American Flyers

OK. not a cinematographic masterpiece, but there are some great nuggets from a lost period in American bike racing. The film came out in 1985, the year that Greg Lemond broke into the Tour de France and beat his teammate Bernard Hinaut, though The Badger got to win it (Lemond won his first the following year). And the Coors Classic was the best racing outside of Europe, with Team 7-eleven breaking into the continent. The Muzzin character with 7-11 was modeled directly after Alexi Grewal, who won gold in the 1984 Olympics and won the Bob Cook Memorial race up Mount Evans twice. He also had emotional/anger problems. The Soviet team was brought in after the cold war tensions and the Olympics, though they should have been a French team to make it accurate.

You might even see a banner in the first stage south of Boulder with a Denver TV station logo and "Coors Classic" that didn't quite get hidden.

A mushy movie, predictable turns, geographic mistakes in the footage, and some weak acting, but a good movie if you are in, or love, American road racing--and remember how it started in the Rockies.

Don't write this off just because it's a bicycle movie; it's more than that. If you happen to like bike riding, this is an absolute must-see. But even if you can't even function without training wheels (like yours truly) there's still a lot to love about American Flyers.

If you liked Breaking Away (a bike riding movie from 1979), you'll be happy to hear American Flyers was written by the same person, Steve Tesich. In American Flyers, two brothers enter into a bike race, and during the training and the race itself, tensions run high! Of course, there's romance along the way, and some brother banter that leaves audiences conflicted about whose side to take.

John Badham's gentle directorial touch is seen in this film; the actors work off each other with a wonderful rapport and have a strong sense of their characters, part of Badham's signature in his directing. He's also known for creating interesting and intense action scenes. Watch the bicycle race scenes to see what I mean!

This movie is just a great film. It's about love, life, and family. It's also about being the best you can be. The two brothers in this movie, one who is very sick and one who is racing in a cycling race in the Rocky Mountains, and he has his brother in his heart the whole time. Both are cyclists, but Kevin Costner's character cannot race. The other character, who I don't think I have seen in any other movies, is just awesome, and the love for his brother made me cry. I remember this movie from the 80's when I was just a little kid, and I watch it everytime I see it on one of the premium movie channels. Rae Dawn Chong is also in the movie as Costner's wife or girlfriend, I forget which one, but she also gives a great performance here. The movie is mainly about racing in Colorado, but it's also a touching story about commitment to those you love, and it's a movie I will never forget.

Not a frequently shown film, but a highly recommended one. A good chance to see Kevin Costner early in his career; you see the spark that made him into one of Hollywood's most prominent actors. Also an early chance to see an odd type of performance from Jennifer Grey, before "Dirty Dancing." You don't have to be a cycling fan to enjoy this poignant movie.

David (David Marshall Grant) is ecstatic when his brother Marcus Sommers (Kevin Costner) visits home in St. Louis. Marcus is concerned about David failing at school. Their father died from a cerebral aneurysm and their mother is concerned that David also has it. There is family friction. Marcus works in sports medicine and convinces David to join him at Wisconsin State University. Marcus, his girlfriend Sarah (Rae Dawn Chong), and Leslie (Jennifer Grey) work for Dr. Conrad (John Amos). David gets a clean bill of health but he mistakenly assumes that he has the aneurysm. David, Marcus, and Sarah travel to Colorado for the bicycle race Hell of the West. Along the way, David picks up ex-hippie hitchhiker Becky (Alexandra Paul). Their biggest opponent is Sarah's ex Muzzin, friend Jerome, and the Soviet Belov.

There are a couple of interesting new actors. Costner is pre-success and Jennifer Grey is pre-Dirty Dancing. The brotherly conflicted relationship is great. This has some family drama but the second half is where the bicycling sports fun exists. It explains the strategy rather well and the racing is done with drama. The racing looks great and the vista is beautiful. This is a solid bicycling movie.