MEET THE SPEED BREED! Hollywood legend Howard Hawks (The Big Sleep, Rio Bravo) floors the accelerator in Red Line 7000, a late career treat that gave James Caan (The Godfather, Rollerball) his first starring role and would later be an influence on Quentin Tarantino. Overnight fame, overnight fortune, and any-night girls, the men of Banjo Baker’s racing team press ’em all to the limit in this story of three ambitious young drivers trying to make their names in the thrilling world of stock-car racing. It’s a dangerous life for the drivers and the women who love them. In the red zone beyond 7000 RPM the engine might blow, but it’s the only way to win. Shot by Milton R. Krasner (All About Eve) with a screenplay by George Kirgo (Spinout) and a supporting cast that includes Charlene Holt (El Dorado), Marianna Hill (High Plains Drifter), and a pre-Star Trek George Takei, Red Line 7000 features pulse-pounding scenes of real life racing and crashes that will take your breath away.

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Video Quality

Red Line 7000 comes to Blu-Ray courtesy of Arrow Video in its original 1.85:1 sourced from an HD master supplied by Paramount and Kino Lorber. Kino Lorber last released this movie on Blu-Ray in 2017, but we have never seen that release and it is now out of print. This may be the same base master used by Kino Lorber, but Arrow completed additional grading and restoration work. While we would prefer to see that a new 2K or 4K remaster had been conducted by Arrow themselves, this presentation looks very pleasant with natural grain intact and nicely resolved. This film can get quite gritty during the credits especially, but it has thankfully not been scrubbed of its texture.

The detail on display is a beauty with rich textures on the clothing and within the production design. The transfer allows for a significant amount of depth even when not embarking on an intense race. There are occasional moments that take a bit of a downturn in quality in terms of clarity, most likely due to the original elements, but this holds firm pretty consistently. The contrast is capably defined with strong highlights that do not succumb to blooming. Black levels are largely deep with nothing unwanted when it comes to crush. The transfer showcases brief signs of print damage, but the picture is largely clear throughout most of the presentation. Arrow Video has done nice work by bringing that back into print.

Audio Quality

This Blu-Ray comes with a restored original LPCM 1.0 mono track that does everything it needs to. The killer score from Nelson Riddle that sets the tone of the picture is handled with impeccable fidelity. Dialogue sounds clear without sound effects or the score swallowing up pertinent information. This is a thrilling picture, and sound effects such as speeding cars or epic crashes are given the appropriate weight within the mix. The sonic ambitions are faithfully realized as every element coalesces into a gripping experience. This presentation showcases everything you want without damage or other unwanted issues. This is a good release from Arrow Video. The release comes with optional English SDH subtitles.

Special Features

The first-pressing of the Arrow Video Blu-Ray of Red Line 7000 includes a booklet featuring the essay “‘Hangout Movies and Late Era Howard Hawks” by film critic Martyn Conterio. This provides a great analysis of Howard Hawks and what can be gleaned from his work later in life. The booklet also contains the details of the restoration. The on-disc special features are as follows:

Audio Commentary: Film historians Julie Kirgo and Nick Redman provide an archival audio commentary which is especially interesting given that Kirgo’s father wrote the screenplay. Otherwise, they discuss where this fits into the career of Howard Hawks, how his insistence on “discovering” a new female star hampered the film, the performers and their backgrounds, shooting locations, the particulars of the storytelling, the gritty cinematography, the themes tackled within this one, and more.

Bruce Kessler – Man In Motion: A new 45-minute interview with assistant director Bruce Kessler is provided in which he discusses his background and working relationship with Howard Hawks. Much of this is filled in with additional narration from film historian Howard S. Berger who gives additional context to the proceedings.

A Modern Type Of Woman: A nearly 20-minute visual essay from film historian Kat Ellinger who discusses the archetype of the “Hawksian woman” and how the director portrays the women in the film.

Gas, Gears, Girls, Guys & Death: A nearly 37-minute visual essay on the film by Howard S. Berger and Angela McEntee that explores how this fits into the career of Howard Hawks.

Image Gallery: A gallery of marketing materials and promotional stills is provided.

Final Thoughts

Red Line 7000 is an engaging film from Howard Hawks from later in his lifetime which is far from perfect yet shows he still had the juice. The women in the film have strong personalities, but they are often not given the material they deserve while also not always being supported by the direction in the way they need to succeed. The men seemingly have less complexity than the women, but the script treats them better and allows the performers to stand out. The racing scenes are thrilling when they occur, yet Hawks knows how to make you sit up even off the track. The movie is a great viewing experience in spite of some of its minor flaws. Arrow Video has released a Blu-Ray featuring a good A/V presentation and a strong array of special features that are very much worth exploring. Recommended

Red Line 7000 will be available to purchase on Blu-Ray on July 30, 2024.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: Arrow Video has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.