http://www.criticsrant.com/archive/2007/10/23/Retro-Rant-VANISHING-POINT-1971.aspx By modern movie standards, 1970s cinema was often flat-out weird. Before focus groups, CGI and marketing budgets that dwarf the GDP of some nations, big studios would occasionally make bets on films that didn’t aspire to mass appeal or even make sense to the wider audience. Arguably, VANISHING POINT is one of the better-known examples of this brand of cinema. A cult film that refuses to fall into the dust of forgotten movies, Richard Sarafian’s uneasy blend of existentialist road trip and high-speed shenanigans makes for unusual though involving entertainment, if for no other reason the offbeat fun in trying to figure out what the hell it all means. The plot itself is fairly simple. Kowalski (Barry Newman), a talented driver and car delivery agent, signs up to take a 1970 Dodge Challenger from Denver to San Francisco. He has an entire weekend to do it, but for a reason that the plot never specifies, Kowalski feels the need to be in the Bay Area tout suite, and thus bets his friend and pill connection that he can make the drive in 15 hours. Wired for (and by) speed, Kowalski sets out on his journey, evading cops, making legions of fans, and making a friend out of Super Soul (Cleavon Little), a blind DJ who acts as a Greek chorus as the legend of Kowalski grows with every roadblock he evades. Still, it’s one thing to blow through the empty spaces of the American West, and quite another to go up against the California Highway Patrol, who has more funding and manpower than all the other state police forces combined (especially in the early 1970s, when the interstate system wasn’t even 20 years old yet). Since the film opens with bulldozers blocking the road, things may not end too well for Kowalski. en-US Critics Rant info@criticsrant.com Subtext Version 1.9.4.0 http://www.criticsrant.com/images/default_gravatar_bullhorn.png http://www.criticsrant.com/archive/2007/10/23/Retro-Rant-VANISHING-POINT-1971.aspx 77 60 http://www.criticsrant.com/archive/2007/10/23/Retro-Rant-VANISHING-POINT-1971.aspx#1870 into the netflix queue with this one! Dan http://www.criticsrant.com/archive/2007/10/23/Retro-Rant-VANISHING-POINT-1971.aspx#1870 Wed, 24 Oct 2007 00:26:22 GMT http://www.criticsrant.com/archive/2007/10/23/Retro-Rant-VANISHING-POINT-1971.aspx#2624 actually i have never seen this one either and would like to brokun1 http://www.criticsrant.com/archive/2007/10/23/Retro-Rant-VANISHING-POINT-1971.aspx#2624 Tue, 18 Dec 2007 14:32:29 GMT