Film Review: The Bikeriders

 

Sexuality/Nudity Mature

Violence Mature

Vulgarity Mature

Anti-Catholic Philosophy Mature

I have never understood motorcycle culture.  It is just something outside of my interst or experience.  So automatically, there is a barrier to me engaging in a movie like The Bikeriders.  

But the movie failed to show me why I should be interested.

The Bikeriders is the story of a motorcycle club in the 1960's.  It is told primarily from the point of view of Kathy (Jodie Comer) a young divorcee who falls in love with biker rebel Benny (Austin Butler), who is the coolest guy in the Vandals Motorcycle Club, led by Johnny (Tom Hardy).  The club is made up of various misfits of society that find a manly community in each other.  But as the club grows, they begin to devolve into criminality while the original members begin to question their place in the changing world.

The main reason for this movie's failure is that it could not convey to me why anyone would want to be a part of the Vandals.  The initial appeal seems to be the appeal of riding.  There is one small scene where Benny leads the police on a chase and revels in the open road.  But this moment is fleeting and it does not translate to the other members.  Instead, it all seems like a waste of time.

Another appeal that could have been shown is the sense of importance.  One of the narrative devices is that the characters are being interviewed by photographer Danny (Michael Faist).  As a restult, we have the members of the club tell us why they want to be members of the club.  But this has little impact on the emotional connection we have for the club.  What writer/director Jeff Nichols needed to do was to show us these men in their normal lives and in doing so show how they feel isolated, unappreciated, and weak.  And then when we see them in the club, they have fellowship, esteem, and strength.  If we saw that, we would know why the club was so important.  But because of this failure, the entire endevor feels like a waste of time.

The constant problem is the Nichols ignores the principle "show, don't tell."  Johnny wants to be just like Benny.  How do we know this?  Because we have a scene where Johnny decides to behave in a way that mirrors something he saw Benny do?  No.  Because Kathy says, "Johnny wanted to be just like Benny."  The movie is filled with these moments where it tells you what the characters are thinking or feeling instead of just showing us.

The story of these bikers is an exploration of their search for masculinity.  That's why it so baffling that the main way we see the story is through Kathy's eyes.  Perhaps the idea is that she is experiencing this macho culture from the outside.  But she always on the outside.  If the story was told from the point of view of someone joining the club, that would be more intersting.  It also doesn't help that Comer narrates the story with the tone of a busybody church lady spreading the latest gossip about the new parishoners.  

One of the central conflicts is Johnny's desire to have Benny take over the club, but Benny resisting any kind of responsibility.  Again, the drama is lost because the stakes do not seem valueable.  During these dialogues, all I could here was Johnny Cash singing, "You can have it all... my empire of dirt."

The only thing that keeps this from being a total disaster are Butler and Hardy.  Butler gives a traditional dangerous rebel.  He is (as they sang in Grease 2) a cool rider.  He smolders with sufficient intensity and charisma that you can understand why women want to be with him and men want to be him.  Hardy makes some incredibly unusual choices in voice and facial expression with Johnny, but somehow it works.  His tough-guy exterior is his armor.  And you can see him slowly lose control of his little kingdom as he begins to drown in the madness of the world.

This is a remidner that humanity is community.  Part of human nature is that we need to be connected to each other.  We will either find a fulfilling community or a toxic one.  But we can never be truly alone.  And that company will shape who we become.

I just wish the movie was up to the task of telling that story.