On the Edge

An over-the-hill distance runner and lapsed left-wing radical (Bruce Dern) begins training for the infamous 'Dipsea' marathon: a brutal contest run between San Francisco Bay and Stinson Beach over the 2600 foot summit of Mount Tamalpais. Rob Nilsson's modestly budgeted (but quite accomplished) drama may, in outline, resemble a Marin County 'Rocky' rip-off, but the scenario hides more than one surprise, including a novel twist to the all-too familiar against-the-odds formula: Dern's political beliefs get him banned from professional competition, and after entering the race illegally he has to contend not only with the physical demands of the course itself, but also with irate officials trying to pull him bodily off the track throughout its length. Long distance running can hardly be called an exciting spectator sport, so it's all the more surprising to find so much tension generated during the climactic challenge, for the most part by a combination of deft editing and ominous music cues. But the effect is nearly spoiled by a discordant 'Chariots of Fire' resolution, in which Nilsson's already obvious political sentiments are pulled too far into the foreground.

This is a movie by runners, for runners. The director, one of the producers, and many of the actors in the movie are real runners, including many real winners of the Dipsea race that the film is based on. There's something about distance running that those of us that do it understand, and those that don't do it don't understand. This movie does a great job of showing the spiritual side of running, and the magic of pursuing goals. If you run, and know what I'm talking about, WATCH THIS FILM...It's an amazing, artistic, brilliant depiction of what it really means to be a runner.

Jordan Stone

Scenery great. Other locations really interesting to. The father's yard. The makeshift gym in the old riverboat hulk. Bruce Dern is committed. You can tell his genuine passion for running. Pam Grier looks great as the love interest. As for the rest. Fun that other competitors protect the interloper but rationale not really explained. A generally muddled plot with elements that peter out in slightly hackneyed dialogue. The father who never appreciated him coming around to a good luck son. The love interest wandering out on his life at the aquarium. The draw at the end is a bit corny too but why not I suppose.

I found a restored copy of this film on VHS over at the local Salvation Army Thrift store in Hagerstown, Maryland which I bought for a dollar. The restored portion was the Pam Grier nude scenes with Bruce Dern. I had seen the cut version of this film before and enjoyed it. Pam's bit was a bonus. This is a nice film on running and the Dipsea Race in and around Mill Valley and Mt. Tamalpais in Marin County near San Francisco. It is about a runner who is now in his 40's and had been banned from running competitively because he tried to organize the runners of his day to admit using cashed in airline tickets to support their being able to run in the sport and compete . . . his father Flash was a union organizer and bit of a leftist as was his mother. The film revolves around his family relationship with his widower father and his preparation and running of the race despite not being able to "officially" be entered to run. Nice to see Bruce Dern playing something besides a bad guy or fool. This is a good film to watch as was his Silent Running.

Roy Kissin, who co-wrote the screenplay, competed in the Dipsea, if memory serves. He was an outstanding runner from Stanford, I believe. Other repeat race winners featured in the film were Darryl Beardall, who was a major character in the film, Sal Vasquez, who won the race seven times, and Russ Kiernan. Jenny Biddulph was also in it, in her early teens at the time. She is know better for being the co-creator, with her late husband, Brian Maxwell, of energy bars, namely Power Bars. The race is handicapped by age and sex, and she did very well, given a head start because of her young age and gender. Bill Bailey was a real radical activist from the '30s, as was Walter Stack, who was a longshoreman during the 1934 General Strike in San Francisco, and in his seventies, the president/impresario of the renowned Dolphin South End Running Club. The race has been held annually for over a century.