The following is a list of movies about truck driving.

These are movies that the folks at Greatwide Logistics have enjoyed. Within these movies are hints of what it is like to drive for a freight truck company, to be a long haul driver, and even what it is like to be an outlaw truck driver. Most of these fun films are caricatures of what life on the road can be like; some portray a more serious look of driving in modern times. One thing is certain, if you have any interest in the life of the truck-driving cowboy, microwave some popcorn, settle back, and prepare to enjoy the ride.

Smokey and the Bandit brought a lot of fun to the business.

This is a very light-hearted look at the transportation industry. Anyone who has dealt with the day-to-day business of life on the road will appreciate the flagrant disregard of weigh stations, speed limits and operating authority. Bo Darville, also known as Bandit (Burt Reynolds), is hired by a colorful big wig named Big Enos (Pat McCormick). Bandit makes a run to Texas, picks up a truck-load of Coors beer, and returns it to Georgia in a twenty eight-hour period. He brings his owner-operator-driver buddy Cledus Snow (Jerry Reed), along with Cledus’s rig to make the run. The trip to Texas goes without trouble. The drive back to Georgia starts out fine, but Bandit picks up a run-away bride, Carrie (Sally Field), who had escaped from a forced marriage to the son of Sheriff Buford T. Justice (Jackie Gleason). The fun really takes off when Sheriff Justice begins a high-speed chase after Bandit and Carrie, driving a very sharp Pontiac Trans Am.

A mile-long convey of trucks is approximately 40 rigs.

Convoy is the story of three friends, all drivers, running afoul from a sheriff who takes pleasure in extorting truckers for money. Sheriff “Dirty Lyle” Wallace (Ernest Borgnine) sets up a sting by announcing on the CB radio the road ahead is “clean and green.” The truckers are caught by the sheriff, who instead of issuing tickets, orders them to pay him money on the spot. The three friends, Martin “Rubber Duck” Penwald (Kris Kristofferson), Bobby “Pig Pen” (Burt Young) and “Spider” Mike (Franklyn Ajaye), head to a place called Rafael’s Glide-In. There they meet with Melissa (Ali McGraw), a woman Duck had seen on the road a while ago. Melissa’s car is broken down and Duck offers to give her a ride in his truck. Sheriff Lyle shows up and attempts to force more money from Mike. Mike tells him is wife is expecting, and could give birth at any moment. A fight ensues and the truckers disable Sheriff Lyle, several deputies, and their cars. The drivers are joined by other truckers, forming a convoy and traveling across Arizona and New Mexico with Sheriff Lyle in hot pursuit; talk about dedicated trucking! There is a lot of good action and comedy in this movie, and it is sure to become one of your all-time favorites.

A look at the darker side of the transportation industry.

Next in our movie line up is Joy Ride, a film about three young people on a road trip from Colorado to New Jersey. Lewis Thomas (Paul Walker) has left California at the end of his college school year and has bailed out his brother, Fuller Thomas (Steve Zahn), in Salt Lake City. They stop at a truck stop for fuel and food, where Fuller purchases a used CB radio to break up the silence in the car. On their way to Boulder, Colorado, they make contact with a trucker named Rusty Nail. Lewis pretends to be a young woman called “Candy Cane” and makes plans to meet Rusty Nail at the Lone Star Motel. They actually stay in a different room than first planned, and they awake the next morning to find a man in the room they were to stay in has been attacked and mutilated during the night. After telling the police all they know, they drive on to Boulder to pick up Venna Wilcox (Leelee Sobieski), and continue on the road. Unfortunately, they have not left Rusty Nail behind. Before they reach New Jersey, they will meet this insane killer again.

Next, a more realistic look at trucking.

The 2007 movie, Big Rig, is a documentary about modern-day truck drivers. Focusing on issues and problems drivers face on a daily basis, it also highlights what life would be like if truckers refused to drive for three days. Following a “day-in-the-life” of various drivers, it explores what it is like to work for a freight truck company. The view of the world from behind the windshield is explored, along with life at home when a loved one is gone so much of the time. The plight of the owner-operator-driver depicts why the independent driver may soon become extinct. Overall, if you have ever been interested in what life on the road is like, this is a good portrayal.

Back to the excitement of outlaw trucking.

The 1998 movie Black Dog is the story about Jack Crews (Patrick Swayze), an ex-convict trying his best to be a good husband and father after prison. He is working as an automobile mechanic when he learns the bank is about to foreclose on his house. Despite his expired driver’s license, he agrees to drive a one-run trip from Atlanta, Georgia back to New Jersey for $10,000. He knows the load can’t be legal, but didn’t quite expect the lookout driver, two men for protection, and a black dog accompanying him. As it turns out, he is transporting a load of illegal weapons and has drawn the FBI’s attention. As you may imagine, the trip is a radical adventure with Jack trying to save his home regardless of the mass array of guns and vehicles against him.

They Drive by Night was released in 1940.

This film highlights two brothers, Joe (George Raft) and Paul (Humphrey Bogart) Fabrini, as owners of a trucking company hauling fruit from farms to market. They find the business difficult due to corruption and competition. One night, they witness the death of a fellow driver when he falls asleep behind the wheel. This instills an eager desire in both to make enough money to quit the business. This is an interesting look at what it was like to be an owner-operator-driver in the early days of the trucking industry.

Making a long, lonely drive across a desert highway makes one look for diversions.

In the movie Road Games, Pat Quid (Stacy Keach) is driving for a freight truck company across the outback of Australia. Along the 1,600-mile stretch, he meets a variety of people including hitchhikers… and there are a select few whom he strangely sees multiple times down the road. Pat hears about a serial killer on the radio who is in the same area as he. Later, he picks up a hitchhiker named Pamela “Hitch” Rushworth (Jamie Lee Curtis). He tells Hitch of a green van he has seen and grown suspicious of – he thinks it belongs to the killer. At a stop, they see the van and Hitch decides to look inside, but doesn’t come back. The van takes off and Pat begins a pursuit across the desert.

We can’t guarantee you will meet someone like Jamie Lee Curtis, and we don’t run loads of illegal weapons, but if you are interested in learning what a good, dedicated trucking company is like, please visit Greatwide online at www.greatwide.com or www.driveforgreatwide.com. Also, connect with us on LinkedIn and see what truckers are asking on Facebook. You may also want to find out what drivers are talking about on Twitter.