AS cars in films go, the three minis used for the epic getaway sequence in The Italian Job must rank amongst the coolest. Well, not content with pinching the old Mini's styling and street cred, BMW's new MINI is after its predecessor's place in the limelight.

A remake of The Italian Job will be reaching cinema screens soon starring three patriotically painted MINIs in the lead roles. The cars will be ably supported by an all-star cast including Mark Wahlberg, Edward Norton, Charlize Theron and Jason Statham but the setting has been switched from Turin to LA - not a lot of people know that.