Janusz Kaminski presents Vanishing Point

Thursday, February 7, 2013 | 7:30 pm
Film Independent at LACMA
1971/color/99 min.
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Scr: Guillermo Cabrera Infante; dir: Richard C. Sarafian; w/ Barry Newman, Cleavon Little, Dean Jagger, Victoria Medlin.

Laconic and nervy, director Richard C. Sarafian's 1971 road drama may be the most philosophical action film ever made. Guillermo Cabrera Infante's script is wry, spare, and heightened by strategic use of flashback. Barry Newman stars as Kowalski, whose job to deliver a gleaming white Dodge Challenger is subsumed by his own personal demands and a desire for freedom. Sarafian was wise enough to surround Newman with a likable, quicksilver group of singers and improv comedy performers; Cleavon Little tops them all as the blind DJ who comments on Kowalski's quest and keeps the film's throaty roar humid and alive. Though a box-office failure upon its original release, Vanishing Point gained a vast and impressive group of admirers over the decades, from Steven Spielberg and Quentin Tarantino (who uses the same model Dodge in Deathproof) to a young man who would fall in love with the film and leave Poland to find freedom himself, making movies along the way—Oscar-winning cinematographer Janusz Kaminski. Kaminski will participate in a Q&A after the screening.          

Bing Theater | Frequently Asked Questions | Includes a conversation with Janusz Kaminski.

$7 for LACMA members, students with valid ID, and seniors (62+); $10 for the general public | Members of these four groups can purchase tickets starting at 5 pm on January 31 | Tickets: 323 857-6010 or purchase online

$5 for Film Independent, LACMA Film Club, and The New York Times Film Club | Members of these three groups can purchase tickets starting at 5 pm on January 24 | Tickets: 323 857-6010 or purchase online

Ticketholders: Tickets can be picked up at the Hammer Building Ticket Office at LACMA during museum hours, any time after purchase or on the night of the screening any time before the start of the event. Ticketed guests must be in the theater by the published start time of the event, otherwise your seat(s) may be released and distributed to the standby line.