Machine Gun Joe, thousands love him.

The same was being said about Donald Trump in the run-up to his presidential upset in 2016.

Corman and his indomitable American International Pictures calledallthis back in 1975, before there was evenThe Gong Show.

The legendary filmmaker spoke withDen ofGeekabout the pileup that awaits.

Death Race 2000was a prescient satirical look into a future when satire wasnt our everyday norm.

The country is ruled by a wacky despot who likes things big and fast.

Slightly more than half of America wants to find the off-ramp.

I didnt think thats true.

Then the thought came to me: why not have the drivers kill pedestrians and get points from that?

Does that sound familiar?

Weve already seen how the President feels about the disabled.

This is the world were choosing, people.

Get ready to ride.

For the competition at the center of the film, they upped the ante.

The man was a genius.

Thats why he was the only survivor besides Frankenstein, played by the late, great David Carradine.

Frankenstein the legend is the only two-time winner of the Transcontinental Road Race.

Frankenstein the indestructible was the sole survivor of the titanic pile-up of 95.

Carradines Frankenstein is ripped up, wiped out, battered, shattered, creamed, and reamed.

He is a dancer on the brink of death.

Frankenstein lost a leg in 1998 and an arm in 1999.

Except for the guts he leaves on Americas highways and by-ways.

Road kill aint just good eatin.

In the world ofDeath Race 2000, neo-Nazis are a key demographic and a formidable voting bloc.

Americas population is kept in check by their favorite reality competition show.

The biggest ratings get the biggest payoffs and reality TV has gotten too real.

Its virtually impossible to satirize the parody when there are too many afflicted to mock.

Death Race 2000(1975) was directed by Paul Bartel.

The short story focuses on the death-race drivers conscience, not the political call to pull over.

Besides Stallone and Carradine,Death Race 2000also stars Simone Griffeth as Annie, Frankensteins latest navigator.

She wants to use her red-hot sexpot wiles to navigate Frankenstein off-road and out of the running.

The resistance wants to topple the totalitarian regime that came into power after martial law only pissed people off.

Did I write potato?

It should have been potatoe.

Theres no quicksand ending for this Frankenstein.

The cars inDeath Race 2000have to be smoking.

They are the key to raking up points.

Frankenstein drives a Chevrolet Corvette.

Machine Gun Joe drives a Manta, customized to fit machine guns on the bonnet.

Matilda the Hun drives a VW Karmann Ghia.

Nero The Hero drives a Fiat 850 Spider nicknamed the Lion.

The cars are the stars inDeath Race 2000and they have diplomatic immunity.

Dystopia may be bad forpeople, but its a great excuse to pimp out your ride.

Look at the cars, trucks, and SUVs in theMad Maxmovies.

Or that crazy armored truck inDemolition Alley.

GM and Chrysler are probably even rethinking their plans to make cars beyond whatever wall is coming.