THE LOVE BUG

1968, Walt Disney Pictures

Live action

Rating: G

Approx. 109 mins.

THE STORY:

Jim (Dean Jones) is an unsuccessful race car driver who thinks he's just a car away from fame-- or at least solvency. Herbie, a Volkswagen Beetle with a mind and driving style of its own, insinuates its way into Jim's life to make itself that car.

With some assistance from an 'enlightened' mechanic friend (Buddy Hackett) and a beautiful love interest (Michelle Lee), Jim and Herbie triumph over those who mock and try to stop them to become racing champions.

QUESTIONABLE LANGUAGE:

• Stupid

VIOLENCE:

• 2 physical fights
• Herbie makes a suicide attempt
• some perilous scenes, but nothing frightening

TEACHING POINTS:

• loyalty to friends
• give others their due
• open-mindedness

THE UPSHOT:

It's pretty much a classic, thanks in large part to a great, original concept. I was disheartened to see, however, that it really isn't as good as I thought when I was 5. 

Some of the content is troublesome based on the film's age-- smoking, sexually suggestive content, references to suicide, depictions of Chinese-Americans. But some of the content is hard to justify in general. The (anti-)hero is pretty unlikable. He's selfish, closed-minded and ungrateful. He has a penchant for resorting to physical violence whenever someone makes him angry. And he doesn't really have a big awakening in the film-- he apologizes to Herbie, but not to the people he mistreats. Somehow, however, it all works out for him and resolves itself with a very predictable ending.

One other issue I had was the fact that Herbie does win the race despite the dirty tricks Jim's main rival pulls, but he does it by cheating. He takes major short cuts during the race that should disqualify him. This never gets any mention in the movie, the implied message being that winning is the ultimate goal and you have to do what you have to do. Not the best message for a kids' movie, I think. 

The movie is longer than it needs to be and the special effects give away its age, but the concept is enough to entertain young kids. The 5 year-old in the room enjoyed Herbie's expressiveness and the slapstick humour. The adults in the room enjoyed the nostalgia and the Buddy Hackett moments.  

2.5/5