This page was created on June 11, 2005
This page was last updated on June 24, 2005

—Overview
—109 Photos
—About this Film
—Spiritual Connections

Dial up modems will take a few moments

Directed by Angela Robinson
Characters by Gordon Buford
Story by Thomas Lennon and Ben Garant

Screenplay by
Thomas Lennon
Ben Garant
Alfred Gough
Miles Millar

Cast (in credits order)
Lindsay Lohan .... Maggie Peyton
Justin Long
Breckin Meyer .... Ray Peyton Jr.
Matt Dillon .... Trip Murphy
Michael Keaton
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Cass Asher .... Pit Crew Chief
Clam Davis .... Todd
Mark Deklin .... ESPN Reporter
Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Scott Martin Gershin .... Herbie Vocals
Bruno Gioiello .... Screaming bald guy
Jeff Gordon .... Himself
Amy Hill .... Doctor
Cheryl Hines
Ksenia Jarova .... Groupie #3
Jeff Lam .... The Herbie Guys
Mario Larraza .... Miguel Hernandez
Jamie McMurray .... Himself
Scoot McNairy .... Augie
Peter Pasco .... Juan Hernandez
Jill Ritchie .... Charisma
Erik Rusnak .... Race Official
Jimmi Simpson
Alanna Ubach
Rusty Wallace
Jim Cody Williams .... Rob Zombie Driver
Herbie The Love Bug .... Itself (uncredited)

Produced by
Michael Fottrell .... executive producer
Charles Hirschhorn .... executive producer
Robert Simonds .... producer
Lisa Stewart .... co-producer
Tracey Trench .... executive producer

Original Music by Mark Mothersbaugh

Cinematography by
Greg Gardiner
Daniel C. Gold (additional photography)

Film Editing by Wendy Greene Bricmont

Runtime: USA:92 min
For rating reasons, go to FILMRATINGS.COM, and MPAA.ORG.
Parents, please refer to PARENTALGUIDE.ORG

Trailer:
QuickTime, Super Hi-Res
QuickTime, Hi-Res
QuickTime, Med-Res
QuickTime, Lo-Res
Windows Media Player, Hi-Res
Windows Media Player, Hi-Res
Windows Media Player, Hi-Res
Real Player, Hi-Res
Real Player, Med-Res
Real Player, Lo-Res

Featurette:
QuickTime, 21.9MB

2 Clips:
Windows Media Player, Various

Clip & Featurette:
QuickTime/Windows Media Player, Various  

Herbie Fully Loaded

1. Lindsay Lohan - First
2. Mark McGrath - Getcha Back
3. Aly & A.J. - Walking On Sunshine
4. Caleigh Peters – Fun, Fun, Fun
5. Pilot - Magic
6. Josh Gracin - Working For The Weekend
7. The Donnas – Roll On Down The Highway
8. The Mooney Suzuki - Born To Be Wild
9. Ingram Hill – More Than A Feeling
10. Rooney - Metal Guru
11. Josh Kelly - You Are The Woman
12. Lionel Ritchie - Hello
13. Mavin - Welcome To My World
14. Blacksmoke Organisation - Herbie Fully Loaded Remix
15. Blacksmoke Organisation – Herbie VS Nascar

Thoughts while sitting in a Father’s Day screening of Herbie: Fully Loaded with my wife and two daughters, who are on opposite ends of the film’s tween target audience. Although neither girl had seen any of the original “Love Bug” series (as I did when in their age group), both have an eye for “slug bugs” since Volkswagen introduced the new Beetle design in 1998, after new versions of the 1950-1970 model had not been made for a generation. In light of the almost instant popularity of the redesigned Beetle, why did it take Disney so long to make another film in this series?

In fact, Herbie: Fully Loaded follows in the recent Disney tradition of taking some of its “old-fashioned” films, some from its most artistically dreadful era, and giving them a fresh look for a new generation of younger viewers: most notably Flubber and The Parent Trap.

In Herbie: Fully Loaded, the ‘63 bug fans came to love is resurrected from a junkyard by Maggie Peyton (Lindsay Lohan), who is given her choice of any car on the lot by her father, aging race driver Ray Peyton Sr. (Michael Keaton). The Peyton dynasty, or lack thereof, is being carried on by Ray Peyton Jr. (Breckin Meyer), Maggie’s older brother. But in an impromptu street race against NASCAR champ Tripp Murphy (Matt Dillon), we discover that Maggie perhaps should be carrying the Peyton legacy when she is forced into racing by Herbie.

Dillon proves to be a worthy villain in a role that will remind older viewers of a previous rogue played by Dillon in the 1980 film My Bodyguard, a much better family film than this one. The temptations that Tripp offers Maggie lead her to make some choices that damage her relationships with Herbie, her father and a close friend and mechanic named Kevin (Justin Long).

Herbie: Fully Loaded emphasizes loyalty, honesty and remaining faithful – both in our relationships and in our sense of God-given calling. Maggie discovers that, with the support of others, her dreams are within reach.

The 92-minute film is cute, but not saccharine; its screenplay well-organized, but predictable. The slapstick antics may have some laughing out loud. My 7-year-old enjoyed it quite a bit; the 13-year-old found it mildly amusing. There are also some nice touches in the film, such as having Herbie learn from watching Maggie’s skateboard moves. And the computer-generated special effects seem believable.

This certainly isn’t a great children’s film, nor am I ready to call it a good film. But it’s good, wholesome and light-hearted entertainment for families – the kind that makes for a good summer afternoon outing.

I will not post these comments. I welcome your spiritual concerns and prayer needs.  I will correspond with you, usually within two weeks.
Email David Bruce