Got to see the movie Tuesday with the Denver Job. It was fun. First time in years I sat in a completely sold out theater. But I have to admit since I have a MINI I didn't get too envious watching the S zip around. but the little red mini left me with a slight case of mini envy. Loved the scenes of it running around those traffic circles. Thanks MOTR.

 

OUr screening is tonight. Cant wait , heard lots of good things about this movie. cant wait to see the MINIs on the big screen.

 

The last posts have been edited for personal attacks and also they had no relevance to the topic at hand.

Thank you.

 

Stella Bridger's classic Mini Cooper S appears to be a late model Rover Mini (Late 1990's to 2000?) as the door handles are of the fixed type, the radio antenna is located in the middle of the roof up front and the car generally looks like one of the last Rover Minis ever made.

Can anyone identify the model year of Stella's classic Mini S?

 

Cincinnati's was tonight (5/29). We had about 100 MINIs plus a handful of Classics. This was my wife's first MINI get-together and there won't be a second since she thinks we're all weird!

The movie is enjoyable, one I'll definitely get on DVD when it comes out - and I was glad to see that the PW/PW was, in my non-biased opinion, the true hero-of-the-day!!

Thanks to Cincinnati MINI for all of the poster, antenna ***** (which don't fit on the Alta Stubby ), and the decals!!

Good participation, the emcee estimated 25% of the MINIs sold at their dealership since they opened last year were in attendance!

Cheers,
Bill

 

OK, so let me set this up.

Sneak preview in Toronto tonight - invitation only to 250 MINI owners (and a guest) by MINI Canada. (Thanks, MC!)

Free street and lot parking for about 100 MINIs. I've never seen so many MINIs in Toronto in one place before. Every possible colour combo you can imagine. (I really liked the black on black with black wheels - very sharp).

I didn't make it in time for the free parking (and I was really early!). They only allocated about 50 spots for free I parked alongside the freebies and it cost me $20!

There was a lot of dealer action in front of the theatre (the Paramount - downtown Toronto's major movie/entertainment facility). Lot's of ugly yellow and black antenna *****. I think they could've done better - but whatthehell - swag is swag!

Inside the theatre (very large multiplex), and with management's permission, I plastered 8.5" x 11" posters of our event logo. You couldn't get into the actual theatre without seeing our posters a number of times. The staff encouraged me.

After the movie, and while the credits were running, a buddy and myself ran for the exit. As people were leaving we handed out a couple of hundred one pagers with info about The Wolfe Island Canada MINI Meet. I think this will push us to our 50 max. The MINI people there were excited about a MINI event, especially after tonight's experience with so many MINIacs. There are very few MINI gatherings up here.

Now the movie. I dunno - it's a hip, pop flick, with the right sound track, cool actors, a good bad guy, no sex(!) and of course the MINIs. The cars don't really show up until the second hour - but when they appear on screen they don't let up! Those babies are amazing! They can go anywhere, do anything vehicles. Subtle SUV bashing when the bad guy steals an SUV and gives chase. HA! As if!

But overall, the storyline was fairly predictable and somewhat thin. Not the "I knew that would happen" predictable, but the "yeah, that's a good idea" predictable. No real surprises - fairly even pace.

The sets are good, and the heist(s) are set up well. Some "give me a break" improbable sequences (like "you only have 90 seconds" and then all 3 MINIs rock 'n roll through a mall, teeming with shoppers, none of whom get in the way to slow down our heroes!).

The heists, although unbelievable, are somewhat believable. The story is well told, and keeps you interested until the end. However, it was still somewhat flat.

Anyway, I know you'll go - and you should. You'll go for the MINIs and stay for the rest of the movie. Maybe I can sum it up this way: You get good MINI action for the price of a ticket - and the movie's thrown in as a bonus.

(And I agree with earlier posts - what's up with Spiderman? Must be an inside movie maker joke. Here's a hint, so you don't miss him: Spidey appears when all hell breaks loose on the street!)

Go. Enjoy. And tell us what you think.

 

Oh yeah, final rating:

3.5 MINIs out of 5.

 

...... so when they are doing the surveillance on Steve's house and look through the window at him turning on his Big Screen TV, is that Micheal Caine in an old movie ... ?

 

8ball your right it was. And I beleive it was the original IJ. At least that's what everyone here said last night after the movie. The boat chase scene's were awesome. What a great time and movie.

 

Positive criticism: the boat chase scene was pretty dramatic. The best boat chase scene I've seen ever! It was also really cool to hear cool MINI engine/exhuast noises emminating from the high powered stereo system. What a blast. The supercharger whine is so very cool!

Constructive criticism: The car chase scene was mediocure at best. There was alot that should've and could've been added. Nothing truely new, nothing truely dramatice. Matrix Reloaded has now set the new standard for any hollywood chase scene. Raise your bar!

I have to give the movie 6 out of 10

 

We saw the preview last night in Sacramento hosted by Niello MINI. The turnout was ok, but not what I expected. It looked like about 30-40 cars may have shown up. It was fun to talk MINI to others because there are very few where I live. I thought the movie was better than the original. The crowd reactions during the movie were great. It was super to be able to walk out of a movie with a smile and feel you have really been entertained. However, the highlight of the evening was watching the other MINI owners pulling out the parking lot one after the other, reving their engines, etc. Great movie experience. We are going again on Sunday.

 

I saw the movie last night at a screening courtesy of Rasmussen MINI here in Portland, Oregon. It was a HOOT to see the movie with a theatre full of MC/MCS owners. We all seemed a little freer to whoop it up when the MINIs showed up on the screen.

The boat chase scene was really incredible. I kept thinking how difficult it must've been to get a permit to drive boats like that through Venice with all of their delicate, ancient architecture.

Also, I enjoyed the car chase scene in the subway. Pretty cool idea.

Anyway, the movie was great and it was very nice to be "taken to a movie (and even fed)" by my car dealer. Gee, I don't remember Ford or Dodge ever doing that!

 

>> taken to a movie (and even fed)

You got food!! Aw man, we got rooked!! No food for us!!

 

Thank you Cincinnati MINI. A great tribal flick. My spouse commented that the movie would definately appeal to MINI owners, and she was correct. The three stars are a CR MCS, IB MC and PW MC, plus a red classic Mini. There might have been some people in the movie too, but I don't remember.

 

I went to the second San Francisco, pre-release Italian Job screening last night. This one was sponsored by MINI and the local dealership. No formal rally type thing with the cars beforehand for this second show but the parking garage next to the theater was packed with MINIs.

I agree with most of what was said here before. The cheers went up whenever a Cooper, classic or new, was on the screen. And an audible "aagghh" when the blue Cooper gets hurt.

Dialog is cheesy, acting is not high-caliber but the chases are loads of fun. Here's Salon.com's review from today:
"Italian Job" Review in 5/30/2003 Salon.com
You'll have to sign up for the day pass if you're not a member to read the whole review. Painless.

 

I thought the twist and turns in the plot were as good
as some of the chase scenes. 2 thumbs up!!

 

When you see the movie again (and you know you will!) alongside a generally non-MINI audience, make sure you "whoop it up" when the MINIs appear.

Spread the fever. Show 'em who has fun!

 

Yellow Minis do go faster - however the yellow and white combination I think does as well as the yellow and black:-)

At least Gary seems to go pretty darn quick!

Mary Ann

<img src=http://www.cinti.net:/~vmmasell/ebay/minimini.jpg>

 

How about this quote (from one of Canada's "National" newspapers):

"I should mention that, when it comes time for chasing, the cars in question are a trio of Mini Coopers. Okay, the product placement is shameless, but they really are a perfect fit for this flick. Lightweight, but never entirely frivolous; fast-paced, but always within our comfort zone; cute, but not lacking in flair."

Full review here.

 

Uh, one more quote:

"Heck, the Mini is the movie, and the movie is the Mini, and Mini-movies just want to entertain. This one does."

 

Mini of Hawaii put on a sensational Minis-only premiere last night. Not only the movie, but food, games, prizes and a rally afterwards. Well over 100 Minis in attendance.

This was my second viewing of the movie (first was the drive-in one at Paramount) and the main thing I noticed this time in a theatre full of people was the humor in the film and how much fun it was.

The acting was adequate, the boat scenes fabulous, and the Mini scenes, well, at least they were Minis. But there simply isn't a square foot of LA that hasn't been overused in car chases--real or filmed. Of course, they're going over the Sepulveda Dam. Of course, they're going in the flood control channels of the LA River. Almost any other city would have been more interesting.

That said, the film was much better than it might have been, but the original is still a lot more fun and has a whole lot more cool Mini scenes and tricks. I join with others that wish the Minis in this new film could have gone in the bad guy's house. That would have been great.

 

Hey out there to anyone that saw the movie. Can you remember what FINE stands for
Frustrated, __________________,___________________,___________ _____________.
Thanks
Movie was awsome

 

We thoroughly enjoyed our event here in St Louis-MINI of STL even provided us with authentic thin crust St Louis style pizzas from our very own IMO's. Over 100 MINI & Minis present-Almost 300 people.
The movie was exactly what I thought it would be-ENTERTAINING-hey, we're not looking for Academy Awards here. The true stars were the MINIs
Happy Motoring
Lois

_________________
Louie is home!!

 

>>Hey out there to anyone that saw the movie. Can you remember what FINE stands for
>>Frustrated, __________________,___________________,___________ _____________.
>>Thanks
>>Movie was awsome


Not fustrated, it's "freaked out", insecure, neurotic, emotional.

also I waited for the credits and ALFIE was the Michael Cane movie playing on "steve's" big screen. (nice touch)

 

>>also I waited for the credits and ALFIE was the Michael Cane movie playing on "steve's" big screen. (nice touch)>>

Yet another movie like the 1969 Italian Job that's only available on DVD in Europe. I thought it was a clasic....