I have never ridden a motorcycle in my life. I have very little in common and know next to nothing about the bikers gang culture (or counter-culture). That is why I consider that the performance of ‘The Bikeriders‘, produced in 2023 and directed by Jeff Nichols is even more outstanding. The film managed to captivate me, introduced me to a world that was almost completely unknown to me, and has shown me another facet of America in the second half of the 60s and early 70s.
Danny Lyon, whose book is at the source of the screenplay written by Nichols, is known primarily as a photographer. In the 1960s he joined a biker gang in Texas, lived and hit the road with them, and the result was a collection of photographs also published in volume in 1968, with a title similar to that of the film. The end credits are accompanied by photos from that book, and we can immediately recognize the source of inspiration for the cinematography of the film we watched. The script is built as a series of interviews, taken several years apart by the documentary maker, of Kathy, wife of Benny, one of the most active and violent members of the group. Flashbacks triggered by the woman’s accounts trace the history of the group, from the first meeting with the gang members, the beginnings of the association, the transformation of the group from an association that deals with a hobby like any other into a way of life that expresses the desire for freedom, the hardships of adaptation to the social framework imposed by the surrounding world, the growth and gradual transformation of the gang into a violent group that gets closer to the world of crime. We also know other members of the group, first of all Johnny, kind of a responsible adult, the leader and the one who until a certain moment had managed to control his evolution. However, the conflict with the surrounding world was inevitable.
‘The Bikeriders‘ exposes another piece of the puzzle in the portrait of the generation that invented the hippie movement, rock music and the alternative world of drugs, faced the Vietnam War and started the largest youth protest movements in the history of America. The way these young people have chosen to channel their anger and protest can seem directionless and purposeless. It is the result of the social structures in the area of the United States where they lived, the influence of Hollywood (the first model of motorcyclists is a hero from a movie with Marlon Brando) and the fetishization of vehicles, another phenomenon originating in America (but also exported to other countries of the world). The overall portrait seemed truthful and diverse. Jeff Nichols was able to create nuanced portrayals of the three main characters and was aided by three actors whom I found all excellent. Tom Hardy plays Johnny, the leader of the gang, who tries to preserve the original core and purpose and limit an expansion of the phenomenon that he feels will lead to self-destruction. His failure will mean the loss of direction and the evolution towards events that get out of control. Austin Butler is Benny, an impulsive but sensitive young man whose entire life is dedicated to motorcycling, until a violent incident calls his ability to be on the road into question. Jodie Comer stars as Kathy, the woman who supports and saves Benny, and the storyteller who makes the story accessible to viewers. The film’s soundtrack combines original music with well-known themes, developed and reworked in the style of the time, adding to the authenticity of the visual reenactment of the period. I think that we have in ‘The Bikeriders‘ one of the first films that will be talked about during the nominations for the Academy Awards time of the year.