Hot Rods to Hell(1967)

POOPER:
The Phillips family moves to California to operate a motel after Tom’s car accident injury. En route, they face harassment from hot-rodding teens led by Duke and Ernie. Tina is attracted to Duke, heightening family strife. The motel was previously a youth hangout under Dailey. Tom confronts the gang but his back fails him. The family attempts escape, leading to a bridge chicken game. Tom blocks the bridge, causing Duke to crash off it. The teens survive, promise to cease trouble, and the family resolves to properly manage the motel.

LONGER VERSION:
Tom Phillips (Dana Andrews) is driving home to Boston for Christmas when a drunk driver crashes into him on a rainy night. He wakes up in the hospital with severe back injuries that end his career as a traveling salesman. His brother Bill (Harry Hickox) suggests he buy a motel in the California desert town of Mayville to start over. Though hesitant about becoming an innkeeper, Tom agrees to move his family far from the trauma.

Tom sets out with his wife Peg Phillips (Jeanne Crain), teenage daughter Tina (Laurie Mock), and young son Jamie (Tim Stafford) in their station wagon. Crossing the desert, they encounter reckless drag racers. Duke (Paul Bertoya), driving a souped-up 1958 Chevrolet Corvette, and a female passenger playfully force Tom’s car to swerve, nearly causing an accident. Shaken, the family stops at a gas station run by elderly Charley (Charles P. Thompson), who complains about the local bored teens—kids of prosperous farmers—seeking thrills on the roads.

Charley reveals the motel Tom bought from Lank Dailey (George Ives) was a hangout for these youths, including Duke and his buddy Ernie (Gene Kirkwood), who used it for drinking and hookups. That’s why Dailey is selling. Ernie overhears Tom mentioning the purchase and informs Duke, who decides to scare off the new owners.

The harassment intensifies as Duke’s gang tails the Phillipses’ car, honking and swerving dangerously. They reach Dailey’s Motel, attached to the Arena bar and grill. Dailey welcomes them, but the place is rundown. Tina, intrigued by the excitement, sneaks to the Arena where Duke’s girlfriend Gloria (Mimsy Farmer) dances provocatively. Tina chats with Duke, drawn to his rebellious charm.

Gloria, jealous, alerts Tom that Tina is with Duke. Tom storms in, grabs Duke by the throat, but his back pain forces him to release. Humiliated, Tom tells Dailey the deal is off and plans to fetch police from the next town. Dailey warns Duke and Ernie, who vow to stop Tom.

As the family drives away at night, Duke and Ernie pursue in high-speed chases, playing cat-and-mouse on the highway. A highway patrol officer (Paul Genge) briefly intervenes but lets them go after warnings. The terror peaks when Duke challenges Tom to chicken on a narrow bridge over a dry riverbed.

Tom stops the car midpoint, turns on headlights, and hides his family off-road. Duke speeds toward them but swerves at the last second, crashing off the bridge. Ernie and Duke emerge battered but alive, with scraped knees and bruises. They beg Tom not to call cops, promising no more trouble.

Tom relents, seeing a chance for redemption. He declares they’ll return to the motel and operate it right, free of the wild crowd. The family heads back, hopeful for their new life, as the teens limp away defeated.