Black Air Documentary

Black Air Documentary by Andrew Filippone, Jr., Filmmaker

Synopsis: It was a strange and curious misfit. Though born a Buick, the Grand National was clearly something else. It was too quick and too brutish to carry that stodgy name. There was something inside the car trying to get out.

Andrew Filippone Jr. sees Buick’s uncharacteristic GN and GNX iteration black cars as more than merely modern muscle. “They’re survivors,” he says. “These cars were limited in so many ways—styling, pedigree, chassis, cubic inches—and yet they transcended all of that. In spite of all the obstacles, all of the unfortunate circumstances, they rose.” He respectfully tags the Bad Boys from Flint,  “strange & curious misfits.”Filippone has spent four years tracking down GN and GNX owners, racers and collectors, media who road tested the cars, and the key players responsible for engineering, styling and marketing at Buick & GM. He steers BLACK AIR into novel territory for a car film, exploring issues of culture, social class, inheritance, and privilege ingrained in the turbocharged V6 Buicks, and away from the usual focus on mechanics and performance. Yet, there’s no shortage of GNs and GNXs doing what they do best—smoking tires and intimidating people—in this feature-length documentary!

Cast: Tony Assenza, Paul Castle, Richard Clark, Csaba Csere, Anthony Colucci, Bob Colvin, Mike Doble, Lawrence R. Gustin, Rick Hunt, Doug Nigro, Steve Pasteiner, William Porter, Lloyd Reuss, Martyn L. Schorr, Don Sherman, and Gary Smith.

Video posted on Dean’s Garage by permission of Andrew Filippone, Jr., Filmmaker.

Visit Andrew’s site: TellingStory.com.

Posts about the Buick Grand National on Dean’s Garage:

Early History of the Buick Grand National, March 10, 2009.

Black Air Released: The Buick Grand National Documentary, July 17, 2012

My Buick Grand National is a Pontiac.