Vanishing Point update August 24 2009

I DVR'ed a movie called Vanishing Point last night. It was made in the early 70's and supposedly a very influential movie for Quintin Tarrantino. In fact, the second car chase scene in "Death Proof" was essentially a homage to this movie. It's a movie that has a lot written about it and I was very excited to see it. Here are my thoughts:

The movie begins with Kowalski, the main character (we never know his last name) driving full speed toward a police roadblock set up to stop him. He pulls off the road to think, then gets back in his car and begins driving towards the roadblock. As he passes another car going the other way, the movie stops, and cuts to several days before. Kowalski is to deliver a white Dodge Chalanger from Denver to San Francisco. Along the way he runs into the Highway Patrol, and while he could stop, he decides not to yield. In flashbacks we are told that Kowalski has been a motorcycle driver, a stock car racer, a cop who stops his partner from raping an informant, and that he's lost the love of his life when she died. As he encounters more and more policemen and continues to run, his story is picked up by a blind DJ who is listening in on police scanner frequencies. The DJ decides that Kowalski is "the last American hero, freed by speed" and encourages him to run from the cops. Eventually, Kowalski runs into a roadblock he cannot escape from: two bulldozers blocking the road. The movie catches up with itself at this point, and Kowalski runs full speed into them, explodes in a fireball, and dies.

As in a lot of movies post Easy Rider, the story is very simple but the photography is amazing. The movie contains the best car chase action sequences I've ever seen. There really isn't a story; the story is the chase. There is no real explanation as to why Kowalski makes choices; he simply chooses not to stop, and that is enough. We are invited to place our own values onto the chase. Is Kowalski, in fact, the "last American hero"? Or, is he simply fed up with life and is out for suicide by cop? There is no definite answer.

I enjoyed watching this movie. I fast forwarded through some of it, but I didn't lose anything by doing that as the car chase action is what is central to the film. The action sequences, and the soundtrack, are quite good. I'm not sure if it will be on cable again, but I would recommend it, particularly if you are a fan of Tarrantino such as myself.