Breaking Away (1979)
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94% of critics liked it
(34 reviews) -
85% of users liked it
(8,645 ratings)
Dennis Christopher stars as a recent high school graduate in Bloomington, Indiana, who is caught with his friends -- Dennis Quaid, Daniel Stern, Jackie Earle Haley -- coasting between high school and deciding what to do with the rest of their lives. The four friends are snobbishly looked down upon… More Dennis Christopher stars as a recent high school graduate in Bloomington, Indiana, who is caught with his friends -- Dennis Quaid, Daniel Stern, Jackie Earle Haley -- coasting between high school and deciding what to do with the rest of their lives. The four friends are snobbishly looked down upon by the college students of the town as "cutters," since they were born in Bloomington and their parents worked in the local limestone quarries that built the university. Dennis Christopher's character Dave wants to be a champion bicycle racer and he idolizes the Italian racing team -- so much so that he speaks, thinks, and acts Italian, all to his father's (Paul Dooley) forlorn exasperation. Dave falls for a college girl (Robyn Douglass), but is ashamed to admit he is a cutter and poses as an Italian exchange student to impress her. Dave is particularly excited when his heroes -- the Italian racers -- come to town for a race. But they are even more snobbish than the college students and rely on dirty tricks to keep Dave from winning a race against them. After that ordeal, Dave throws away his false identity and convinces his friends to enter the university's "Little 500" bicycle race against the college students. This light-hearted and heartwarming tale was a surprising word-of-mouth success at the box-office and won several awards, including an Academy Award for "Best Screenplay." ~ Paul Brenner, Rovi
- Directed By
- Peter Yates
- Written By
- Steve Tesich
- Genres
- Drama, Comedy
PG,
- In Theaters
- Jul 13, 1979 Wide
- On DVD
- Jan 29, 2002
- Studio
- Twentieth Century Fox
Critic Reviews
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Richard Schickel, TIME Magazine
There are a few moments when the picture's easygoing pace turns into wobbliness, but these are insignificant compared with its many moments of shrewd insight into the lives of amusingly shaded but very recognizable human beings.
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, Variety
Though its plot wins no points for originality, Breaking Away is a thoroughly delightful light comedy.
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Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader
Peter Yates, previously typed as an action director, lends the film a fine, unexpected limpidity, and the principals are mostly excellent.
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, Time Out
Displays the kind of unsentimental optimism that went out of fashion with Hawks.
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Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Breaking Away is a wonderfully sunny, funny, goofy, intelligent movie that makes you feel about as good as any movie in a long time. It is, in fact, a treasure.
See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Dennis Christopher
as Dave Stohler
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Dennis Quaid
as Mike
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Daniel Stern
as Cyril
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Paul Dooley
as Mr. Stohler
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Jackie Earle Haley
as Moocher
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Barbara Barrie
as Mrs. Stohler
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Robyn Douglass
as Katherine
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Hart Bochner
as Rod
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Amy Wright
as Nancy
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John Ashton
as Mike's Brother
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David K. Blace
as Race Announcer
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Jennifer K. Mickel
as Girl
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Lisa Shure
as French Girl
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P.J. Soles
as Suzy
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Peter Maloney
as Doctor
