Episode 390: VANISHING POINT (1971)

Episode 390: VANISHING POINT (1971)

From Trylove by Trylove

July 7, 2026 · 1h 59m

About this episode

The episode discusses the 1971 film VANISHING POINT as a cult classic and its significance as a time capsule of the 1970s.

A mythologized decade, a souped-up Challenger, and the man behind the wheel are running out of time in Richard C. Sarafian’s 1971 amphetamine-fueled road trip movie VANISHING POINT ! With 15 hours to make it from Denver to San Francisco in a new white Dodge Challenger, the former cop/driver/motorcyclist/boyfriend actually takes up a bunch of stops. Each detour exposes him to another unique character or group: A snake-catcher selling vipers to desert Pentecostals; fellow drivers looking to prove their mettle; a dead-end hippie commune; gay hustlers hitching a ride. With the help of police and media attention, Kowalski becomes more than a desperate washed-up has-been on the run — for a public turning the page on the 60s, he becomes nothing less than an American hero. We’re kicking off the Trylon’s big summer program by discussing this cult classic as a time capsule and as an action movie, and figure out how it fits among “end of an era” films. Note: We recorded this episode before the Trylon started showing the standard cut of VANISHING POINT, so we watched the extended cut, which contains a particular scene we think is pretty important to the point of the movie. We’ve noted the…

People in this episode

Host: Trylove

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: ICE, Trylon, sanctuarysupplydepot

Books & works: VANISHING POINT

Places: Denver, San Francisco, Minnesota

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