Red-Barracuda This little charmer from Disney is in effect a live action cartoon. It was the first film to feature the character Herbie, who of course is none other than the lovable Volkswagen Beetle car who has a mind of its own. The story boils down to Herbie finding himself between two race drivers, one who is a mediocre driver but with a heart of gold, while the other is far more talented but is an utter cad. Unsurprisingly Herbie chooses to be with the former, creating all manner of tensions when the latter tries all manner of underhand tactics to either get the car back or to sabotage it. The film climaxes in a memorable race scene.Set in and around picturesque San Francisco locations and boasting a nice lush soundtrack, The Love Bug is a fun, good natured romp. It has an amusing performance from David Tomlinson as the baddie, in a role where he chews the scenery at every given opportunity, by the final race he is very much like a live action Dick Dastardly! The other human performer whom I liked was Michele Lee, who plays a character caught between both drivers; she is really lovely here and a radiant presence throughout. But at the end of the day, The Love Bug ultimately belongs to Herbie. He may be a pile of metal but it's easy to go along with the film and believe in him. The final race is a fitting end to things where Herbie and the gang give it that little bit extra and get us over the line with a smile. On the whole, very likable stuff.

ofpsmith This I can remember was the first film I held as my favorite. Since then there has been Home Alone(1990), Back to The Future(1985), and 12 Angry Men(1957) holding that title. The first time I saw this I was very young, no more than 7 years old. I have always been into cars. I have loved this film and Herbie ever since. Dean Jones plays as Jim Douglas, a race driver who hasn't won in a while. He buys a Volkswagen Beetle from the cynical Peter Thorndyke played by David Tomlinson. Tennessee Steinmetz is Jim's roommate and the first to befriend Herbie. Michelle Lee stars as Carole Bennett who used to work for Thorndyke but joined Herbie's side after Thorndyke tried to kill him. Great casting choices for all the characters. I especially love the racing scenes. I say you should definitely see this movie.

Jackson Booth-Millard I had seen the modern Lindsay Lohan/Michael Keaton remake of the classic collection of films about the living car, Herbie: Fully Loaded, and it was right I should see the first of the old ones, from director Robert Stevenson (Mary Poppins, Bedknobs and Broomsticks). Basically down on his luck racing car driver Jim Douglas (Dean Jones) and his friend, occasionally drunk mechanic Tennessee Steinmetz (The Little Mermaid's Buddy Hackett), live together in an old run down fire house. One day Jim goes to a luxury car dealership and wants something in a rather low price range, but mean dealer Peter Thorndyke (Mary Poppins' David Tomlinson) has no interest in helping him. Then Jim spots a strange car, an old Vauxwagen Beetle, and after managing to take it away with him, it proves to be an unusual car, it has a mind of its own driving where it wants to. He believes Thorndyke planted the car on purpose, but dealer assistant Carole Bennett (Michele Lee) proves the car is a good purchase, only to discover the car is living as well, and Jim has found a love interest. After being fixed up Jim, and given the name "Herbie" by Tennessee, the car is more controlled by its driver, and with a high speed they start racing to be champions, against Thorndyke, who wants the car back. After Thorndyke sabotages one race to win, the big race called the "El Dorado" is on the way, and there is a point when you wonder if Herbie will go to it, but after the apologies, he does. So the two lap gets started, with Thorndyke seeming to cheat his way to the lead, but Jim, Carole and Tennessee in Herbie manage to catch up and eventually win the race. Also starring Joe Flynn as Havershaw, Benson Fong as Mr. Wu, Andy Granatelli as Association President and Joe E. Ross as Detective. The car doesn't have as much personality as perhaps the remake version does, Tomlinson makes a reasonably mean villain, like a live version Dick Dastardly, and the jokes are alright, it is something the family will enjoy, an alright comedy. It was number 94 on The 100 Greatest Family Films. Good!

TheLittleSongbird I was surprised at how much I enjoyed The Love Bug. It is such good fun, and I do agree that it is by far and away the best movie of the series. The story is simple but well structured and interesting and the dialogue has its fair share of very funny and somewhat poignant moments. The photography is nice to look at, the direction is on target, the pacing is snappy and the soundtrack is lovely. The entire cast from Buddy Hackett, Dean Jones, Joe Flynn and Michelle Lee is very strong, but at the end of the day Herbie is the one who steals the show, quite cute and endearing for a car Herbie is. All in all, while not the best of the live-action Disney movies being a touch too long, it is thoroughly enjoyable and I can see completely why people love it. 9/10 Bethany Cox