Review of Two-Lane Blacktop (1971) by Ryan S — 24 Feb 2008

Two Lane Blacktop is more than a "car movie." It's an existential study of the connections people make when they are on the road. This is the real story going on in the film, even though a synopsis would state that it's a movie about a car race across the country.

These connections are made between a pair of guys who drive a '55 Chevy, a perpetual lier who wants someone to be interested in him that drives a GTO, and the female hitch hiker that joins both cars on the road.

There is plenty of race footage, but it is always shown in a minimalist, anti-Hollywood sort of style. In the end, all of the men in the film realize that the ultimate outcome of their race does not matter because they have lost what they were truly searching for.

This is summed up in the final minutes of the film, where we see that all the men may have in their lives is the endless driving that has gotten them where they already are.