Seen: July 11th, 2007
Format: DVD
Rating: 8
This is yet another driving film watched as a result of seeing Tarantino's Death Proof and reading subsequent reviews with him. The car that women "test drive" in that film is a white 1970 Dodge Challenger. They continually refer to it as "The Vanishing Point Challenger". As inspiration for that film, I figured that it was worth a look.
I was dead right.
Perhaps the most interesting thing about this film, when compared to other road/chase films, is that in this case, the driver is not running from something. The law is after him only because of his reckless pace. He's done nothing wrong, he's just doing what he's meant to do, and the only thing he really has left to do, drive.
Kowalski is not a simple character. We're given glimpses of his past, potential clues to who he is and why he's doing what he's doing. It's a telling trait that he actually stops when someone involved with the chase crashes. Multiple times he stops to check and see that they're all right before blasting off again. At a fundamental level, he seems to be a good guy who's abandoned his quest to do and spread good. He's disillusioned and disenfranchised. He's retreated from the real world and lives only to drive.
There's a lot going on in this film. I have the feeling that it will require several more viewing to really begin to comprehend this film. There are many themes. It's not a black and white film. There is no real good or evil. There seems to be a conflict between those that want consistency, predictability and control, and those who want change, chaos and discovery. That said, I'm not sure where Kowalski fits in that spectrum. While Supersoul helps him out, I don't think Kowalski has any agenda, nor wants to be attached to any.
The driving in the film is fantastic. The chases are creative, but reasonably simple. There are very little special effects here, just skilled drivers pushing great machines across the American West.
Acting is good, but hardly spectacular. Clevon Little is a favorite and he's way over the top here. Barry Newman does a decent job.
You may not like this as much as I did. This is a cult film, and rightly so. There's more here than meets the casual eye though, and it's definitely worth a look.
The Good: Working out your frustration with the world
The Bad: The Man
The Ugly: Nowhere left to turn
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