Goodbye Pork Pie 1981 ***

The possible permutation of using the British Mini car for stunt-work were seemingly exhausted by The Italian Job, but Geoff Murphy’s 1981 film manages to find a few new variations. The bright yellow car, nicknamed Pork Pie, is stolen by Gerry (Kelly Johnson) for a trip across New Zealand to Invercargill, and olden man John (Tony Barry) comes along for the ride. They pick up Shirl (Clare Oberman) and their antics lead authorities in a merry dance, becoming folk heroes along the way. Murphy’s film is a good humoured romp that led him to Hollywood gigs like Freejack and Young Guns 2; the jazz score is cool, and the lo-fi car action is impressively done.