"Breaking Away" was a sleeper, a low-budget film with an (then) unfamiliar cast that was released to critical and commercial success. The film has many themes and subplots, but they never get tangled or complex. Some of the drama (especially in the closing race) is a bit contrived, but most of it works, as does most of the comic relief.
"Breaking Away" stars four unemployed teenagers who have just graduated from high school, and are unsure of whether to attend college. Dave (Dennis Christopher) is fascinated with Italy and cycling. Mike (Dennis Quaid) carries resentment against college students from wealthy, out-of-town families. Cyril (Daniel Stern) is clumsy, but gets many good lines. The fourth and less interesting teenager (Jackie Earle Haley) gets angry whenever somebody calls him shorty, which seems to happen regularly.
Dave's father (Paul Dooley), a used-car salesman,
disapproves of Dave's embracing Italian culture.
This generation gap leads to many funny
situations and good lines. Dave's mother (Barbara
Barrie) is blissfully indifferent to Dave's
eccentricities or his father's constant whining.
The score's use of Italian opera and classical
music fits in well with situations between the
family members.
Dave pretends to be a college student from Italy
to win would-be girlfriend Robyn Douglass. When
he tells her the truth, the romance is over,
reinforcing the depiction of the college students
as shallow, preppy snobs. His fantasy of becoming
Italian ends after a bad experience with the
Italian team during a race. His character is
much more humble afterwards.
Mike's desire to show up the college boys leads
to a 500 mile bike race with a "cutter" team
competing against college teams. Mike, Dave,
Cyril and shorty comprise the cutter team,
so-called because their parents were
stone-cutters at one time. The big race has some
genuine suspense, despite contrived drama
concerning injuries and rapid recoveries. The
race announcer also has the annoying habit of
only discussing the situation of the cutter team.
Despite its minor weaknesses, "Breaking Away" has
much going for it: good comic relief, a good
score, a winning cast, a good script, and
well-developed themes of inter-generational and
inter-class conflict.
"Breaking Away" won the Oscar for Best Writing,
and was nominated for Best Picture, Best Director
(Peter Yates), Best Score, and Best Supporting
Actress (Barrie). (77/100)
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