CULT MOVIE OF THE DAY(26-12-2009).TWO LANE BLACKTOP(1971)

Suffering from tremendous hype when released,"Blacktop" disappointed critics who were expecting an offbeat,but still mainstream,masterpiece along the lines of "Easy Rider".It soon sank without a trace,but not before gathering a small band of enthusiastic fans who still hail it as the road movie that puts all others to shade.It deals with a cross-country race between an alienated driver with his silent machine(Dennis Wilson,drummer for the Beach Boys)and GTO,a character of the road,that gets disrupted by The Girl,a hippie hitchiker.The winner of the race is supposed to get the other's car but the race is about more than winning,in this existential study of life on the road and what it means to the men,the woman and society in large.Hellman makes extraordinary use of his camera,with mesmerising flashing by,and experimental elements like the melting celluloid at the end.
Director:Monte Hellman Cast:James Taylor,Warren Oates

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