Movies based on cycling



Originally posted by ruckscd
does anyone know of any movies besides american flyers based on cycling

The Triplettes of Belleville is relatively new and in my opinion the best cycling move I have seen (not that the competition is that great) It is an animated French film with no subtitles (they are not needed even for those of us who's french is limited to menu choices), it is bizarre, witty and occasionally really funny.

I went to see Monster with my wife and it was sold out. I talked her into picking another movie at random and I had no idea what TOB was until the movie started. When she realized that it was animated, she looked at me as if she would kill me were we not surrounded by so many who might stop her. By the end of the film she was overjoyed.

We eventually did see Monster and both agreed that Triplettes of Belleville was much more enjoyable.

The movie is in limited release right now, but you should be able to catch it in major cities.
 
When is someone going to turn "The Yellow Jersey" into a movie. Talk about a great cycling book. What are some others?
 
Might this be similiar to last month's Cycling Movie thread? ;-))

Since it is, I will again give honorable mention to a recent and very teenage film called "Tales of a Teenage Drama Queen", or the likes, which featured the pretty yet funky and cool high school heroin and her best friend going everywhere on their bikes...

I thought if I were a teenybopper (ahem), I would have gone out the next day and a)Tried to find cool clothes like the girl wore and b) Got myself a cool California-style bike like she rode and use it all the time.

But we can't really say it's a movie about bikes, it just shows them in a good light....

S

Originally posted by ruckscd
does anyone know of any movies besides american flyers based on cycling
 
There's one called "2 seconds" about a French female downhiller that loses a big downhill race by 2 seconds and is subsequently booted from her pro team. She then goes on to become a bicycle messenger. It's a little hard to find and it's subtitled but it's pretty good.
 
If you are including books, I would suggest "The Rider" by Tim Krabbe. An enjoyable read about a bike race in France.

Originally posted by mjh
When is someone going to turn "The Yellow Jersey" into a movie. Talk about a great cycling book. What are some others?
 
These are documentries however I strongly recommend both!

The Bicycle Corps; America's Black Army on Wheels

Crash; Road Cycling's Greatest Crashes
 
Originally posted by matt_w
If you are including books, I would suggest "The Rider" by Tim Krabbe. An enjoyable read about a bike race in France.

Read "The Rider" that was good. Got "French Revolutions" on my list too, and another one about Graeme Obre (spell?) not sure of the title.

I've got to beleive there are a lot more cycling books and novels out threre that have yet to be translated to English. Like the movies there dosen't seem to be a big selection for something that has been so popular, at least in Europe, for so long. You can't go a week in the states without someone publishing a book about baseball.
 
I will make a movie about Lance, Jim Carry will play Lance and Arnie will play Jan Ullrich. Im thinking Will smith for Pantani although the lighting may proove an issue... any thoughts? BTW what is the movie that has a Stock brocker in it that becomes a Cycle curiour? had Nelson Vales as a cameo at the start...
 
6 Day Racer (1940's)
A bike messenger wins the big 6-day race. Lots of 6-day footage, starring era comedian, Joe E. Brown, though many sources incorrectly refer to him as Joey Brown.


L’École des Facteurs (1947)
"School for Postmen." An 18 minute French film featuring Jaques Tati as a village postman trying to improve his delivery times. Later remade and extended as, "Jour de Fete."


Laudri de Bicicletta (1948) Bike Right.
More commonly known as, "The Bicycle Thieves" or, “The Bicycle Thief."
The film, one of the first to be made in post-war Italy, tells the story of a mans quest to recover his stolen bicycle which he needs for his job. Ultimately depressing, the film captures perfectly the mood of it’s time.


Jour de Fete (1949) Bike Right.
Jacques Tati plays a village postman who goes through his rounds on his bicycle -- the old-fashioned way but when a travelling carnival comes to town, its proprietors show a film extolling the virtues of modern American mail delivery. Soon the townspeople start to wonder if their postman has fallen behind the times but they soon find out he still has a few tricks up his sleeve. Although released in black & white this film was also filmed in colour using a revolutionary new process. Unfortunately the company responsible for this process went bust before filming was finished.


Um eine Nasenlänge (1949)
Made in Germany, this is an unprentious, typically post-war "cheer-people-up" movie about two six-day racers who are after the same girl. One wins "um eine Nasenlänge" (by a nose length) and, you guess it, marries the beauty. Theo Lingen, the winner, really had a wonderfully lengthy nose. The other rider(Hans Moser) obviously had to lose for moral reasons, he was just up to some extramarital adventure.


A Boy, a Girl and a Bike (1949) Bike Right.
Diana Dors and Anthony Newly co-star.
Set around the hills of Hebden Bridge and focuses around a love triangle between a working class woman, a man from a local cycle club and a middle class motor fanatic who finds love and joys of cycling. A slim Diana Dors amusing bit when she stuffs her face in a tea-shop. Out of the rain on a ride the cyclists take a break for a smoke, ripping stuff. Jimmy Saville appears somewhere in the film as a cycling extra.


Immer die Radfahrer (1958)
“Always these cyclists.” A German film with with Heinz Erhardt, Hans Joachim Kulenkampff and Waltraud Haas, loosely based on Jerome K. Jerome's book, "Three Men on a Bummel," about a cycling trip undertaken by three friends through the Black Forest.


Fietsen Naar de Maan (1963)
“Cycling to the moon.” Dutch film directed by Jef van der Heyden about three brothers; one a talentless painter, another a policeman, the third a bicycle-thieving hobo. Stars; Jeroen Krabbe, Bernard Droog and Lex Goudsmith.


Cyclists in Love(1965)
Hungarian film directed by Péter Bacsó about which I know absolutely nothing. Help please.


Les Bicyclettes De Belsize (1969) Bike Right.
A ‘swinging Sixties’ film set in London (Belsize Park funnily enough). A Hampstead shop owner's way to true love is found through his Moulton bicycle, features a hit song sung by Englebert Humperdink. An instrumental version is downloadable at...
http://members.lycos.co.uk/jhfoster/xg_les_bicyclettes_de_belsize.mid


Hugo's Magic Pump (1970's)
Hugo is the best 6 day racer in Italy, beating everyone, incuding the Mafia's 'fixed' riders. To stop losing gambling monies, the Mafia decides to wear Hugo down by throwing beautiful women at him, hoping to reduce his endurance and stamina.


Ten Speed (1976)
Two advertising executives compete in a 400-mile bicycle race from San Francisco to Malibu.


20 Shades of Pink (1976)
A middle-aged house painter, going through mid-life crisis, takes up cycling for exercise and meets up with an attractive young bike racer. The painter thinks she is interested in him on a personal level when she really only wants to help him prepare for an age-group bike race. Directed by Paul Stanley, with Anne Jackson, Eli Wallach, and Keenan Wynn.


Rush It (1977)
Romance between a 17-year-old girl and a bike messenger in New York. Tom Berenger and Jill Eikenberry star.


Boy & Bicycle (1978?)
Director Ridley Scott’s first short film features his brother, Tony, playing a truant exploring the coast of North Shields on his bicycle.


Breaking Away (1979) Bike Right.
This was Dennis Quaid’s first film but the lead character, Dave Stoller, was played by Dennis Christopher.
The film is basically about a no-hoper with a passion for Italian cyclists.
My two favourite bits in the film are;

When Dave's chasing down a lorry he changes from the large chainring to the small one so he can go faster!

The bit where one of the Italians puts his pump into the Dave's front wheel and he comes off. Best bit. Maybe I'm just not nice.




Un Affaire D'Hommes (1981)
Jean-Louis Trintignant is an architect and joins a bicycle racing group where a detective (Claude Brasseur) is member. He uses this friendship to cover the murder of his wife. The film includes several scenes of the group's weekly race (which also plays a part in the murderer's alibi), and the final confrontation is done using bikes, not guns.


BMX Bandits (1983)
Australian film about a group of rad BMX-riding teens who get involved in a madcap crime caper. Stars Nicole Kidman.


Bicycle Symphony (1983) Shown at Spokesfest 2002 (happy now Roger?)
A nine minute short film. A conductor chains his bicycle outside the hall where he's conducting a symphony. His bicycle gets stolen , dragged along by a lorry and used by a wide variety of people - all in time to the music.


Pee-Wee's Big Adventure (1985) Bike Right.
Pee-Wee Herman at the Cement Menagerie, Branxton, Northumberland.
Paul Reubens plays the disturbingly child-like Pee-Wee Herman on his quest, through a mythical working-class America filled with truck stops, waitresses and runaway convicts, to recover his beloved stolen bicycle. Hang on! Isn't that the plot of, "The Bicycle Thieves,"? 'Funny' film much appreciated by cycling photographer Jason Patient.
Voted BEST CYCLING FILM OF ALL TIME by, "Byke Kultuur Never," readers.


American Flyers (1985) Bike Right.
Brothers Marcus and David not trying too hard. Love the aerodynamic hat.
Sports physician Marcus (Kevin Costner) persuades his unstable brother David (David Grant) to come with him and train for a bicycle race across the Rocky Mountains. He doesn't tell him that he has a cerebral tumor. While David powerfully heads for the victory, Marcus has to realize that the contest is now beyond his capabilities.
Cameo appearance by lardy Eddy Merckx.


Quicksilver (1986)
Kevin Bacon plays a yuppie who loses his job and becomes a cycle-courier to pay the bills.


Rad (1986)
Teenage drama revolving around BMX racing and such dilemmas as: can the good guys beat the bad guys, who's got the fastest bike, must you cheat to win, and should our hero miss his SAT tests to compete in "the big race".


Off the Mark (1987)
A young athlete suffering from a childhood affliction that causes spasms in his legs faces the ultimate challenge, he must overcome his handicap and defeat a talented woman athlete and a Russian student in a triathlon competition.


Bicycleran (1987)
Also known as, "The Cyclist," and, "La Cycliste". The wife of Nasim, an Afghan immigrant in Iran, is gravely ill. He needs money to pay for her care, but his day labor digging wells does not pay enough. A friend connects Nasim to a two-bit promoter who sells tickets to watch Nasim ride a bicycle continuously for a week. The promoter brings in sick and aged spectators, haranguing them to find hope in Nasim's strength. Aided by his son, who feeds him as he rides, Nasim grinds out the days and shivering nights. Local officials believe this may be a plot and Nasim may be a spy; they try to sabotage him as do those who bet he won't finish the week. Will desperation alone get Nasim the money?


Red's Dream (1987)
A short animated film by Pixar, the ‘Finding Nemo’ people. A unicycle named Red lies forgotten in the clearance corner of a cycle store dreaming of a better life in the circus.
Website at… http://www.pixar.com/shorts/rd/theater/short_240.html


The Icicle Thief (1989)
An Italian satire of the kind of neorealism of such films as The Bicycle Thief, which it spoofs but it also makes fun of the TV-centered society in Italy, as families gather around their TVs to watch Nichetti's takeoff on The Bicycle Thief, complete with hilarious commercial breaks.


Le Tour de France (1989)
A French production directed by Jean-Marie Leblanc, tells a story of professional cycle racing with Greg LeMond as the gutsy American underdog determined to win after personal tragedy. Lauren Fignon plays the arrogant Frenchman who Greg must defeat.


Beasts of Burden (1993)
It depicts the hard side of the bike messenger's life and society. It may be realism, with emphasis on the unhappy side, but it certainly makes you want to avoid that life. It shows drugs and alcohol, insufficient money, an alienated approach to living, a very hard job.


The Messenger (1994)
Filmed in New York. A young black couple trying to make it from day-to-day; the husband just got out of jail, the wife's pregnant, and he needs a job, quick. He lands one as a bike messenger but on his first day his bike gets stolen and he and his wife hit the streets of the city trying desperately to find it


Cyclo (1995)
Also known as, "Xich Lo." Made in Vietnam, directed by Tran Ahn Hung.
Le Van Hoc plays a Cyclo or bicycle rickshaw driver trying to make a living in Ho Chi Minh City. When his vehicle is stolen he's forced to commit ever desperate criminal acts by his sadistic female boss in order to replace it.


Auch ohne Frau ungluecklich (1996)
A German film, "Unhappy Without A Woman Too," is the story of Jonas,26, still lives at home, doesn't watch any horror films and is afraid of snakes. He is a careful driver, doesn't take any drugs and is pampered by his mother. Jonas is happy until his girlfriend leaves him because she thinks he is the biggest coward of all time - and she's right. As Jonas is afraid of making a fool of himself again with a woman, his friends' attempts to set him up with a new partner are all miserable failures. He is all alone until he meets Lena; she is a cycle courier, good-looking and an eco-terrorist. He falls in love with her on the spot, but Lena has a »softie trauma« and will only sleep with him when he can prove to her that he isn't a wimp. Jonas follows her into another world, helps her with her campaigns, fights a jealous rival and fights a horde of ****** off skinheads. At the end he has learnt two things. Firstly, what real fear is, and, secondly, how hard it is to tell his mother that he'd like to move out.


2 Seconds (1998)
When a two-second hesitation costs a Quebec cyclist her race and her pro career, she is obliged to re-invent herself as a bike courier.


The Unknown Cyclist (1999?)
This was made for US cable movie channel STARZ. A person dies of AIDS and homophobic relatives do a bicycle ride to raise money for a cure.


Le Vélo de Ghislain Lambert (2000)
Belgian comedy set in the 70’s. Ghislain Lambert, played by Benoit Poelvoorde, born the same day as Eddy Merckx, is a Belgian cyclist whose ambition is to become a champion but without much success. One hilarious scene, involving the use of amphetamines, features two cyclists in one small toilet trying to inject each other in the buttocks whilst a woman waits ouside listening and misconstrues what’s going on. One cyclist gets a double dose by mistake, and amazes everyone in a criterium by leading front the front all day ( he a lowly domestique) until he crashes.Antoine de Caunes narrates.


The Day I Became a Woman (2000)
"Roozi Khe Zan Shodam," is an Iranian film directed by Marziyeh Meshkini. Several tales about the hardships faced by Iranian women. The title story is about a girl who, on her ninth birthday is told that she is now a woman and can no longer associate with her male friends. In the cycling episode, Ahoo is competing in a cycle race with other women all clad in traditional black chadors with her husband chasing after her, as his property, on horseback to pull her out of the race.


Father and Daughter (2000)
A Dutch animated short film, by Michael Dudok de Wit, about the life of a girl after her father leaves her and she grows up. Wonderfully emotive images of the expansive Dutch countryside she cycles through.


Beijing Bicycle (2002)
"Shiqi Sui De Dan Che."
Guei works as a cycle courier who has his loaned bicycle stolen shortly before he finishes paying for it. By chance Guei spots schoolboy Jian riding the bike and attempts to get it back. Plot of, "The Bicycle Thieves," ? Unfortunately Jian and his gang of bully boys have other idea ideas. Exciting, eh!
The film was directed by **** Xiaoshuai and stars Cui Lin as Guei and Li Bin as Jian.
The film shows the rapid changes of urban life in communist China, illustrating the toughness of capitalism and the perseverence you need if you want to make it. It also incorporates a love story with a girl who is a maid but who also knows how to keep up appearances to convey a fake image. A film that makes clear that China is going to adapt our Western economic system.


Cyclomania (2002) Shown at Spokesfest 2002. Happy now Roger?
A film from Finland which tells the story about three bicycle couriers -- K, Eetu and Oona -- which takes place during a couple of weeks in the summerly Helsinki. The main character K is a competetive bicyclist possessed by his own ambitions, who has to proritize ex tempore between friendship, love and his crazy dreams. Finnish dialogue with English sub-titles.


Courier (?)
30 minutes. Luke is an artist and cycle courier who becomes involved in a world of murder. After unwittingly delivering a package implicating him in a murder his art and life merge in a crescendo of paint & blood.


Geel Trui vir 'n Wenner (?)
Language is Afrikaans. About two brothers vieing for the same girl. ends with the rapport tour. The translation of the title in English is, "Yellow Jersey for a Winner."


Belleville Rendezvous (2003)
Also known as, ”Triplets de Belleville,” and, “The Belleville Triplets.”
A French animated feature length adult movie, by Sylvain Chomet, with a Tour de France cyclist as its central character.
Set in the 1950's, a boy brought up by his Granny who discovers his love for cycling and encourages and trains him. The plot is a lot more complicated, and funny, than this suggests with off the back riders swept up by a rogue broom wagon, shipped to America and forced to ride for gambling mafia or be shot, with a terrific jazz score inspired by Django Rhienhardt. Our cyclist has to rely on his granny, aided by a troupe of dancers, to rescue him.
Winner of the BBC Four World Cinema Award 2004.
Nominated for two Oscars; best animated feature and best song.
Currently has a website at... http://www.bellevillerendezvous.com
 
Originally posted by Fixey
I will make a movie about Lance, Jim Carry will play Lance and Arnie will play Jan Ullrich. Im thinking Will smith for Pantani although the lighting may proove an issue... any thoughts? BTW what is the movie that has a Stock brocker in it that becomes a Cycle curiour? had Nelson Vales as a cameo at the start...

Quicksilver is the movie about the broker turned messenger.

I like some of your casting choices for your Lance movie, but with action masters Arnold and Will as foils to our hero, Lance, I believe that The Rock would be a better choice than Jim Carry. I like Mr. Miyagi (Pat Morita) for Chris Carmichael and Tom Arnold as Bob Roll.

I am not sure who should direct the movie with a cast like this, but I expect they should be very experienced with pyrotechnics for the final fight scene on the Champs-Elysees.
 
Seamus -

Well done!

Just looked for Le Vélo de Ghislan Lambert on amazon.fr. Will order it and report. BTW, anyone spot the deliberate mistake on the cover of the above DVD?
 
So if the piccie was flip-flopped how come the writing on his shirt is the right way around?

Shirt inside out perhaps?
 
Seamus --

My thoughts exactly!

The shirt is definitely on the right way round...They probably reversed the lettering in Photoshop. So maybe the bike is meant to be like that and it's some sort of comment on the state of cycling (after all it's "Le Vélo de...")

Or maybe I'm just thinking about it too hard...