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Name your favorite killing machine in the movie, 'Maximum Overdrive'

posted 13 years ago by Gentleman_Caller
29 replies | jump to latest

Which is your favorite killing machine in "Maximum Overdrive"? And why? Included is a list of my favorite killing machines from the movie. Please feel free to add any of your own choices.

GREEN GOBLIN FACE TRUCK - The "Happy Toyz" truck definitely ranks high up in the list of vehicles that kill. It's posessed like the movie "The Car", and has a personality like the movie, "Christine". The Green Goblin Face truck practically plays as the leader of trucks that hold up the Dixie Boy truck stop.

M274 "MECHANICAL MULE" - Best remembered for its mounted M60 machine gun. The gun has the most unusual character in the movie I think. It's way of gunning down several of the characters and use of Morse Code was such a wake-up call halfway into the movie. I always did wonder why none of the diesel trucks responded when the Mule met its demise.

ARCADE GAME - The "Star Castle" arcade game had some of the craziest arcade game sound effects I ever heard. It made that video arcade so eerie looking. The murder by electrocution still holds up whenever I watch this movie. During a time where the machines are coming to life, even an arcade game can kill you.

VENDING MACHINE - This scene has probably been one of my most favorite scenes in Maximum Overdrive. Keep in mind I first watched this movie when I was about 5 years old lol. For not having any of the mobility like the possessed trucks, it sure makes one hell of an impression.

1979 ROAD ROLLER - Best remembered for it's attack on a group of kid baseball players. The steam roller just may have the best kill in the movie. It would've been awesome if it could've just had more screen time like the other machines on this list.

ICE CREAM TRUCK - Okay so you don't see the "My-T Tas-T" Ice Cream truck kill anyone in the movie, it's front end is covered with blood. You also see the truck twice in the movie. It's just another great example that the neighborhood truck your kids love to hear, can also kill you.

And the list can go and on. You have the opening Draw Bridge, the bloody Lawn Mower, the Toy Car in the dogs mouth, to even the hilarious ATM machine Stephen King approaches. My favorite by far is the Green Goblin Face Diesel. This movie is why I loved trucks while growing up as a kid. Why I loved the 80's movies in all of their Rated-R, no CGI glory. They haven't made a great killer car movie in a while. Let alone a movie like this. It's about time that they do! Although they might even screw that up with movies today. Enjoy!

*beep* if I know, Bubba. *beep* if I know." - Maximum Overdrive

[–] Gentleman_Caller 11 years ago

Thank you for all of the comments people! 3 years and this question still remains strong, awesome! :)

@techbox14: Talk about the biggest far fetch kill of the movie, the walkman lol. I almost forgot about that kill, maybe somehow it gave the person a heart attack where he sat.. maybe. It's as far fetch as the toy cop car choking the dog, or the nosedive plane in the school bus. A nosedive is possible but it wouldn't look that perfect. ;)

@captainamerica-5: Exactly, I keep forgetting how eerie the start-up to the tow truck actually was (never growing up around trucks). You needed a good sound like that to make a movie eerie back then, pre-computers and CGI. come to think of it, I don't know any other movie that has a more eerie start-up sound than this. :)

@Traianus: I agree, The Green Goblin face on the Happy Toyz truck was a genius move on someones part. Sadly, being a huge Spider-Man fan for years, when I first saw this movie I never put the two and two together when I was a kid. Lol I just thought, Marvel.. horror movie, never connected the dots. Of course I got it years later ha. The Blade movies is the only time those two genres of movies have crossed paths. And like practically all Marvel movies, not one character from the comics resembles their comic counterpart entirely.

@Supremer68: I would love to see the exact filming location of the gas station. Sadly I'm all the way in California, but I have been to the big cities and some filming locations here on the west. There's a website, 'Seeing-Stars.com' that is full of movie and television locations, and what they look like now. It's a fun website to check out if ever curious. ;)

@Woodyanders: The settings in the movie were used quite well with each antagonist machine. The ice cream truck and lawnmower in the pedestrian streets. The tow truck at the tow yard. The high speed truck dueling it out on the freeway. The vending machine and steamroller were brilliant to see at the baseball field. I still wish we could've seen the full version of the steamroller kill, if it hadn't got cut by the MPAA.

@vpzsnazcol: That's awesome to know about the ice cream truck music, I didn't know it was an actual song. I just figured it to be another ice cream tune of old lol. And I did forget about the bull dozer laugh/chuckle. I can't quite place where I heard a similar laugh from but it sounds reminiscent of something else. Maybe one of the Klowns chuckling in "Killer Klowns from Outer Space". They had some low growl-ness

@the_burning89: The machine gun and Happy Toys truck are by far the two most impressionable killer vehicles at the gas station. For being opposites, they held the most command over the survivors and other vehicles.

"WE MADE YOU, DID'T YOU UNDERSTAND?! YOU CAN'T DO THIS, WE MADE YOU!! - Maximum Overdrive
[shots fired] [rocket launcher fired]

[–] DevastationBob-3 11 years ago

The walkman, the only thing I can think of is that it electrocuted the wearer.

The hairdryer, I have no idea how that hairdryer wrapped it's cord around that girl's neck and killed her. Maybe that was an unrelated death, but it scared the kid anyway.

He asked us, "Be you angels?"
and we said, "NAY, we are but men," ROCK!

[–] Paella747 10 years ago

When I saw this post, I immediately thought about the walkman!

But if I remember correctly, didn't the headphones just swing down and cut his throat? As a kid, I remember discussing how 'impossible' that would be, since the headphones weren't motorized (as if the rest of the movie was plausible).

I haven't seen this film in years, but I'm almost positive that the headphones on the walkman just swung down and sliced everybody's throats (wasn't there a girl sitting on the patio who met the same fate as well? Or hanging out a window?). They didn't show it happening, just the aftermath.

Classic King, and classic 80's!!

[–] DevastationBob-3 10 years ago

The girl hanging out the window had a hairdryer cord wrapped around her neck which raises the same questions as how the walkman killed people. Maybe it electrocuted them and the blood came out of their ears and down their necks making it look like a throat slicing?

That movie is so damn goofy, I love it.

He asked us, "Be you angels?"
and we said, "NAY, we are but men," ROCK!

[–] lastofthemohicans27-989-455765 10 years ago

Mine is M274 "MECHANICAL MULE" was funny watching it come riding in giving orders with the Morse Codes. lol

[–] 10 years ago

[deleted]

[–] drunkbear 9 years ago

1. The Red Autocar, mainly because I love Autocars of that era.

2. The rusty, banged-up tow truck. If that sucker doesn't kill you, it'll probably give you tetanus.

3. The lawnmower. The mental image of it rampaging through the neighborhood is hilarious, to me.

You may have come on no bicycle, but that does not say that you know everything.

[–] robbytara 8 years ago

The plastic (non made in China, yay) police interceptor rammed into the mutts mouth!

[–] sonny-corleone-38-760864 8 years ago

Maybe the walkman was killing it´s victim by playing some really bad music. 🎧 🔊 😵

Is this where the signature is supposed to be?

[–] Vega_Lyra 8 years ago

Gotta go with the old tow truck. That air starter creeps me out everytime!

Conquer your fear, and I promise you, you will conquer death.

[–] sonny-corleone-38-760864 8 years ago

Gotta go with the old tow truck. That air starter creeps me out everytime!

Yep, me too!

Is this where the signature is supposed to be?

[–] Banjo (63) 7 years ago

The ice cream truck for me, though wish we got to see it be more of a threat. Glad it came back for the finale, though.

I know it had blood on the front, making it disturbing imagining who and how it had killed before we first see it, but was there also part of a kid's bike wedged in the grill too?