George Lucas's senior project at the University of Southern California in 1966. It was named for the lap time of the Lotus 23 race car that was the subject of the film. It is a nonstory visual tone poem depicting the imagery of a car going at full speed, and featuring the car's engine as the primary sound element. Shot on 16mm color film with a 14 man student crew, it was filmed at Willow Springs Raceway, north of Los Angeles, CA. The Lotus 23 was driven by Pete Brock.
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1:42.08 (1966) *** (out of 4) This seven-minute short is one that was done by George Lucas for his Senior Project while at USC. From what I've read, Peter Brock actually borrowed a car so that Lucas could film it doing laps at a race track. The title refers to the amount of time it took to complete a lap. For the most part this here is a pretty entertaining film thanks in large part to the way it was filmed and for the sound. The various sounds captured as the car flies around the track was put to good use and it certainly makes you feel as if you're right there inside the car. There were some nice shots including one where the camera was placed at the front of the car giving you a terrific view. There's certainly nothing here that would lead you to believe Lucas would become somewhat of an icon but it's certainly worth watching.
George Lucas made this as his USC film school senior project at Willow Springs, a race track outside of Rosamond, CA, and near Los Angeles. Filming of the Lotus 23 on-track was done with a specially modified Corvair camera vehicle. The film helped identify Lucas as a latent gear-head; he's also credited on IMDb as "additional camera operator" on the racing classic "Grand Prix" in the same year (1966). His "American Graffiti" ode to the '60s later confirmed his interest.Pete Brock, designated driver for the Lotus, achieved significant status of his own in the automobile world. Among his credits: 1) designer of the world-champion Cobra Daytona Coupe that bested Ferrari's GTO in international sports car competition, 2) contributing designer to the original Chevrolet Stingray concept and other projects while at GM, 3) team owner/manager of Brock Racing Enterprises, which helped establish Datsun as a household word through numerous victories on U.S. tracks in the '60s and '70s.
Student films are often only interesting for students, it's true, and this would be a film that possibly proves it. As a work exploring cinematography and editing, it's very interesting. As a story, or narrative, or really much of anything, it's pretty dull. This movie is one action: a race-car driver test-driving a vehicle around a course. Lucas captures the progress of the car around with very impressive editing and sound effects (Lucas' primary influence on cinema really resides in the realm of sound, when you think about it). The pacing changes via editing effects as different events happen such as the car spinning out. Then it stops, the movie literally wraps up, and the movie's over.--PolarisDiB
USC film student George Lucas always liked cars. He hung around Carroll Shelby's firm enough to convince the Shelby Daytona designer, Pete Brock, to drive a borrowed Lotus around the Riverside track. There are no words in the movie, but see if you can read Pete's lips when he spins out.Nice cinematography for a student.
