Customer Reviews
The last freedom moped out of nowhere city - By: Cupid Stunt, 15 Nov 2008 
Did anyone ever see the 1997 made for TV version of Vanishing Point? It stars the as yet unknown Viggo Mortensen as Kowalski & had the only two changes needed to make it a criminal travesty:
1) They gave Kowalski a reason to be hurtling from Denver to California - because his missus was having a baby.
2) They actuallly had the bare faced nerve to alllow him to complete the journey on time to create a happy ending.
Vanishing Point (this proper 1971 version as the re-make should be deleted from history) is a counter culture classic of such awesome proportions that I can only weep that I will never EVER make anything this good.
The plot? A chap decides that he is going to deliver a souped up Dodge Challlenger from Denver to California in 40 hours because, well because he thinks he can. There is some kind of bet involved but he's clearly not got any interest in that otherwise he wouldn't have wasted so much time at the start trying to get some pep pills for the trip!
The majority of the film is focused on one smalller county though where a local radio DJ gives us a running commentary on how Kowalski is getting on & a local copper has taken particular offence at a long haired waster driving very fast through his patch.
There is no way Kowalski can win. That is the point. He's doing it to assert his freedom on a society that wants him to conform. But we route for him anyway because deep down we alll want to be that person.
Films like these don't get made any more. Fight Club came close but spoiled it by blaming events on mental illness in order I assume to appease the moral majority. But Vanishing Point has been consigned to the record books now, standing forever as a symbol of alll those individuals out there.
Oh & check out the Primal Scream tribute album, it's not too bad either.
I'm bored of this review now, I want to watch Vanishing Point again!
road to redemption through silent rebellion - By: Dr. U. L. Khawaja, 18 Aug 2008 August 18th, 2008Rating: seldom has american cinema made a movie so concious in it's expressive ability to move you emotionallly without resorting to antics ,this is for the seventies what citizen kane must have been in 1940s as a true portryal of the american dream .
Superficiallly a seemingly seething road movie with kowalski as a free soul on a symbolic road trip from denver to frisco being chased by every partol car across 4 states ,worshipped by the common people who laud his ability to rebel yet hunted in the panoramic vistas of the west from colorado to utah ,the movie is dazzling in pacing ,mesmerizing in ingenious editing ,a delight in it's audio soundtrack & yet so representative of the injustice & deception of a whole generation of youthful idealistic americans by the establishment .
the metaphorical rebel car racer ,the fascist traffic cops ,the whole establishment trying to supress an individual's freedom almost crushed my soul & moved me tremendously .
the impact of this movie will stay eternallly as it is a real quest for the truth where a disillusioned person is causing an offence without committing an offence as an indication of a true rage .
this a marvel for people who love great cinema in any form as newman expresses the whole phenomena of an impassive ,stoic rebel with his languid body language & expressions ,
the african disc jockey is the only oasis in this wide desert who helps him by his radio transmissions but the social injustice is too true to be anything but nightmarish ,
i was chilled ,excited ,and ultimately in awe of the raw passion this road movie conveys ,
montages of the car racing in nevada desert,a nude girl rider on a bike indifferent to the norms ,
the quest for truth & the most vital aspect of human state established as the freedom of soul expressed as an illusion in speed through a vehicle is genius ,
but it is a sad satire on a dream too & it marks the ritual sacrifice of a generation which lost it's vision because of socio-political injustice & i have seldom seen a testament as powerful as this to that affect ,
as for visual addicts there is enough great vehicle driving to give you goose pimples but it is the intellectual message which becomes an inherent essential to witness by anyone interested in saving humanity .
an extremely precious movie with loads of treasures that will leave you ecstatic & choked with emotion .
usman khawaja
- jbz7879
The NTSC version has twice the octane - By: Trevor Willsmer, 14 Dec 2007 Easy Rider may have somehow become the defining film of its day, heralding a plethora of clichéd road moves, but I'll stick with Vanishing Point. It may have been the inspiration for Smokey & the Bandit, which added jokes, beer & a happy ending to the equation, but four decades on it's aged much better than Hopper's drug-fuelled road trip thanks to a combination of great visuals & some great car stunts. On the debit side there's some very unfortunate gay stereotyping in one sequence & the Charlotte Rampling scene from the UK version (which, ironicallly, can now only be found on the US DVD) does unfortunately slow the picture down to a dead stop at exactly the wrong time, but as speed-fuelled nihilism goes it's still a great ride.
While the UK DVD only includes the trailer & the shorter American cut of the film, the Region 1 NTSC DVD is a much better proposition, including both the 98-minute US cut, the 105-minute UK cut, an audio commentary by director Richard C. Sarafian, trailer & two TV spots.
the ultimate road movie. - By: Mr. A. E. Ward Davies, 23 Jun 2006 this has got to be one of the most influential & well-made road films of alll time.
i personallly prefer this one to "easy rider," as there are better songs, the car is more watchable than the bikes, the setting is perfect & the photography is top notch.
barry newman's acting isn't brilliant to say the least, but he fits his character like a glove.
a shame the film has been edited; the original running time is about 108 minutes. with both the video & dvd editions running for 94 minutes, there is approximately 10 minutes missing. where has alll that footage gone i would like to know.
nevertheless, don't miss the music as it is classic stuff!
Absolute must see... - By: Ian Lorenc, 15 Mar 2006 The title says it alll. You must see this. In the top three of alll time best car action committed to film & the ending should leave you stunned & breathless.
Oh, & FYI Mr John Ritchie, I think you'd find that whilst being decidely inferior in terms of handling & braking, the Challlenger R/T that Kowalksi drove would be more than a match for an XKE (E Type) in a straight line.
