Anthony James, Arthur Malet, Barry Newman

Art film and road movie collide for Vanishing Point, an existential car chase across the desert in a post Easy Rider America. Barry Newman stars as Kowalski, a taciturn driver who bets t...( read more  read more... )hat he can drive a new Dodge Challenger from Denver to San Francisco in 15 hours. He loads up on amphetamines and begins his odyssey through the contemporary west while a funky black DJ (Cleavon Little) turns the driver into a folk hero and broadcasts advice on dodging the cops. It's like a counterculture precursor to Smokey and the Bandit, with the road as the last bastion of freedom and the DJ as a combination commentator and mystical guide. The slim plot offers a network of society drop-outs that aid the "last free Man on Earth" (as the DJ describes him) on his obscure but obviously symbolic quest while flashbacks paint Kowalski as a world-weary hero. It doesn't really make much sense, but the amazing car chases and excellent stunt work are stunningly set against the American west, beautifully captured by cinematographer John A. Alonzo. Vanishing Point is most assuredly a product of its time, the heady, anything-goes era of rebellion in the early 1970s. --Sean Axmaker

Flixster Users

82% liked it

8,393 ratings

Critics

75% liked it

16 critics

R

Directed by: Richard C. Sarafian

Release Date: January 15, 1971

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DVD Release Date: March 23, 2004

Stats: 1,083 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (1,083)


  • September 25, 2009
    The last American hero who knows that speed is freedom for the soul! Existential exploitation at it?s very best.
  • March 21, 2008
    Man and machine against the world!. . . Great going with Barry Newman as Kowalski.
  • November 21, 2007
    Basically a watered-down Easy Rider with an amazing car instead of motorcycles. Not bad but it doesn't make total (or even a lot of) sense as a few things were left unexplained. The flashbacks were good although I kind of wish there were more of them even if only to fill in some ...( read more)of the plot gaps. Great landscape cinematography as was the raiding of the radio station by the local inbreds despite how disturbing and brutally it was done. Cleavon Little was cool as was Barry Newman as Kowalski. Of course the star was the Challenger and its car chases. I can't say the ending surprised me. All I know is if the odds are against me and a naked blonde with no tan lines on a motorcycle asks me if I want to have some fun I'm saying YES...!
  • October 2, 2007
    Kowalski is the man.
  • May 14, 2008
    This was a very enjoyable movie about a guy taking a high speed chase from Denver to San Fransisco. Kowalski, our hero, is driving the infamous 1970 Dodge Challenger. He is described by a local DJ as "The last free spirit on this earth." A lesson that sometimes death is the only ...( read more)way to be set free ultimately.
  • November 7, 2009
    I was actually surprised by the story that this movie had and the way it ended. It was kind of a thinker. but it was also a simple story which really helped. Amazing car chase scenes, which I will watch again just for that alone. Very good acting and I loved seeing Cleavon Little...( read more) again. You don't nearly get too many chances to see his movies that much anymore.
  • October 1, 2009
    Good movie. Better car.
  • August 16, 2009
    Barry Newman, man of honour and cool as a cucumber , aided by blind disk jockey Cleavon Little, speeds through a mesmerizing 15 hour road trip from Colorado to San Francisco, seriously p***ing off the state police along the way. Completely brilliant.
  • August 2, 2009
    Great images and music. Mad characters and deep plot. Classic
  • July 23, 2009
    A cult classic, Vanishing Point is a pre-Smokey and the Bandit road trip film with Barry Newman's benny-fueled driver attempting to get from Denver to San Francisco in one night. Considerably stilted and random, the movie is still gritty and mannish, though the jumble of side sto...( read more)ries like an encounter with a travelling snake handler make the movie feel padded. Fun, though that "surprise ending" isn't exactly a shock or very satisfying.

Comments


  • markleck
    May 2, 2007
    Does anyone know about a poster for this movie that featured a charger sliding sideways, it was orange and yellow I think. I'm trying to find that poster.

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Vanishing Point Trivia


  • What is the name of the 70's cult hit movie that Vigo Morgenson re-made in 1997  Answer »
  • In which 1971 movie did a man named Kowalski drive a 1970 Dodge Challenger into a bulldozer at high speed?  Answer »
  • In the 1971 film Vanishing Point, the hero Kowalski meets some interesting characters. Pick the INCORRECT answer.  Answer »
  • What type of car does Barry Newman drive in Vanishing Point?  Answer »

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