Based a lesser James M. Cain novel that was published posthumously, THE GIRL IN THE CADILLAC is disappointingly softboiled. Voluptuous teen Mandy (Erika Eleniak), bummed by flighty mama Tilly (Valerie Perrine) and her taste for lustful live-in boyfriends, dreams of finding her real father
and becoming part of a functional household. But the road to reunion with that super dad is full of wolves in sheeps' clothing, like good-ol'-boyish Rick Davis (William McNamara) and his shifty cohorts Pal (Michael Lerner) and Bud (Bud Cort). Planning a minimal-risk bank heist, the trio invites
runaway Mandy aboard as getaway driver; to reel her in, they point out she can use her share to buy new frocks with which to impress her papa. During the botched robbery that leaves guards wounded and their partners behind, Rick and Mandy impulsively skedaddle with all the loot. Not slick enough
to cover their tracks as they sample the high life, Rick and Mandy peel out on the highway in a status-symbol red Cadillac. Mandy drops in on the man she believed to be her parent, but she's stunned to discover that her mother fantasized this father figure to give Mandy the illusion of legitimacy.
After conscience-stricken Mandy abandons Rick to return the money, Rick's former associates catch up and severely beat him, then try to intercept Mandy at Tilly's new home with her latest soulmate Wilmer (Ed Lauter). Replaying THE DESPERATE HOURS, the crooks force their way inside, hold the family
at gunpoint, and search for the cash. Rick fortuitously arrives and kills Bud. When Pal takes aim at Rick outside Wilmer's, Mandy runs him down with that shiny Cadillac. The next day she bids farewell to prison-bound Rick, and thanks God she has found stability in nice-guy Wilmer.
As interpreted by Eleniak, Mandy lacks the vital vulnerability needed to shift this CADILLAC out of first gear. You can't believe a tough gal like her would rob a bank just to purchase clothes for a face-to-face with her fancied father. Though supporting actors, especially Lerner, give their
performances some octane, the plot is one terribly predictable ride. This screenplay should race by at a pace that sticks out its tongue at speed limits; instead GIRL IN THE CADILLAC chugs along like an overcautious student driver, and gives action buffs too many opportunities to simply pass it
by. One nice custom detailing: the zingy musical score by Anton Sanko. (Violence, extreme profanity, sexual situations, nudity, alcohol abuse.) leave a comment
