Gone in 60 Seconds is a 2000 remake of a 1974 film of the same name. Starring Nicolas Cage and Angelina Jolie, this remake revolved around a group of car thieves who attempted to steal 50 cars in one night.

The Cast

• Randall 'Memphis' Raines - Nicolas Cage
• Sara 'Sway' Wayland - Angelina Jolie
• Atley Jackson - Will Patton
• Kip Raines - Giovanni Ribisi
• Otto Halliwell - Robert Duvall
• Donny Astricky - Chi McBride
• Sphinx - Vinnie Jones
• Det. Roland Castlebeck - Delroy Lindo
• Toby - William Lee Scott
• Tumbler - Scott Caan
• Freb - James Duval
• Mirror Man - TJ Cross
• Raymond Vincent Calitri - Christopher Eccleston
• Helen Raines - Grace Zabriskie

The Plot

Randall 'Memphis' Raines was an extremely successful car thief; his whole motivation for stealing cars was for the thrill and the ride. However, the nature of his chosen profession soon caught up with him, as friends were soon ending up in prison or even being killed. It was his mother - who was worried that his younger brother, Kip, would follow in his footsteps - who finally pushed Memphis to give up his life of crime and leave everything and everybody behind.

Car theft in the Long Beach area was reduced by 47% when Memphis walked away from his life of stealing cars. Some years later he is forced back into the business when his brother, Kip, takes an order for 50 exotic cars from a ruthless crime lord, Raymond Calitri. When Kip fails to deliver, Memphis is forced to take on the order to save his brother's life, and is given 72 hours to deliver the cars: a task that is seemingly impossible.

Memphis pays a visit to an old friend, Otto, hoping that he might help with his problem. However, even with the help of Otto, Memphis finds it hard to get enough of his old crew together. Many are either in prison or dead, but he does eventually manage to get a handful of people to help him. Together with Kip's own younger crew, he sets out to steal all 50 cars in one night.

Close on his heel is his old nemesis, Detective Castle Beck. Beck had always felt that not catching Memphis when he had the chance was like a big stain on his career. Their initial meeting ends with Beck warning Memphis that if he so much as uses '...an aerosol can in a manner other than directed', he will find himself on the wrong side of the law.

List of the 50 Cars

1. 1999 Aston Martin DB7 - Mary
2. 1962 Aston Martin DB1 - Barbara
3. 1999 Bentley Arnage - Lindsey
4. 1999 Bentley Azure - Laura
5. 1964 Bentley Continental - Alma
6. 1959 Cadillac El Dorado - Madeline
7. 1958 Cadillac El Dorado Brougham - Patricia
8. 1999 Cadillac Escalade - Carol
9. 2000 Cadillac El Dorado STS - Daniela
10. 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Convertible - Stefanie
11. 1969 Chevrolet Camaro Z28 - Erin
12. 1953 Chevrolet Corvette - Pamela
13. 1967 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Big Block - Stacey
14. 2000 Ford F350 4x4 modified pick-up - Anne
15. 1971 DeTomaso Pantera - Kate
16. 1969 Dodge Daytona - Vanessa
17. 1998 Dodge Viper Coupe GTS - Denise
18. 1995 Ferrari 355 B - Diane
19. 1997 Ferrari 355 F1 - Iris
20. 1967 Ferrari 265 GTB4 - Nadine
21. 1999 Ferrari 550 Maranello - Angelina
22. 1987 Ferrari Testarosa - Rose
23. 1956 Ford T-Bird - Susan
24. 2000 GMC Yukon - Megan
25. 1999 HumVee 2-Door Pickup - Tracy
26. 1999 Infiniti Q45 - Rachel
27. 1994 Jaguar XJ 220 - Bernadene
28. 1999 Jaguar XK8 Coupe - Deborah
29. 1990 Lamborghini LM SUV - Gina
30. 1999 Lexus LS 400 - Hillary
31. 1999 Lincoln Navigator - Kimberley
32. 1957 Mercedes Benz 300 SL/Gullwing - Dorothy
33. 1999 Mercedes Benz CL 500 - Donna
34. 1999 Mercedes Benz S 600 - Samantha
35. 1998 Mercedes Benz SL 600 - Ellen
36. 1950 Mercury Custom - Gabriela
37. 1971 Plymouth Hemi Cuda - Shannon
38. 1969 Plymouth Roadrunner - Jessica
39. 1965 Pontiac GTO - Sharon
40. 1999 Porsche 996 - Tina
41. 2000 Porsche Boxster - Marsha
42. 1961 Porsche Speedster - Natalie
43. 1988 Porsche 959 - Virginia
44. 1997 Porsche 911 Twin Turbo - Tanya
45. 2000 Rolls Royce Stretch Limousine - Grace
46. 1966 Shelby AC Cobra - Ashley
47. 1967 Shelby Mustang GT 500 - Eleanor (see further details below).
48. 2000 Toyota Landcruiser - Cathy
49. 1998 Toyota Supra Turbo - Lynn
50. 2000 Volvo Turbo Wagon R - Lisa

'Hello Ladies'

With all 50 cars identified, Memphis and his crew of youngsters and seasoned veterans sets out to fill Calitri's order. However, Beck is close on their tails, and after receiving some information on three of the cars that may be targeted, Beck sets up a sting to catch Memphis. But Memphis's years of experience - and a bit of blind luck - leads to a failed sting operation and a rather embarrassed detective.

Unicorn

With 49 cars stolen, there is just the one car left to go, the 1967 GT500 Ford/Shelby Mustang - 'Eleanor' - A car that Memphis had attempted to steal in the past, but failed. The car is Memphis's Unicorn¹.

The Chase

With just one hour left to go and the police seemingly clueless, there appears to be nothing that can stop Memphis from saving his brother. However, just as he pulls out of the underground garage in the '67 Mustang, Beck suddenly appears and a chase begins through busy streets, dockland areas and even a seemingly impossible jump on a bridge.

The chase is starting to eat up time and before Memphis can deliver the final car, time runs out. Calitri calls Atley Jackson to tell him to bring Kip to him. Jackson is now stuck in a dilemma, on one hand he is one of Memphis' oldest friends and on the other, he faces the wrath of his new boss. It doesn't take him long to decide though and he decides to lie to Calitri, telling him that Kip has evaded him. Calitri doesn't seem to bothered though and decides that one brother is as good as the other, turning his attention to Memphis.

The Tables Are Turned

When Memphis finally delivers the 50th car, he attempts to haggle with Calitri over the price, but is unsuccessful and Calitri orders his men to kill Memphis. Just as Calitri's men are about to carry out his orders, Memphis is saved by Jackson and his brother.

Memphis goes in search of Calitri, with the intention of killing him. As he hunts down Calitri, Beck suddenly appears. Memphis is seemingly outnumbered, but when Calitri happens across Beck and tries to kill him, Memphis jumps Calitri from behind and pushes him from a high platform, killing Calitri and saving Beck. Beck is now faced with a moral dilemma, on one hand Memphis is guilty of grand theft auto, on the other, he has just saved his life. Beck eventually decides to let Memphis go and Memphis repays his kindness by telling Beck where the stolen cars are.

Learning a Lesson

If his unpleasant wounding has in some way enlightened the rest of you as to the grim finish below the glossy veneer of criminal life and inspired you to change your ways, then his injuries carry with it an inherent nobility and a supreme glory. We should all be so fortunate. You say poor Toby? I say poor us.
- Sphinx's only line in the entire movie.

The movie ends with the group having a barbeque outside Otto's garage. During the movie one of Kip's group - Toby - is shot. He is only injured, but the thought of friends getting shot is enough and after Sphinx's words of wisdom, the entire group seem more than happy to retire from the car theft business for good.

Love & The Chase

During the movie we see Memphis trying to renew an old relationship with Sway. Sway was Memphis's girlfriend back when he was in his height, but when he decided to leave, she decided to stay behind.

When Memphis initially asks Sway to help him, she turns him down. But after some thought, she is eventually persuaded. During the course of the film, we get to see them relighting the spark of their relationship, leading to some quite flirtatious scenes between the two - 'leather, pink underwear and high heels'. By the end of the film, the two are seemingly back together and starting out on a new relationship.

Eleanor - The Real Star

The Mustangs used in the film are remodelled 1967 Mustangs which hold a few secrets. The biggest secret of all is that out of the 12 cars used, not one of them is actually a Shelby or a 1967.

The worry for the film makers was they had 49 top of the range cars and they needed a car that would outshine all of them. Their initial decision to choose the Mustang was undoubtedly meant as a tribute to the car used in the original 1974 movie. However, the Mach 1 used in the original just didn't have the 'umph' they wanted. So they decided on the '67 Mustang. Even then they thought it needed a little face lift. Adjustments included functional side pipes, mag rims, sport tires, a hood scoop and of course the famous paint work.

Another key aspect was the engine. In this case what you heard wasn't what you saw. The sound of the engine was dubbed using an original '67 500 horse power 428 GT 500 Mustang.

One would start to think that the whole car is a bit of a lie. However, you can now purchase authorised 'Eleanor' body kits and with the engine already a part of the car, one would soon have their very own version of, what is, 'probably the sexiest car in the world'.

The Name

The name 'Eleanor' was given during this film. It was a code that the car thieves used to describe each car. Therefore Eleanor was the '67 Mustang. Due to the success of the film and the car, owners of '67 Mustangs wanted their cars to look like Eleanor. Carroll Shelby gave his own stamp of approval and Mustang owners were soon driving their very own replica of Eleanor. The name is also commonly used now to refer to this make and model of car.

Driving Eleanor

In many cases Nicolas Cage did a lot of the stunt driving scenes himself. He had studied at the Bondurant Driving School in Pheonix in preparation for the movie. He enjoyed the school so much, that he continued to take lessons as a hobby after the film was completed.