The Bikeriders – Mediocre Motorcycle Melodrama

One of the most anticipated films of last year, The Bikeriders was originally set for release in the thick of awards season on December 1st, 2024 before it became a casualty of the dual writer and actor strikes. Unable to find it a new release date to salvage its potential award hopes, the film was then sold by New Regency to Focus Features who then gave it a summer release date that is now upon us. The question is, was it worth it? While the answer to that remains to be seen, the reception so far has been mixed. This period motorcycle drama certainly has the right pieces both in front of and behind the camera to warrant such excitement, from writer/director Jeff Nichols, to stars Jodie Comer, Austin Butler, and Tom Hardy. However, those pieces don’t quite come together in a coherent way. Let down by its format, the narrative merely becomes a convoluted melodrama and a parade of accents in major need of focus. Though its aforementioned stars all deliver decent performances, they were unfortunately not given a chance as the end result is a thin watch overall that simply tries to be too much.

The Bikeriders, based on the book of the same name by Danny Lyon, takes place in Chicago in the late 1960s and early 1970s and is mostly told from the perspective of a strong-willed woman named Kathy (Comer) as she recounted the history of a motorcycle club, known as the ‘Vandals,’ in a series of interviews with Lyon (Mike Faist), a photographer who spent years embedded with the club. A tumultuous period in American history that saw the country in a transition, the film delivers a nostalgic trip through classic Americana. When it came to Kathy, her life was turned upside down once she just happened to come across the edgy yet reserved Benny (Butler), the newest member of the Vandals. Having an air of mystery about him, there was something that drew her in. It was clear how out of place she was but over time. she became more accustomed to that world. Marrying Benny not to long after, she evolved into a de facto member of the club, led by the charismatic Johnny (Hardy). Devised as a means for men to hang out and talk about motorcycles, news of the club quickly spread across the city and the nation, leading it to grow beyond their expectations.

Rough around the edges, the Vandals boasted an eccentric cast of characters defined solely by their particular quirks though beyond that, there was still a faint sense of camaraderie there. However, the original spirit of the club found itself warped as it slowly turned towards violence as the landscape became increasingly competitive. That lawlessness earned them a reputation amongst the authorities and their community. As the Vandals grew, so did the threat they posed. Meanwhile, getting older and recognizing his own mortality, Johnny recognized that he can’t run the club forever. Therefore, he eyes Benny as his potential successor. Rising up the ranks, the pressure on him mounted, if only to not disappoint who had become a mentor figure to him. That being said, the pressure kept coming from all sides as Kathy saw what was happening and where the club was going and was understandably concerned. Seeing the writing on the wall, she wanted Benny to leave the club but he also wanted to leave the club and didn’t know how. Becoming bigger than even Johnny could control, a dangerous turf war ensued between the old brass and the youngbloods. In the end, Benny had to make a decision about his future and from there, the rest was history.

On paper, a story built on the foundation of such strong characters as Kathy, Benny, and Johnny seemed like a recipe for success. However, the film fails to develop any of them in a meaningful way, leaving them thin while trying to be about the club and the relationship between Kathy and Benny without making any significant headway with both. Virtually going nowhere in either respect, framing it all from the perspective of such a thin character, the story came off as convoluted as it tries to do too much. Offering no more than mediocre melodrama, it adds up to a dull watch as well. Had it had more focus, it would have fared better. All Comer, Butler, and Hardy had was their accents (Comer and Hardy were most noticeable) and their screen presence but to their credit, The Bikeriders wouldn’t have stood a chance without them. It was just a shame that they weren’t given more challenging material. Each bringing varying degrees of feistiness that will inevitably earn them points with audiences, the film ultimately provides little reason to care about any of them and that’s not their fault. Whether or not they can muster enough reason to care about them is key. From a pure filmmaking standpoint, it is a beautiful and well-shot film but that only goes so far

At the end of the day, The Bikeriders survives off the strength of its three leads but fails to offer no more than a mere mediocre motorcycle melodrama that could have been so much more.

still courtesy of Focus Features

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Keith Noakes

The EIC of the coincidentally-named keithlovesmovies.com. A Canadian who prefers to get out of the cold and into the warmth of a movie theatre.