TheWashCycle: Bicycle Movies

With the Oscars airing tonight, I've decided to put together my list of the top ten bicycle movies. Your list may differ. Some movies - like Quicksilver - aren't included, because I haven't seen them.

10. (tie) Better Off Dead and The Man With One Red Shoe. Neither of these is really a movie about bikes or cycling, but both feature bikes prominently (the second in DC). TMWORS is the movie that made me want to learn how to balance on my bike when not moving. Better Off Dead made me want to learn how to make French food.

9. The Straight Story - David Lynch's least David Lynch-like film is this quiet road/travel movie that takes place in Iowa. One scene takes place during RAGBRAI. It's a great shot when he's riding his lawnmower and suddenly there are hundreds of cyclists passing him

8. Life is Beautiful (La Vita e Bella) - It seems the whole first half of the movie takes place on bikes.

7. American Flyers - Tons of bike race scenes, archaic Cold War subplot, cheesy 80's rock and Kevin Costner with a mustache. What more can you ask for?

6. BMX Bandits - The single greatest Australian movie about bank robber-foiling, BMX bike-riding teens ever. Nicole Kidman can win as many Oscars as she likes, but she'll always be Judy - on whom I had a very strong pre-teen crush - from BMX bandits to me. [My own personal innocence ended when I saw her topless in Dead Calm - a pretty good movie even if there are no bikes, no bank robbers and no walkie talkies]

5. Les Triplettes de Belleville - Guy is kidnapped during the Tour de France. The song and the dog are the reasons to see this movie.

4. ET: the Extra-Terrestrial - Climactic Nicole Kidman-less BMX bike chase, ends with iconic shot of bicycle passing, spaceship-like, in front of the moon.

3. Pee Wee's Big Adventure - The story of a rebel and his bike. Still includes best method for proving one is in Texas. Possibly derivative of the next film on the list...

2. The Bicycle Thief (Ladri di bicicletta) - Brilliant, powerful film in which it's easy to hate the bad guys (I hoped after the Cold War that "bicycle thieves" would be the new film heavy. Instead they went with terrorists. Stupid Hollywood).

1. Breaking Away - Way better than Kramer vs. Kramer this should have won the best movie Oscar. If you have not seen this, bike out and rent it right now. Seriously.

So yes, three foreign films, several that only tangentially involve bikes and a heavy dose of late 70s early 80s films. Let the complaining begin...now.

Comments

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Years ago, I was out running on the sidewalk in West Potomac Park one day when a guy on bike rode by on Ohio Drive followed by a camera truck. It was Tom Hanks in the One Red Shoe movie. I caught it on TV to see if I was in the movie. No such luck.
I saw Breaking Away at a preview screening in Berkeley. I loved it. It's still one of my favorite movies of any sort. Great use of Rossini's Barber of Seville,and a terrific script. Buy it. You won't need a refund.

Posted by: John | February 25, 2007 at 03:54 PM

What about "Beijing Bicycle"?

Posted by: Grendel | February 26, 2007 at 10:02 AM

Is it good? I haven't seen it. I'll put it in the queue though.

Posted by: washcycle | February 26, 2007 at 01:02 PM

Good picks, I especially agree with your top 2!

I've been working on a top ten list of bicycle-related beers.

Posted by: freewheel | February 26, 2007 at 01:42 PM

Don't forget the short scene in "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" where the Paul Newman character is doing tricks on an old-fangled bicycle. Great movie, overall, of course.

Posted by: Nancy | February 26, 2007 at 02:53 PM

How about the getaway scene in A Little Romance (another George Roy Hill film) I which Sir Laurence Olivier and Diane Lane escape during town's bike festival.

Posted by: John | February 26, 2007 at 07:57 PM

I would definitely include Quicksilver. Kevin Bacon and track bike stunts. A winning combination.

And everyone needs to see The Hell of the North. Eventhough Merckx did not win the race, it does provide great insight to hard bicycle racing. Narrated by Michael Caine.

Posted by: John | February 27, 2007 at 11:19 AM

Has anyone seen 2 seconds?
Little known but a real jewel.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0158446/

This one is a must.

Posted by: CycloPat | February 27, 2007 at 01:09 PM

On imdb you can search by keyword. Here's the bicycle list

http://www.imdb.com/keyword/bicycle/

Posted by: washcycle | February 27, 2007 at 03:02 PM

Taxi has a pretty good bike clip at the very beginning. Queen latifah jetting all over the streets of new york on bike she all of a sudden gains a little weight once off the bike though and you never see a close up of her on it :)

Posted by: derek | February 27, 2007 at 10:59 PM

Dont forget Rushmore.

"You're telling me he ran over your bicycle?"

"My former bicycle, yes."

"What kind of person would do such a thing?"

"I'm not sure. Men do strange things in war."

Posted by: Eric | March 01, 2007 at 01:31 PM

anyone remember a movie about a man and his boss's obsession with bicycling and it almost ruins one of thier marriages?

Posted by: andrew | October 20, 2007 at 02:19 AM

What about "Flying scotsman" or RAD [that's an all bike classic]. I almost forgot about the failed scape scene in "Public enemy"

Posted by: a2e | April 13, 2008 at 03:35 PM

Flying Scotsman came out after this list (and I haven't seen it yet - its in my queue though)