DAREMASTER SPOODLE PRESENTS...
AMERICAN CELLULOID HEROES
(For those about to rock, we salute you.)
I do admit it.  I have no training in HTML code, and my knowledge of page building is marginal at best.  But that won't stop me from saluting the most badass, rough-and-tumble, and most legendary movie heroes that American cinema has to offer. 

This one movie buff's tribute to some of my favorite protagonists from my favorite movies.  There might be some people here you won't expect - some of these heroes will be quite obscure, like the first one you'll see here.

But they DO have all have a few things in common.  They're all badass, and they're all AMERICAN.  So grab some popcorn, sit back, and salute these movie heroes like you would with our troops overseas.  I have too much time on my hands, don't I?...
But you might just learn some valuable life lessons, too...
OUR FIRST INDUCTEE - BARRY NEWMAN AS "KOWALSKI"
FROM "VANISHING POINT" (1971)
"First, last, and only."
-Response when asked if "Kowalski" is his first or last name.
Left: Kowalski (Barry Newman) only smiles as he faces the long arm of the law.  How much more badass can you get?
A professional delivery driver jumps behind the wheel of a 1970 Dodge Challenger, pops a handful of methanphetamines, and bets a seedy drug dealer he can deliver the powerful muscle car from Denver to San Fransisco in less than fifteen hours. And so begins the oddysey of Kowalski, as played by Barry Newman, in "Vanishing Point".

To make it on time, Kowalski has to keep up an average speed of around 80 MPH or more.  So it's unsurprising that the cops are eventually on his tail full-force.  But the more the police try to take him down, the bigger of a legend he becomes.  A local DJ, Super Soul (Cleavon Little) who ails from blindness, calls him "The Last American Hero".  Acting as a "guide", the crippled disc jockey clues Kowalski of police roadblocks ahead as he puts his pedal to the metal!

I like Newman's performance as Kowalski because his character is so stoic and just plain cool.  When he first sees the cops are behind him, Kowalski doesn't panic and just pushes ahead, only staring at the road in front of him.  And when he's barreling towards a police roadblock made with bulldozers, he only smiles in the face of certain incarceration or death.  HA!  Take THAT, road construction workers!
But Kowalski also has a human side.  When the speed wears off, he not only has to face the police, but the demons from his past as well.  He lost everything (as shown through flashbacks) when he failed as a police officer, could never cut it as a race-car driver and motocross daredevil, and lost his girlfriend due to a tragic surfing accident. 

Basically, getting to San Fransisco is his "swan song"; the only thing he has left to do before he finishes his viscious cycle of self destruction.  It's the only thing left that gives his life any meaning.  By the end of the movie, Kowalski realizes he's on a full-blown collision course (literally!) with his own destiny.

"It's home," he says of the city, his near-vacant eyes staring through the impossible challenge that lies ahead.

Soon, Kowalski loses the bet, but not his nerve.  He pushes on, and after facing off with violent hitchhikers, several police roadblocks, and even a State Patrol helicopter, he finally gets to be a legend and goes out in a blaze of glory.  In a melancholy way, he finally does make it "home". 

  
Above: a foreign movie poster of "Vanishing Point" (1971)
That's why for the time being, this enclave is dedicated to Barry Newman's "Kowalski" character.  The "first, last, and only".  "The Last American Hero".  From the cinematic world, Kowalski will continue to inspire us to push ahead no matter what the adversity.  To never be afraid to take a challenge.  To never let anything stand in the way of your destiny.  All life lessons learned from the great MOPAR convention in the sky where this movie character now rests as a true legend.  Kowalski, we salute you!
FIRST INDUCTEE:
Barry Newman as "Kowalski"
in "Vanishing Point" (1971)

-"The Last American Hero"
Left: Kowalski goes out in a blaze of glory and finally makes it "home".  Note: I swiped some of these pictures from vanishingpointcar.com.  My bad...
NEW!  Visit the CELLULOID HEROES HALL OF FAME!
Go to page one or page two of the journal.  Or tell me what YOU think of Kowalski!
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