerry Punch, of ESPN, has a cameo appearance.
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[edit] Plot
Days of Thunder revolved around a talented, hot-shot auto racing rookie, (# 46 and 51) Cole Trickle (Cruise), who, after trying his hand in the American open wheel ranks, seeks to win on the NASCAR circuit. His mechanic mentor, Harry Hogge (Duvall), acts as his crew chief and Dr. Claire Lewicki (Nicole Kidman) is a young brain surgeon who tries to tame Cole. Low and behold just when he thought it was safe and easy to get back into a racecar and drive, an arrogant and dangerous newcomer by the name of Russ Wheeler (Cary Elwes) doesn't make it easy on him as he picks on him because he knows he can get away with it since not only did he substitute drive Trickle's Pink Superflo car while Cole was in the hospital, but now he is teammates with him under the selfish, bullheaded car owner Tim Diland (Randy Quaid) as the new superstar Nascar was looking for with Rowdy Burns out.
The plot was very loosely based on some real-life NASCAR personalities: Robert Duvall's character was based on crew chief Harry Hyde, Cruise's on Tim Richmond, and Randy Quaid's on a composite of several owners, one of whom was Rick Hendrick. Some critics speculate, if not the producers themselves, that Rowdy Burns's (Michael Rooker) part is refective of Dale Earnhardt and Russ Wheeler (Cary Elwes) of Rusty Wallace. Not yet proven, but the black car, cockyness, and the aggresiveness says it all.[citation needed] Hendrick also provided the movie cars, driven by then-NASCAR drivers Greg Sacks, Tommy Ellis, Bobby Hamilton, and Hut Stricklin, with Hamilton making his Cup debut at Phoenix in 1989 in a movie car.[citation needed] Although this was not acknowledged by the film publicly this was obvious to fans from many coincidences between the film and well known events.[citation needed]
The film was released in the USA on 27 June 1990, and in Europe on 11 August 1990.
[edit] Real life comparisons
Coincidentally, a similar event to Trickle's intentional wrecking of another competitor happened later that season in the running of the 1990 Southern 500 at Darlington Internation Speedway, South Carolina.[citation needed] Morgan Shepherd and Ken Schrader made contact, sending Schrader into the wall.[citation needed] An angry Schrader returned to the race, and rammed Shepherd into the wall, knocking both drivers out of the race.[citation needed]
In another part of the movie, Trickle is told he can not pit because the team is too busy eating ice cream. This incident took place with Harry Hyde as crew chief and Benny Parsons as driver in the 1973 Southern 500. [1]
The Last Name "Trickle" after Dick Trickle "Multi Winner of Many Races in almost any Race Sport of the 1980's, Particularly Stock Car"
Harry Hogg (Robert Duvall) Crew Chief for Cole Trickle Based on Tim Richmonds Crew Chief Harry Hyde
Tim Diland (Randy Quaid) Typical Car Owner or Multi Race owners for Cole Tricle and Russ Wheeler Based on Rick Hendrick
Dr. Claire Lewicki Nicole Kidman possibly named after Alan Kulwicki Rowdy & Coles Doctor after the Big Daytona Crash.
Aldo Bennedetti Don Simpson in the Multi-colored Goody's Headache Powder # Chevrolet Lumina is most likely a reference to Aldo Andretti.[citation needed][vague]
Rowdy Burns Michael Rooker Possibly based on Dale Earnhardt. The Black Exxon #51 Chevy Lumina with Red Stripe and White Letters/Numbers is pretty close to the famous Goodwrench #3 car.
Russ Wheeler Cary Elwes Possibly based on Rusty Wallace "Same initials & Redish Hair" or any rookie of that era. Although the Orange and Blue #18 Hardees Lumina wouldnt suggest that. Not to mention Rusty Wallace was in the movie both Race Wise and Interview Wise.
The scene where Cole and Rowdy destroy a pair of rental cars by racing them through the city was based on actual events in which Joe Weatherly and Curtis Turner would rent cars, race them and destroy them, to the point that both received lifetime bans from rental car companies.
The Main Movie Cars were of both the 1989 & 1990 Model Chevrolet Lumina Z34 (2 Door).
The other background cars in the races were Ford Thunderbirds, Buicks, Oldsmobiles, and Pontiac Grand Prix's.
[edit] Reception
The movie received middling reviews from critics who mostly shrugged off the sometimes over-the-top special effects and plot in many ways resembling the earlier Bruckheimer, Simpson, Scott and Cruise vehicle, Top Gun (some calling it "Top Gun on wheels" or "Top Gun in Race Cars!"), which had been a huge success four years earlier.
An early working title for the movie actually was Top Run.[2] Some NASCAR aficionados also took offense at the overuse and exaggeration of the "rubbing" (bumping) action of NASCAR, featuring maneuvers between cars that were uncommon and dangerous, especially for the period of time in NASCAR history the movie depicted.[citation needed] This included a scene where Cole, after having been knocked out of a race at the very end by an opponent, instructed his pit crew to replace his flattened tires, proceeding to run out on the track and smash his car into the victorious rival who knocked him out of the race.
Kidman's casting as a brain surgeon was also panned by some critics; they considered that the actress, who was 23 at the time, was too young to play the role of a surgeon, which typically requires many years of training.[citation needed] Her portrayal was also criticized for depicting a brain trauma surgeon riding on a motorcycle without a helmet.
[edit] Music
The score for Days of Thunder was composed by Hans Zimmer; Jeff Beck made a guest appearance on guitar. A score album was never released, although a bootleg was later available[3] However, the track "The Last Note of Freedom" on the soundtrack was co-written by Zimmer and Billy Idol. A soundtrack album was released in 1990 by Geffen. Maria McKee's Show Me Heaven was released as a single alongside the movie. The album is also notable for the inclusion of Guns N' Roses' cover of Bob Dylan's Knockin' on Heaven's Door, a year before the song was released on the 1991 album Use Your Illusion II.
[edit] Soundtrack track listing
- "The Last Note of Freedom" - David Coverdale
- "Deal for Life" - John Waite
- "Break Through the Barrier" - Tina Turner
- "Hearts in Trouble" - Chicago
- "Trail of Broken Hearts" - Cher
- "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" - Guns N' Roses
- "Gimme Some Lovin'" - The Spencer Davis Group
- "Show Me Heaven" - Maria McKee
- "Thunderbox" - Apollo Smile
- "Love Live the Night" - Joan Jett & The Blackhearts
- "Gimme Some Lovin'" - Terry Reid
[edit] Trivia
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Trivia sections are discouraged under Wikipedia guidelines. The article could be improved by integrating relevant items and removing inappropriate ones. |
- Meg Ryan (who had appeared alongside Cruise in Top Gun four years earlier) turned down Kidman's role.
- Kyle Busch currently races a Craftsman Truck for Billy Ballew Motorsports, truck #51, and painted similarly to the Rowdy Burns car from the movie, winning several races in the 2006, 2007, and 2008 seasons). Busch even has "Rowdy Busch" painted over the driver's side door where his name would normally be. He also used the paint scheme and name while touring the United States in his late model team that he started in 2007. The original Rowdy Burns Exxon #51 from the movie was used by Hamilton in his Cup debut in 1989 at Phoenix. At the May 16, 2008 Truck race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, Busch wore a helmet purportedly worn by Michael Rooker in the movie, complete with "Rowdy Burns" on the front and Exxon on the top.
- A licensed video game, loosely based on the movie, was released later in 1990.
- In a scene where Cole is giving out an autograph to a teenage girl, Tom Cruise actually gave out his own autograph to the girl.[citation needed]
- The Hardees food chain as well as Matchbox and Racing Champions distributed 1:64-scale die-cast cars from the movie to the public at Hardee's, Exxon Stations, most malls, and some small stores. . Many of these cars can be found still on eBay and in local novelty collectible stores.[citation needed]
- Many shots of in-movie races both at the 2 Daytona 500's and the July Firecracker 400 were taken from the actual 1990 Daytona 500.[citation needed]
- John C. Reilly's first of two NASCAR-themed movies he starred in, as he also played the role of Cal Naughton Jr. in the 2006 movie "Talladega Nights" starring Will Ferrell.[citation needed]
- When Cole is first introduced to Jenny, the wife of competitor Rowdy Burns, she says "Hi Tom".[citation needed]
- All of the character's cars in the movie were built by Hendrick Motorsports.[citation needed]
- Monogram produced the #18 Hardee's, #46 City Chevrolet, #51 Mello Yello Chevrolet Luminas has 1:24th scale model kits, the decals for the #46 Superflo Oil and #51 Exxon can be found in the aftermarket.[citation needed]
- Cole's Superflo Oil Chevy appears in the 2007 film Redline. However, its number is 66, and it is blue instead of pink.[citation needed]
- One of the City Chevrolet sponsored cars from the movie was an actual Winston Cup car owned by Rick Hendrick and driven by Tim Richmond, upon whom the character of Cole Trickle was based. The car has since been re-re-skinned to its original appearance, and is on display at the Hendrick Motorsports Museum in Charlotte.[citation needed]
- Another movie car driven by Tom Cruise in close-ups is on display at the real City Chevrolet dealership in Charlotte, which is owned by Rick Hendrick's family.[citation needed]
- Some scenes are adopted in Pixar´s Cars.[citation needed]
- When Cole and Rowdy are told to drive to dinner together, they rent another car and wreck both vehicles. The Taurus was rented from Hertz and the Lumina was rented from Avis.[citation needed]
- Kings Dominion, an amusement park in Doswell, Virginia had a Days of Thunder themed ride for many years. They still have a replica of the #51 Mello Yello Chevy parked at the Eifel Tower near the entrance[citation needed].
- Indian Film Ta Ra Rum Pum was copied from this film.[citation needed]
- Current politician Fred Thompson makes a cameo appearance as the president of NASCAR.
[edit] Images
 On pit road |
 Tom Cruise during filming |
 Camera vehicle leads the cars around the track |
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Days of Thunder at the Internet Movie Database
- Days of Thunder at Rotten Tomatoes
- Days of Thunder at Box Office Mojo
- Movie stills
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