AllMovie

Death Race 2000 is the type of bad movie that can be very good, or, at least, a whole lot of fun -- the formula for a cult classic. It offers a surprisingly effective mix of violence, sex, and humor, all the more impressive given its modest budget. B-movie veteran David Carradine is appropriately gruff as the weary Frankenstein, and a pre-Rocky Sylvester Stallone is cast with comic perfection as -- what else? -- an Italian thug. Rounding out the extensive group of bizarre competitors is cult favorite Mary Woronov, as the cowgirl Calamity Jane. The gore gets a little excessive, perhaps not surprising given that the film was produced by Roger Corman, legendary for high-quality, low-budget exploitation films. The movie is not entirely without redeeming moral value, however. Like 1987's The Running Man, it does a good job of satirizing the blood lust of professional sports and the TV shows that enable and encourage it. Maybe this is a film that one shouldn't think too much about. But if you can handle spurious accusations against the "treacherous French," and you don't mind assigning point values to pedestrians, Death Race 2000 is a heck of a trip.