Director Ridley Scott has made some of the most iconic films of the past half century including Alien, Blade Runner, Gladiator, Master & Commander and The Martian to name a few. With the recent release of the much anticipated House Of Gucci, the director has shifted to unfamiliar territory - a biopic of a famous family’s implosion. At over two and a half hours, House of Gucci may be long, but never boring.
Lamborghini Countach Silver Anniversary edition as driven by Maurizio (Adam Driver) in House of Gucci
For car lovers, there’s plenty of scenery to watch out for as the film moves from one exotic locale to another. Starting in the 1970s and covering roughly twenty years - House of Gucci features a veritable cavalcade of wonderful cars highly prized both then and now. The movie provides a window into a world where the wealthy drove some of the most desirable cars ever made, including marques such as Lamborghini, Maserati, Bentley, Lincoln and Mercedes-Benz.
Gucci employee Domenico De Sole (Jack Huston) drives a black 1974 Porsche 911 Targa - House Of Gucci
Click here to see our Porsche gallery
Italian street scenes feature Fiats and Alfas, along with the ubiquitous Piaggio and Vespa scooters. Set against the humble daily transport of working class Italians, the cars driven by various members of the Gucci family are all the more conspicuous.
We see Aldo Gucci (Al Pacino) driving an ice blue Maserati Indy in one scene, while brother Rodolfo (Jeremy Irons) has a long wheelbase, chauffeur driven Mercedes-Benz. Aldo’s dim-witted son Paolo (Jared Leto) drives a Porsche, his cousin Maurizio (Adam Driver) is seen in a Lamborghini while Patrizia Gucci (Lady Gaga) graduates from a Fiat to a Bentley.
The Gucci’s arrive at the New York City Gucci store in a glamorous 1966 Lincoln limousine like the above (a soft top version was the car JFK was riding in when assassinated in 1963)
The car featured most prominently is the red Fiat-Pininfarina 124 convertible owned by Patrizia Reggione (Lady Gaga). We only see the car with its detachable black hardtop in place. Seems strange to have a red convertible with the top always on, perhaps it was to ensure Lady Gaga’s hairdo remained intact?
Patrizia’s (Lady Gaga) red sports car in House of Gucci is a 1983 Pininfarina 124, but was originally sold as a Fiat.
Clearly, in House of Gucci the expensive cars owned by the various Gucci family members are there to highlight their wealth and status. We see Maurizio Gucci make the giant leap from riding a bicycle through the streets of Florence, to driving a Lamborghini. Even viewers completely uninterested in cars could not fail to get the message loud and clear - only truly wealthy people get to drive a car that looks like that.
Director Ridley Scott uses cars to signify a decline in fortunes when we see Paulo Gucci (Jared Leto) going from driving a Porsche, to a lowly Fiat. His humble Fiat 600D is so mundane he struggles to find it in a parking lot.
In contrast, the audience is made aware of Patrizia’s rise in fortunes when she graduates from a Fiat to a black Bentley Turbo R.
Once common, now bona fide collector cars - the Fiat 600D has a fittingly small role in House Of Gucci.
We’ve put together a House Of Gucci cars gallery with images of the make and models of car to appear in the movie. Via our unrivaled collection of classic car images, Tunnel Ram is able to bring you factory promotional images and original print advertisements for the actual cars that appear in what is a fascinating and, at times, disturbing look at the family behind one of the world’s great brands - House Of Gucci.
Visit the House Of Gucci gallery
The racy styling of the early ‘70s Maserati Indy as driven by Aldo (Al Pacino) - House Of Gucci.
About the author
Raph Tripp is the owner of a 1966 Thunderbird, is a passionate classic car enthusiast and writer, and founder of TunnelRam.net. If you wish to publish this article in part or in whole, please credit Raph Tripp and tunnelram.net . This is an original Tunnel Ram production ©2022 Tunnel Ram. All images remain the property of the original copyright holders.