American Flyers

1985

American Flyers

Critics Consensus

American Flyers shifts between family drama and cycling action gears with enough strength to make this inspirational sports picture more than pedestrian.

65%

TOMATOMETER

Total Count: 20

65%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 7,445
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Movie Info

It takes a fierce three-day bicycle race up in the mountains to reunite two formerly feuding brothers in this film written by Steve Tesich, the creator of another cycle movie, 1979's Breaking Away. This film will please the cycling lovers out there, as it includes actual footage taken from the famous Coors International Bicycle Classic, held in the Colorado Rockies. The plot revolves around the suspicion that one of the two brothers -- either the pragmatic sports doctor Marcus (Kevin Costner) or the impudent, driven David (David Marshall Grant) -- is likely afflicted with an inherited tendency toward cerebral aneurysms.

Cast

Kevin Costner
as Marcus Sommers
David Grant
as David
Rae Dawn Chong
as Sarah
Alexandra Paul
as Becky
Janice Rule
as Mrs. Sommers
Luca Bercovici
as Muzzin
Robert Townsend
as Jerome
John Amos
as Dr. Conrad
Doi Johnson
as Randolph
John Garber
as Belov
Jennifer Grey
as Leslie
James Terry
as Hitchhiker
Jessica Nelson
as Hitchhiker
Tom Lawrence
as Timekeeper
Brian Drebber
as Race Announcer
Judy Jordan
as Woman Reporter
Katherine Kriss
as Vera
Jan Speck
as Receptionist
Greg Walker
as Photographer
Sig Frohlich
as Mail Clerk
John J. Caraccioli
as Autograph Hound
Barbara Hinchcliffe
as Autograph Hound
Robert Anderson
as Reporter
Peter Boyles
as Reporter
K.C. Carr
as Reporter
Martin Chenoweth
as Reporter
Jim Flanagin
as Reporter
Steven Burch
as Reporter
Kate Sullivan
as Reporter
Christine Blackwell
as Race Official
Michael Harshberger
as Race Official
Craig Manning
as Race Official
Brad Peterman
as Race Official
Christopher Ziesmer
as Race Official
Eddie Merckx
as Himself
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Critic Reviews for American Flyers

All Critics (20) | Top Critics (4) | Fresh (13) | Rotten (7)

View All Critic Reviews (20)

Audience Reviews for American Flyers

  • Feb 15, 2010
    Great racing scenes in the midst of typical 80s cheesiness and punctuated by a fantastic <a href="http://www.flixster.com/actor/kevin-costner">Kevin Costner</a> mustache.
    Ed K Super Reviewer
  • Mar 06, 2008
    Kevin Costner and David Grant play brothers that have become estranged after their fathers death. Costner is a champion bike racer that convinces Grant to compete with him in The Hell Of The West, the toughest bicycyle race in the country. They train together, and try to rebuild their relationship, all the while worrying that the congenital condition that struck down their father could strike them as well. The movie directed by John Badham, who helmed movies like War Games, Blue Thunder, and Saturday Night Fever. It contains some of the most exhilirating action scenes in movies, including footage taken from a camera mounted on the handlebars, giving the viewer a riders-eye view of what it is like to race a 10-speed bike 60mph down the Rocky Mountains. Rae Dawn Chong and Alexandra Paul co-star at the brothers girlfriends.
    RJ M Super Reviewer
  • Jan 11, 2008
    This is a 1985 movie with a very young Kevin Costner in it. The medical test scenes were laughable! I also can't believe someone would refuse to have surgery for a cerebral aneurysm because of the risk of becoming a vegetable, yet participate in a grueling bicycle race where the exertion would surely make the darned thing burst? The only part about this movie that was decent was the race.
    Ida K Super Reviewer
  • Aug 12, 2007
    Three cheers for two brothers together in a world-class cycling competition that really exciting me to make their win the race.
    Dean M Super Reviewer
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