The historic Newtown Theatre will screen Speed is Expensive: Philip Vincent and the Million Dollar Motorcycle on Thursday, September 7 at 7:30 PM. The film will be introduced by producer, distributor, filmmaker and film historian Joe Amodei.
Following the documentary, we'll raffle off a one-of-a-kind, vintage-style painting on canvas of the Vincent motorcycle logo, which was made by local artist Bobby Gilanyi, @therobertthomasproject.
Online tickets are $15 per person or $10 for theatre members. Any remaining tickets will be sold for $20 at the door on the night of the movie.
About the Film
This documentary, narrated by Ewan McGregor, tells one of the most dramatic stories in automotive history – the rise and fall of the legendary Vincent motorcycle.
These fast, revolutionary machines were produced by eccentric engineer Philip Vincent and his small team in war-ravaged England. Their bikes took on the world – and often won – gaining more speed records than any other manufacturer during their brief production. In 1955, the firm claimed the ultimate prize: the outright world speed record of 185mph. Yet, just months later, the company pulled out of the motorcycle market.
The bikes’ creator, Philip Vincent, never designed another vehicle which would go into production. He died in 1979 – the family fortune exhausted pursuing his obsession with speed. Today, high-profile riders such as Brad Pitt, Ryan Reynolds and Jay Leno revere the bikes, and racing models fetch $1 million at auctions and in private sales.
Speed is Expensive follows Vincent’s 26-year-old grandson as he embarks on a journey looking for answers about his forebear’s amazing life and machines. He learns how Vincent and his workforce built such revolutionary motorcycles and the secrets behind the bikes’ amazing performance. He also discovers how the fate of the company turned on a bizarre accident on a wind-swept airfield near the factory in the winter of 1948.
The film has the full support of the Vincent family, giving access for the first time to some 20 hours of footage shot by Vincent himself in the 1930s, 40s and 50s. Now fully restored, this priceless archive chronicles Vincent’s private life and international travel as well as the factory’s ground-breaking entry to the 1935 TT and record-setting visit to the Montlhéry autodrôme near Paris in 1952.
DETAILS
Doors open at 7 PM and the film starts at 7:30 PM.
All tickets are general admission.
Members of the Newtown Theatre, please be prepared to present your membership card at the door.
Please bring your tickets! Electronic or hard copy is fine. We recommend printing them out (or saving them to your phone) as soon as soon as you buy them.
Need help finding your tickets? First, check your junk or spam folder in your inbox. If you don't see your tickets there, try to retrieve them here. If you have tried both of these things and you still don't see your tickets, please contact us for help.
All ticket sales are final. Refunds/exchanges will not be offered for any reason. If you can't attend, you're welcome to give your tickets to someone else. The name on the ticket does not have to match the person using it.