Picking up Speed

In this chapter, Monte Hellman goes to Seattle for a retrospective of his films, mounted by Scarecrow Video. The store draws up a petition, ultimately with more than 2,000 signatures, to request Universal to put Two-Lane Blacktop out on video, but it is not until several years later, in 1999, that Anchor Bay Entertainment releases the film for home viewing, and the videos sell many copies. New Hollywood, the ear in the late ‘60s to early ‘80s when studios empowered auteur directors, has now gained cachet and is regarded nostalgically, and the reviews for the video are much more favourable than those for the theatrical release years earlier. The film’s timelessness due to its lack of trendy clothes, hairstyles and set dressing, or prominent musical score that would date the film, add to its appeal.