Vanishing Point (1971)

Director:

Richard C. Sarafian

Writers:

Malcolm Hart (story)
G. Cabrera Infante (screenplay)
(more)

Release Date:

13 March 1971 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama

Tagline:

It's the maximum trip... at maximum speed.

Plot:

Kowalski, the hero of the story, works for a car delivery service. He takes delivery of a 1970 Dodge Challenger to take from Colorado to Frisco...

Plot Keywords:

Police Chase | Motocross | Robbery | Disc Jockey | Suicide

Cast

Barry Newman	...	Kowalski
Cleavon Little	...	Super Soul
Dean Jagger	...	Prospector
Victoria Medlin	...	Vera Thornton
Paul Koslo	...	Charlie, Young Nevada Patrolman
Robert Donner	...	Collins, Older Nevada Patrolman (as Bob Donner)
Timothy Scott	...	Angel
Gilda Texter	...	Nude Motorcycle Rider
Anthony James	...	Male Hitchhiker #1, in Front Seat
Arthur Malet	...	Male Hitchhiker #2, in Back Seat
Karl Swenson	...	Sandy McKees, Argo's Attendant
Severn Darden	...	Rev. J. 'Jessie' Hovah
Delaney Bramlett	...	J. Hovah's Singer (as Delaney & Bonnie and Friends)
Bonnie Bramlett	...	J. Hovah's Singer (as Delaney & Bonnie and Friends)
Lee Weaver	...	Jake, Kowalski's Denver Connection
Cherie Foster	...	Girl #1
Valerie Kairys	...	Girl #2
Tom Reese	...	Sheriff
Owen Bush	...	Communications Officer
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Charlotte Rampling	...	Hitchhiker (scenes deleted)
John Amos	...	Super Soul's Engineer (uncredited)
Rita Coolidge	...	J. Hovah's Singer (uncredited)
David Gates	...	Piano Player at Revival Meeting (uncredited)

Directed by
Richard C. Sarafian

Writing credits
Malcolm Hart		(story outline)
G. Cabrera Infante		(screenplay) (as Guillermo Cain)
Barry Hall		uncredited

Produced by
Michael Pearson	....	executive producer
Norman Spencer	....	producer

Cinematography by
John A. Alonzo		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Stefan Arnsten

Art Direction by
Dennis J. Parrish		(uncredited)

Set Decoration by
Glen Daniels
Jerry Wunderlich

Makeup Department
Del Acevedo	....	makeup artist

Production Management
Francisco Day	....	unit production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Dick Glassman	....	assistant director (as Richard Glassman)

Art Department
Dennis J. Parrish	....	property master (as Dennis Parrish)

Sound Department
William Edmondson	....	sound mixer (as Bill Edmondson)
Tom Edwards	....	sound mixer
Theodore Soderberg	....	sound mixer

Stunts
Louie Elias	....	stunt coordinator (as Louis Elias)
Carey Loftin	....	stunt coordinator (as Cary Loftin)
Max Balchowsky	....	stunts (uncredited)
Joe Brooks	....	stunts (uncredited)
James W. Gavin	....	aerial stunts (uncredited)
Bill Hickman	....	stunts (uncredited)
Carey Loftin	....	stunt double (uncredited)
Carey Loftin	....	stunt driver (uncredited)

Casting Department
Michael McLean	....	casting supervisor

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Ed Wynigear	....	wardrobe master

Music Department
Jimmy Bowen	....	music producer
Jimmy Bowen	....	music supervisor
Pete Carpenter	....	musical associate
Tom Thacker	....	musical associate

Other crew
Michael McLean	....	associate: Mr. Sarafian
Iain Quarrier	....	creative associate
Maurice Unger	....	production administrator

Production Companies

• Cupid Productions
• Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation

Distributors

• Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation (1971) (USA) (theatrical)
• CBS Television (1977) (USA) (TV) (original airing)
• 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• CBS/Fox (USA) (VHS)
• CBS/Fox (USA) (laserdisc)

MPAA:

Rated R for sensuality/nudity and drug content. (1998 re-rating)

Runtime:

98 min | Spain:87 min (TV version) | UK:106 min (UK version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (DeLuxe)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Westrex Recording System)

Certification:

Iceland:L | France:U | USA:R (re-rating) (1998) | Australia:M | Canada:14A | Finland:K-16 | Norway:16 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:GP (original rating) | West Germany:18

Filming Locations:

Austin, Nevada, USA

Company:

Cupid Productions

Trivia:

The color white was chosen for the car simply so the car would stand out against the background scenery in the movie. White was not symbolic in any way. The director says this in the DVD commentary.

Goofs:

Continuity: A few seconds while driving in the desert are reversed showing Kowalski driving on the right side.

Quotes:

Charlie: [after listening to Super Soul's broadcast] Did you hear that?
Collins: Yeah.
Charlie: Where the hell he get so much information?
Collins: Same place as you do, Charley.
Charlie: You mean from our own frequency?
Collins: That's right.
Charlie: How long's he been at it?
Collins: Year 'n a half, maybe two.
Charlie: Hell, that's against the law!
Collins: So's carryin' a transistor on duty.
[...]

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Death Proof (2007)

Soundtrack:

Nobody Knows

Look back on your life torn asunder...then throw it into third gear and floor it.

Barry Newman is "Kowalski", an enigmatic figure who has tried everything in his life from stock car racing to the military, and failed at every one of his endeavors. Working as an auto delivery man, he gets an order to transport a 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T to San Francisco, and makes a bet with a few friends that it can be done in an impossibly short time. After loading up on "ups" and throttling the car westward, he is soon pursued vigorously by the police and embraced by the public as something of a hero. During a time when national speed limits were all controversy, this film provides a compelling argument against them: A fast car in the hands of a capable driver is not dangerous. Even the police, so caught up in their own system, don't realize that they are the only ones causing accidents and endangering the public while blindly trying to keep up with and capture Kowalski.

While the film sounds at first to be a simple action film, it's really much more than that. Kowalksi's past is revealed little by little through flashbacks, making the film something of a character study. Kowalski's trip becomes a road trip of existentialism as he runs across various strange characters: Solitary hippies, gay bandits, a boogie-woogie snake handling Christian cult, and the blind soul station DJ (brilliantly played by Cleavon Little) who is attempting to guide him on his journey from within the car's radio.

Topping it off is a great soundtrack, breathtaking cinematography and direction, and automotive action that has seen no equal. This film manages to be both compelling and exciting. Just watch it already.

10/10