The Next Reel Film Podcast

“I got a better chance of handling him when he's pie-eyed. The front seat don't know it, but the back is still pulling the strings.”
Racing Across America with Roger Corman's Cannonball
In our latest member bonus episode, we dive into Paul Bartel's 1976 action comedy Cannonball, produced by Roger Corman's New World Pictures. Made with a modest budget of $780,000, this unauthorized take on the real-life Cannonball Baker Sea-to-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash features David Carradine as a recently released convict entering an illegal cross-country race from Santa Monica Pier to New York. Join us—Pete Wright and Andy Nelson—as we continue our Roger Corman celebration with this early entry in the cross-country racing genre.
A Race Without a Country
Pete and Andy discuss how Cannonball struggles to create a genuine sense of cross-country scope, with the film seemingly transitioning directly from Los Angeles to New York with little in between. Despite this limitation, they find entertainment value in Paul Bartel's character-focused approach, particularly his own memorable performance as a lounge-singing mobster.
Characters Over Cars
The hosts explore how the film compensates for its modest racing sequences by focusing on its eccentric cast of characters. From David Carradine's brooding anti-hero to the three women in their van and Beutell Morris's car thief with questionable pickup lines, the film succeeds more as a character study than as a racing film.
Key Discussion Points:
• The surprising involvement of the Shaw Brothers Studio as co-producers
• Notable cameos including Martin Scorsese, Sylvester Stallone, Roger Corman, Don Simpson, Joe Dante, Allan Arkush, and Jonathan Kaplan
• The film's influence on later cross-country racing films like The Cannonball Run
• Paul Bartel's apparent disinterest in car racing affecting the final product
• The real history of the Cannonball Baker race and its enduring legacy
• The impressive array of vehicles featured, including the 1968 Dodge Charger, Pontiac Trans Am, De Tomaso Pantera, Chevrolet Corvette, and 1969 Ford Mustang
• How the film balances action with character development
• The odd subplot involving identical cars and mysterious motivations
The Legacy of Cannonball
While both hosts found entertainment value in the film, they agree it falls short of both serious racing films and pure chaos movies like Death Race 2000. However, they appreciate its place in racing film history and its influence on later, bigger-budget cross-country racing films.
We have a great time talking about it, so check it out then tune in. The Next Reel—when the movie ends, our conversation begins!
Film Sundries
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Creators and Guests

Host
Andy Nelson
With over 25 years of experience in film, television, and commercial production, Andy has cultivated an enduring passion for storytelling in all its forms. His enthusiasm for the craft began in his youth when he and his friends started making their own movies in grade school. After studying film at the University of Colorado Boulder, Andy wrote, directed, and produced several short films while also producing indie features like Netherbeast Incorporated and Ambush at Dark Canyon. Andy has been on the production team for award-winning documentaries such as The Imposter and The Joe Show, as well as TV shows like Investigation Discovery’s Deadly Dentists and Nat Geo’s Inside the Hunt for the Boston Bombers. Over a decade ago, he started podcasting with Pete and immediately embraced the medium. Now, as a partner at TruStory FM, Andy looks forward to more storytelling through their wide variety of shows. Throughout his career, Andy has passed on his knowledge by teaching young minds the crafts of screenwriting, producing, editing, and podcasting. Outside of work, Andy is a family man who enjoys a good martini, a cold beer, a nice cup o’ joe. And always, of course, a great movie.
Host
Pete Wright
#Movies, #ADHD, & #Podcasting • Co-founder @trustory.fm🎥 The Next Reel Family of #Film Podcasts @thenextreel.com🎙️ Taking Control: The ADHD Podcast @takecontroladhd.com📖 Co-author of Unapologetically ADHD • https://unapologeticallyadhdbook.com

What is The Next Reel Film Podcast?

A show about movies and how they connect.
We love movies. We’ve been talking about them, one movie a week, since 2011. It’s a lot of movies, that’s true, but we’re passionate about origins and performance, directors and actors, themes and genres, and so much more. So join the community, and let’s hear about your favorite movies, too.
When the movie ends, our conversation begins.

Pete Wright:

I'm Pete Wright.

Andy Nelson:

And I'm Andy Nelson.

Pete Wright:

Welcome to the next reel. When the movie ends

Andy Nelson:

Our conversation begins.

Pete Wright:

Cannonball is over. Attention. Attention.

Pete Wright:

Break down drivers. The police are on their way to bust the race. The post time has been moved up to exactly sixty seconds from now.

Trailer:

Cannonball.

Trailer:

No cannonball is gonna be passing you like you weren't even there.

Trailer:

Anyone can enter and anything goes in a squealing, smashing outlaw race across America. Wanna make a

Trailer:

little bet on a Transamerican Grand Prix. Can you handle $20,000?

Trailer:

Gentlemen, no eternity. Mister Redman, mister Buckman.

Trailer:

I believe we run into each other once or twice.

Trailer:

It's a cross country demolition journey. I meet the witness for you. And if you so much is coming in a hundred miles than me, you're gonna wind up with my

Trailer:

tire tracks right up your lane.

Trailer:

The winner gets a hundred thousand. The losers keep what's left of their cars. Nice, Get me the highway patrol.

Trailer:

We're trying to get a word here with Brad Phillips, organizer of the race. Brad, tell me, your race has been called an outlaw sporting event. Do you have any comment on that? Well, the police and safety officials around the country get upset because our drivers tend to exceed the speed limits.

Trailer:

One speeding ticket and you're back in prison.

Trailer:

Oh, god. There's trouble.

Trailer:

It's a three way free throw that hits with the impact of a head on collision. I thought this car could beat anything on the road.

Trailer:

It's part of the winner. Cannonball.

Pete Wright:

Andy, this movie. How did we get dragooned into doing this movie?

Andy Nelson:

This is you know, we're doing our Roger Corman celebration all year long, and our members are voting on films that he was involved in in one way, shape, or form. And, yeah, for this month, we asked members to vote, and I'm trying to remember what the specific angle was that we went with. I think it was just a car chase, car race, car chase.

Pete Wright:

In the middle of our driving series. Makes sense.

Andy Nelson:

Because exactly. So here we are. So we gave people 10 options, and cannonball is what they picked. Or I should say, cannonball!, because big old exclamation point.

Pete Wright:

Yeah. You should say that. I mean, you won't because that's a little high energy for right now. Just say just know when you hear us say cannonball, we meant cannonball.

Andy Nelson:

I might just say cannonball every time I bring it up.

Pete Wright:

Okay. Alright. Just an interjection. Just before war. Because you're you.

Pete Wright:

Alright. So what did you think of this movie? Now we've talked about the cannonball run before conceptually, not the movie.

Andy Nelson:

Yeah. We've we've mentioned I'm trying to remember when we discussed it. Was it was it in our death race two thousand?

Pete Wright:

Yes.

Andy Nelson:

I think it was in that because that essentially is what this is, just a a future version of the Cannonball Run.

Pete Wright:

Yes. And we were, I think, both surprised to hear that the Cannonball Run was, one, a real thing. Two, a lot more movies than just the Cannonball Run had been made about the Cannonball Run, and that we wanted to talk about more Cannonball adjacent

Andy Nelson:

films. Hear. Hear. Yes. That's right.

Andy Nelson:

Yeah. It it's a real surprise how many of them there are, but this is, you know, the first ish. There were two actual unofficial films made about that that particular race in 1976, this being one of them.

Pete Wright:

How did it hit you?

Andy Nelson:

I had fun with it. I enjoyed my time with the story, you know, where where basically I mean, it's kind of like any of these cannonball run types of films where, again, just for people who aren't familiar with it as we keep bringing it up, it is a basically coast to coast race. Unofficial, unsanctioned, illegal, generally because people are driving at illegal speeds. And the film follows a number of different drivers, and we kind of get to know each of their different personalities as they all race to get across the coast first. In this particular case, in this film, I think the real race goes from New York to LA.

Andy Nelson:

This one goes from LA to New York. I have fun with these films. I have fun with this type of film. I think there's just something I mean, I grew up watching the Cannonball Run films a lot, like they were in very regular rotation. And likewise, I think I talked about, like, the wacky races that Hanna Barbera did, which is in in kind of a global version.

Andy Nelson:

I just enjoy this type of story where you're following a whole bunch of different people trying to race, you know, across the country or around the world, whatever the case may be. This film definitely has that low budget feel to it. You're not necessarily getting, like, a studio budget that gives them the money they need to really accomplish stuff, but still they pull some stuff off. And I was I actually had a lot of fun with it. I you know, it's I think it's a a very enjoyable easy watch, the sort of thing that just, think, can fit right into this type of film, and I can I can easily enjoy it?

Pete Wright:

Yeah. And I'll I'll say that same thing. I I watched the movie. I enjoyed my time with the movie. That you feel the budget.

Pete Wright:

Right? Like, there are I I never really get a sense that they crossed the country. I think they crossed Arizona, and then they were in New York. Right.

Andy Nelson:

I just think they lavated out of California. I think they just went from LA to the deserts outside of LA, and then

Pete Wright:

And then they're in New York. Yeah. Yeah. So I I just I felt that. Like, there wasn't that sense of scope to this movie, and so many people's cars blew up.

Pete Wright:

Like, it just felt like there's more death maybe than in the Cannonball Baker seat of Saranacci memorial trophy dash, the real race.

Andy Nelson:

Well but I think that was part of the fun. I think I mean, specifically I mean, there is one explosion early in the film, but I think specifically most of the explosions are that giant pile up where somehow every single car explodes. Like, it was ridiculous. And I just thought that that was probably Paul Bartel, the director, throwing something in because, one, he's not that excited about cars and car racing movies. And so just, you know, probably just put it in just because it was something more fun and interesting to do.

Andy Nelson:

And two, probably because there's something Roger Corman liked, and he enjoys those sorts of things. Honestly, though, I say that I don't know how much he was actually involved specifically because it was more him as an executive producer on this one through his New World Pictures. The actual producer was Samuel w Geldman. So who knows regardless? It still could have been an order coming down from the big man.

Pete Wright:

Well, you know, I mean, maybe he he felt a little bit exhausted after death race two thousand. I mean, this just felt like a pile on to to that. I think that that final sequence of lumbering explosions on the highway. Right? There's, like, there's no real vigor to it.

Pete Wright:

It doesn't feel like an intentional stunt. It feels like we're just gonna just every car is just gonna continue to run into the car before it. And I found myself laughing out loud because at the same time, the three women in the van are slowly navigating the hairpin turns through the wreckage while the cars are actively careening into themselves.

Andy Nelson:

So funny.

Pete Wright:

It was very funny.

Andy Nelson:

Well, that's what I I think Bartel had to do that for comedic purposes because it wasn't action filled. It was very just kind of like these slow this car is just they kept crashing into this pileup, and they they instantly would explode. It was so ridiculous that I just had to laugh. Hey there, all you gear jamming cinephiles. Andy here, and I've got some news that'll make you wanna put the pedal to the metal.

Andy Nelson:

If that little taste of our cannonball discussion got your engine revving, then it's time to upgrade to the full throttle experience by becoming a member. When you join our pit crew, you'll get access to a whole speedway of exclusive content. We're talking monthly member bonus episodes that'll take you on a wild ride through the world of cinema. But that's not all. You'll also get bonus content from our other shows like sitting in the dark, CinemaScope, and the film board.

Andy Nelson:

It's like having a nitrous boost for your movie knowledge. But wait, there's more. As a member, you'll get early ad free access to all our shows so you can leave the competition in the dust and experience our content the way it was meant to be heard. And if you wanna help steer the ship, you'll get to vote on upcoming member bonus episodes of this show. That's right.

Andy Nelson:

You'll have a say in which films we cover so we can tailor our content to your high octane tastes. And let's not forget about our Discord community. While everyone has access to it, our members have the chance to really make the membership channels shine. It's like a virtual garage where you can swap movie recommendations, debate the finer points of film history, and generally geek out with some of the most passionate film lovers around. So what are you waiting for?

Andy Nelson:

Head over to truestory.fm/join and sign up today. For just $5 a month or $55 for the whole year, you'll get a VIP pass to the most thrilling ride in podcasting. And trust me, once you've experienced the full unfiltered glory of our cannonball discussion, you'll be ready to go the distance with us. But don't just take my word for it. Join the crew and find out for yourself.

Andy Nelson:

We'll be waiting for you, ready to hit the gas and tear up the cinematic blacktop like never before. So buckle up, hold on tight, and get ready for the ride of your life. The checkered flag is waiting, and we're just getting started.