1988’s Rain Man is an iconic movie for so many reasons… the chemistry (and family resemblance!) between stars Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise, the witty dialogue, those suits, and of course, the car. Every great road trip movie needs an iconic ride, and for this film, Barry Levinson went with a 1949 Buick Roadmaster convertible.
Greenlight decided to, well, green light a large-scale model of the car, and it is spectacular. For their attention to detail for an instantly recognizable movie car, the Greenlight Rain Man 1949 Buick Roadmaster is the Model Car Hall of Fame’s 1/18 model of the year.
In addition to being the vehicle that will take the duo cross country, it’s a MacGuffin of sorts… Charlie (Cruise) inherits the car and some rosebushes from the estate of his father, While Raymond (Hoffman) gets everything else. For some, that car would be the key prize, but one can understand the consternation.
Greenlight has rendered this car in 1/64 scale before, with their usual aplomb. But the larger scale allows more opening features and tiny details. Start with the side-hinged hood, and underneath is a lovely Buick Fireball engine. The interior is full of crisply printed bits and multi-colored and textured surfaces. Around the back, the taillights and even the trunk handle are lovingly rendered. Movie car or not, this is a seriously lust-worthy model.
One would hope Greenlight will get a lot of use out of this casting in different colors, or even a hardtop version. Meanwhile, the Rain Man 1949 Buick Roadmaster is the Model Car Hall of Fame’s choice for 1/18 Model of 2022.
