Mustangs and Movies: Ponyboy’s Nightmare 1965 Mustang

If you grew up with S.E. Hinton and the gospel of The Outsiders, then odds are good that every time you see a blue 1965 Mustang, you have a momentary inclination to run.

Certainly Johnny Cade (Ralph Macchio) and Ponyboy Curtis (C. Thomas Howell) should have run when they saw the Soc’s blue Mustang infringing on their territory in the iconic scene below, from Francis Ford Coppola’s 1983 adaptation of Hinton’s classic novel. Perhaps Ponyboy was improperly emboldened because he thought he was named after the original pony car.

Alas, Pony’s namesake doesn’t come up when the drunk Socs pull up to the park, where Johnny and Ponyboy are literally hanging out. The Socs have revenge on their mind, since Cherry Valance talked to them at the drive-in!

“You know what Greasers are,” asks Soc Bob Sheldon (Leif Garrett), “White trash with long, greasy hair.”

“You know what a Soc is?” retorts uppity Ponyboy, “White trash with Mustangs and madras.” And then Pony spits in Bob’s face. Which leads to them trying to drown Pony. Which leads to Johnny killing Bob. Which ultimately leads to an epic rumble.

Another powerful cinematic statement about the rumbling power of the Ford Mustang.

Chime in with your thoughts on the forum. >>

Via [IMCDB]