The Maximum Trip At Maximum Speed On Blu-Ray

Race back to the 1970’s when Vanishing Point is released on Blu-ray. This car chase classic will speed into stores courtesy of Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment February 24th.

Just because its 2008, doesn’t mean you still can’t enjoy Kowalski’s (Barry Newman) famous attempt to drive from Denver to San Francisco at lightening speed in a 1970 Dodge Challenger. The troubled ex-marine takes on a bet to deliver the vehicle in less than 15 hours. Kowalski doesn’t even make it out of Colorado before encountering his first set of cops. What starts as a simple case of driving over the speed limit turns into a gigantic manhunt. The police aren’t the only ones getting excited about this renegade’s adventure. Thanks to a radio DJ called Super Soul (Cleavon Little), Kowalski gets additional attention from bikers and hippies, all vying for his success. Every second that passes means this “last American hero” is getting closer and closer to deadline and the cops are getting more and more anxious to set their final roadblock.

Vanishing Point can be labeled as a cult classic, which means the diehard fans are the most likely to be the ones adding this flick to their Blu-ray library. There is a nice handful of extras to keep you busy, even if you’ve seen the movie a number of times. Featurettes include a making-of segment and one specifically about the Dodge Challenger. There’s also an interactive Challenger extra, a trivia game, commentary with director Richard Sarafian, additional footage from the UK version and TV spots. The one piece of bonus material that’s a little out of the ordinary is called “Super Soul Me.” It takes you behind the scenes, not with the actors, but with the musicians that made the film’s soundtrack. Artists a part of this collaboration include Leslie West, Kim Carnes, Laura Creamer, Jimmy Walker, Delaney Bramlett and DJ Jim Ladd.

I’m sure the $34.99 will be well worth it to the fan base the film has already established, but I will not be buckling up for this one.