Herbie: Fully Loaded (www.the-usher.com)

"That car is alive"

After graduating from college, Maggie Peyton (Lohan) is taken out by her dad (Keaton) to buy a cheap car to celebrate. After picking out a nice Nissan, a feisty little VW Beetle does his best to get noticed and inadvertently gains Maggie attention. What Maggie doesn't know is that this is no ordinary Bug but a legend in the car world but this little VW with the number 53 is none other than Herbie.

Herbie, the loveable VW Beetle that is alive has been a kid's favourite since 1968 but does he have what it takes to make it in the new millennium?

After 'Riding again', 'going to Monte Carlo' and then 'going Bananas', the original 'Love Bug' hit hard times in the 1980s with a failed TV series and a failed TV movie in 1997 but 'Herbie: Fully Loaded' sees the VW Beetle back on track and raring to go. A firm family favourite on afternoon television over the holidays it is strange that Herbie has come back a lot earlier but with 'Fully Loaded' he gets the chance to show what he can really do.

He has been a racing car all his life but this time Herbie moves from Rallying to NASCAR, in a sport were speed matters as the cars circle the oval track. While this isn't the most interesting of motor sports (outside of the US), Herbie is set to become the star as his new owner Maggie Peyton takes on the bigheaded champion of the sport Trip Murphy to try and win the cup. As with sports oriented movies, you know exactly what is going to happen but the fun is getting there and Herbie has family fun by the tank load.

Herbie himself is the star of the show. In the new millennium and with the aid of CGI, Herbie can now do absolutely anything and has a lot more expressions in his VW Bug features. This means that the car now feels more alive than ever as we follow his antics as he tries his hand at street, drag and NASCAR racing, all with his loveable brand of enthusiasm.

The human characters are a bit of a mixed bag however. Lindsay Lohan is a talented young actress, who excels when roles are more challenging or better scripted (see Mean Girls or Freaky Friday) but this is a role she seems to be acting on autopilot. There is nothing really to push her here, as all she has to do is sit behind the wheel and let Herbie do the driving. Justin Long has a similar predicament as Kevin, Lindsay's prospective love interest, who just happens to be a car mechanic. Matt Dillon is like Disney villains of old as NASCAR champion Trip Murphy. He is suitably over the top but he does push it too far some times. Michael Keaton and Breckin Meyer are completely wasted however as Maggie's father and brother, as the characters are very underused.

'Herbie: Fully Loaded' captures the essence of what made the original four Disney movies such a hit. This is good, wholesome family fun that the kids will love and the parents will remember from their own childhood. While the human performances are not that great and the story a tad predictable, Herbie is still the star of the show and it is his presence alone that should have you racing to watch him.

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen 1.85:1 with Dolby Digital 5.1, the movie is presented well.

BONUS FEATURES

Audio Commentary
Director Angela Robinson provides a commentary track for 'Herbie: Fully Loaded'. The woman at the helm talks about the responsibility of bringing Herbie back to the silver screen and the history of the character. She reveals the many changes to the script and development of the film and the emphasising of Maggie and Herbie's relationship. This is a decent single person commentary from an enthusiastic director.

Deleted Scenes (11.49 mins)
Entitled 'Irwindale Garage', 'Maggie's Bedroom', 'Maggie Wins', 'Street Race' and 'Chicken Shack' these deleted or extended scenes have optional commentary from director Angela Robinson.

Bloopers (5.16 mins)
See Lindsay Lohan and the rest of the cast make a hash of their lines and discover that Lindsay has a real fear of spiders.

Lindsay Lohan Music Video 'First' (3.27 mins)
See a blonde haired Lindsay perform her single from the movie soundtrack.

Backstage Disney

A Day at the Races (13.21 mins)
Director Angela Robinson, NASCAR driver Deborah Renshaw and stars Lindsay Lohan, Justin Long, Matt Dillon and Breckin Meyer go to the 'Richard Petty Driving Experience' to experience the speed of NASCAR. The group also train in the pits, as Lindsay and the director get in the cars to drive around the California Speedway track.

Breaking the Rules: Stunts from Herbie: Fully Loaded (8.45 mins)
Director Angela Robinson, producer Lisa Stewart, second unit director Spiro Razatos, stunt coordinator Andy Gill, racing stunt coordinator Steve Kelso and stars Lindsay Lohan, Matt Dillon and Breckin Meyer take you behind the scenes of Herbie's stunts. Here we see Herbie rail riding, at the demolition derby and on the track racing.

Bringing Herbie to life (11.13 mins)
Director Angela Robinson, production designer Daniel Bradford, visual effects supervisor John Van Vliet, executive producer Tracy Trench, stunt coordinator Andy Gill, sound designer Scott Gersham, supervising puppeteer Robert Short and stars Lindsay Lohan and Matt Dillon come together to talk about how Herbie was brought back to the big screen. With both practical and CG Herbie, the featurettes shows you how the animatronic Herbie worked. We also see the designs for the junkyard, street, demolition derby and NASCAR Herbie's.

Trailers
Previews of 'Kronk's New Groove', 'Cinderella', 'Freaky Friday' and 'Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen'

OVERALL

Disney has done a good job with DVD treatment for 'Herbie: Fully Loaded'. Filled with bonus features and a good commentary track, fans of Herbie will be very pleased with this DVD.

DVD

The Love Bug

Herbie Rides Again

Herbie goes to Monte Carlo

Herbie goes Bananas

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2005