reiher@ucla-cs.UUCP (08/12/85)
Films can work in a lot of ways. One of the rarest, yet
most effective, is that a film can show you worlds you don't
know, can make you understand the complexities, joys, and prob-
lems of people who are not like yourself. When done well, this
kind of film can have the sort of intense impact only possible in
a revelation. I have no interest in bicycle racing, nor bicycles
in general. Hell, I never even learned to ride a bike. But
"American Flyers" showed me the world of bicycle racers and made
me care about it, and perhaps even understand a little of it.
"American Flyers" is an exhilarating, finely crafted film of in-
terest to all audiences, not just bicycle enthusiasts.
"American Flyers" is about a pair of brothers, David and
Marcus. Though they love each other very much, they have been
separated for years until Marcus, a doctor, returns to take David
off with him. David, it seems, is developing the symptoms of the
aneurism which killed their father, and Marcus must test him to
be sure. After the test, Marcus, a championship cross country
cyclist, whisks his brother off to Colorado for the Hell of the
West bike race, a grueling, mountainous contest that Marcus bare-
ly lost the previous year. This year, Marcus intends that he and
his brother will win it. Along with the brothers are Marcus'
lover and a pretty, slightly spacey hitchhiker picked up along
the way. Opposing them is Marcus' ex-racing partner, nicknamed
"the Cannibal", the rest of the racers, the strenuous, sometimes
dangerous, course, and the ominous threat of the hereditary ill-
ness. Perhaps most importantly, the brothers must find a way to
settle the problems which have torn their family apart.
Steve Tesich's script is excellent, the basis for all else
in the film. Tesich is a cycle enthusiast, responsible for the
only other successful bicycle movie, "Breaking Away". This
script is as good, or better. The characters have the touch of
reality so rare in films. The dialog is well written and funny,
without seeming artificial. Tesich makes good use of the three
part race to build up to three separate climaxes, with three
separate sets of problems. Tesich shows how well a professional
writer can craft a script, and at the same times displays the
difference that passion for the material can make.
John Badham's contribution to the enterprise is not to be
overlooked. His direction is particularly good during the racing
sequences (credit also to editor Frank Morriss), but he does well
throughout. "American Flyers" is nicely paced, and never dull.
Badham's use of scenery is worthy of particular note, as is Don
Peterman's photography of that scenery. Badham and Tesich, in
concert, handle certain vital plot complications very nicely,
too. Badham makes especially good use of small touches, doubt-
less hinted at by Tesich in the script but presented in clever
ways by Badham. Lee Ritenour and Greg Mathieson provide a score
which rises to the challenges of the writing and editing, again
being of special value during the races.
"American Flyers", in terms of performances, belongs, from
the script onward, to the brothers. All the parts are well writ-
ten and well played, but the conflicts come from the interactions
of Marcus (Kevin Costner) and David (David Grant). Costner,
fresh off playing a cocky younger brother in "Silverado", gets to
be the steadier elder brother here, and I like him better in this
role. Costner shows Marcus' intelligence and self-knowledge very
well. While the character is definitely a good man, he has
enough flaws and makes enough mistakes to be real. Grant is
quite believable as a talented young man who doesn't have the
dedication to make the most of his gifts. He slowly picks up his
brother's lessons, becoming more and more able to handle the
problems of his life.
Rae Dawn Chong has the best part she's had since "Quest for
Fire" (not saying much), as Marcus' lover. She handles the part
well. Alexandra Paul, playing the hitchhiker, is blessed with
the most appealing laugh I can remember having seen. That she is
beautiful and can act doesn't hurt, either. John Amos does a
good job with precisely the sort of part black actors want but
almost never get: a man who is intelligent, interesting, and suc-
cessful, and is also definitely black. The film doesn't pretend
that he isn't black (usually the best that black performers can
expect), but treats it as another fact, along with the facts that
he is highly educated, compassionate, funny, and likeable. Jan-
ice Rule, playing the mother, suffers from an underwritten and
slightly unsympathetic part, perhaps the script's only big flaw,
but she does reasonably well, none the less. The rest of the
cast is also fine.
"American Flyers" is a film that is meant to make you feel
good, but it is willing to buy its applause, not cheat for them.
Tesich and Badham give us a real story, well told, and believable
characters who face problems and grow from their experiences.
Badham isn't trying to just use a little flashy editing and rous-
ing music to get our adrenaline pumping. He gives us something
we really should care about, and that is what makes the differ-
ence. Even if you think that you might not be interested in
"American Flyers", I still recommend it, and expect that you will
be glad I did.
--
Peter Reiher
reiher@LOCUS.UCLA.EDU
{...ihnp4,ucbvax,sdcrdcf}!ucla-cs!reiher