Rating: 
Summary: Film: 5 stars; DVD: 1 star
Review: This is a fabulous film, one of my all-time favorites: a funny, bittersweet, character-driven masterpiece of small-budget filmmaking, shot in a town I lived in for five years. Obviously, this was a cheaply done DVD release by Fox of a film that deserves a deluxe special edition. Besides the lack of extras, interviews, and audio commentary, I could not believe the poor sound quality of the DVD digital transfer: street scenes, crowd scenes, etc. sounded like they were recorded in a digital bucket! We had to turn down the sound during the pivotal Little 500 scene, because the digital garbage was so annoying. Having seen this many times on tape, I know that the sound of this low-budget film was not always good, but it was never horrible until this cheap digital mastering. Fortunately it does not completely ruin the experience of this wonderful film, but I wouldn't be in any hurry to replace a VHS tape with this DVD! Fox, fix your mistake and treat this film properly!
Rating: 
Summary: Breaking Away A Classic
Review: BREAKING AWAY is nice, sweet, film that has characters you care about, great small town locations, an involving story, and a corker of a bike race. Dennis Christopher, Dennis Quaid,Daniel Stern, and Jackie Earl Haley play locals who are outcasts in their own home/collegetown of Bloomington, Indiana. They are labled as "Cutters" because their fathers were stone cutters in the town quarry mines. One of the great location shots of the film shows a wooded area years after blocks of stone have been cut out of it. What is left is a huge swimming hole that the four hang out at, talk about life, and go swimming. It is a great location shot that adds realism and validity to the story. The main plot of the story is of Dennis Christopher as Dave. He is fresh out of high school,at odds with his father, unemployed, living at home and not knowing what is in store for his future. But, he has a passion for bicycle racing (with a great "gift" of speed and endurance for the sport) and a passion for the International Italian Racing Team. His passion is so great that he even starts talking and acting Italian much to the dismay of his father brilliantly played by Paul Dooley, counteracted with the voice of reason played great by Barbara Barrie as the mother. Also, this passion gets him into a pickle when he puts on the charade to meet a college student (Robyn Douglass). However, that all comes crashing down when the Italian team comes to Bloomington to participate in a local cross country bike race. When Dave tries to stick out his hand for friendship and friendly competition, he is savagely sabotaged by the Italian team during the race. It is a great metaphor about life and its sometimes unsuspecting bad surprises. It is such an emotional scene of shock and dismay, the audience feels the hurt along with the character. Yet, it brings Dave out of his inability to communciate with his father that he finally has a chance to show some emotional depth for his parents. It also brings him closer to his friends, and lets out his competetiveness to race in the Little 500 bicycle race sponsored by the College. Even if one isn't into bike racing, or even car racing, this sequence in the film keeps you at the edge of your seat and rooting for the "Cutters". It is a well filmed sequence. There are some small interesting sublots with the other three friends. Especially Jackie Earl Haley's character as Moocher. He has a hush, hush, but loving relationship with a girl that's explored but keeps the audience guessing even when the two go get a marriage licence. The audience is kept in the dark about the relationship. However, his friends aren't even aware of it. Overall, a great film about small town America and coming of age. Note: Look for Hart Bochner as "Rod" in a small role as one of the campus snobs. He played the same kind of character in DIE HARD as the cocaine sniffing, businessman, jerk "Ellis".
Rating: 
Summary: Italiano!
Review: Another wonderful feature about the DVD version of this outstanding film: in the subtitles, the DVD producers took the time to include the Italian phrases and lyrics that were so integral to the story. For example, when Dave is riding down a Bloomington street on his bike, singing an Italian opera, you can enable the subtitles and see the Italian words. When he's serenading "Kathy" outside her sorority house, the Italian lyrics are available. And when he's trying to converse with the wise-guy professional bicyclists from Team Cinzano, the Italian dialog is shown. It's great fun. Most DVDs don't include this feature. It was a nice touch!
Rating:
Summary: All American Movie
Review: A film for all ages and times. It is about the American dream, defined through despair, failure,perserverance, and ultimately, on a short circular track, redemption. This is a classic American tale masquerading as a bicycle racing movie. Bike racing? Yup, and you'll be riveted by every turn of the pedal because you will care for and form a bond with the characters riding on the bikes. They are all of us, on anyday, in good times and bad. This movie is America defined.
Rating:
Summary: Cutters, ladies and gentlemen!!
Review: This is always been one of my favorite movies on many levels.
The music (Mendelsohn's Italian Symphony and Rossini's Barber of Seville Overture, as well as certain original music) fits perfectly.
Even without the bicycling footage (the high point of the movie), many aspects of the story are touching. Dave eventually abandons his Italian facade and bonds with his father. The protagonists, called Cutters as an insult, adopt the name with pride. Also, it's interesting to see actors who would later be big, such as Daniel Stern and Dennis Quaid. In addition, Hart Bochner (Rob) would later play Ellis in Die Hard.
Picture and sound quality is also really good on the DVD.
If I had one complaint, it would be in the subtitles. The transcription of the Italian arias and Italian dialogue is terrible, and would have been easy to verify. But all in all the movie and the DVD are great.
Rating:
Summary: "The Italians are coming!!"
Review: It's about time they released this Masterpiece on DVD. In 1979, I was a 19 year old boy. My MAMA had just come home crying from the movie theatre, having seen this FILM. She said to me, "I just saw a movie you have to see. It made me weep because it reminded me of you." Then she hugged me and I thought, God, I gotta see this movie! Then I did, and it had the exact same effect on me, and still does to this day.
This is not just a "feel-good-coming-of-age" story. This FILM is a profound and intelligent comedy of an inner search for an identity. What self-aware human being hasn't confronted the blinding journey of the Self? Should I go to college and major in Business? Or should I become an Italian and race bicycles? Heck, I'm in my forties and sometimes I still don't know who I am. PAPA (WORRYING ABOUT DAVE)-played hilariously by Paul Dooley.
"He's gonna be a bum, Evelyn... An Italian bum." Everyone in this FILM is searching. Except for maybe Moocher. Socrates would have loved this movie.
MAMA (WAXING PHILOSOPHICAL)-played brilliantly by Barbara Barrie.
"I think you should come home singing... with a trophy. Do all those things while you can." Everytime I see this FILM, the tears well because I knew every single one of these guys growing up and I always fell in love with the girl I couldn't have.
DAVE (IN THE PANGS OF AMORE)-impeccably played by Dennis Christopher.
"I have such a pain in my heart, mama. I'm in love." THE WHOLE CAST AND CREATIVE TEAM ARE AMAZING. AND I HOPE THEY ALL READ THIS. DENNIS CHRISTOPHER!! BELLISSIMA!! BELLISSIMA!!
I have a great sentiment for this FILM and as soon as I get my copy I'm heading straight to MAMA's house to watch it with her. This FILM is to AMERICAN CINEMA, as THE BEACHBOYS are to AMERICAN ROCK AND ROLL. Good vibrations, bambina!! CIAO PAPA!!
Rating:
Summary: Sets a new standard...
Review: This film set a new standard for the modern coming-of-age film. It puts a new light on the tradition set by such movies as Shane, and To Kill a Mockingbird. It is certainly sweeter than either of them, but in its own way, poignant, touching, and easier to identify with for the post-war generation. OK - the matters at hand are trivial in the long run, but they are no less real or familiar to those who grew up as baby-boomers and later.
Dave Stoller dreams big - though the dreams are so far out of place for a kid from the midwest, that they seem like sheer fantasy. The film shows that these dreams, and the passion that drives them, are what are to be sought. Cyril, Mike, and Moocher seem rudderless by comparison, and by the film's climax, it is clear that even fantasy masquerading as dreams are preferred to none at all.
The characters are enough to make you watch this film again and again, Paul Dooley's long-suffering but ultimately sincere, loving father, Barbara Barrie's mother comes off as flaky at first, but proves to be the most sensible of the bunch when all is done.
Of course the characters here set Daniel Stern and Dennis Quaid on the paths of stardom - this film is still their 2nd or 3rd highest rated performances.
My biases as a cyclist do show up with this film - in the truck racing sequence and in the Little 500, my legs start pumping involuntarily - and I usually end up heading out for a good ten or twenty miles. And it's the best video for stationary bikes, bar none! Dave's dreams can do us all a lot of good.
Rating:
Summary: Inspiring and Fun - Watch it and See
Review: I'm thrilled "Breaking Away" is finally joining the DVD ranks, even if little extras haven't been added. This is a film worth viewing repeatedly, especially for anyone who has ever felt like they don't belong, or were the last ones picked for the team. A true modern fable where the underdog wins, "Breaking Away" feels like an Olympic moment every time I see it...you find yourself rooting for the Cutters and tripping over yourself to help the lead character with his Italian. Funny, warm and enchanting, this is a family film classic with heart that proves once and for all that sometimes, the best man does win!
Rating:
Summary: one of the greatest stories ever told
Review: what an inspirational picture. one of my all time favorites. the fantastic musical score is what puts it over the top. everyone from ages 10 to 75 will run out and hop on their ten-speed as soon the credits finish. Bravo!
Rating:
Summary: Breaking Away
Review: Great movie and story, and one a young bike racer could really relate to. Back when this movie was being shown in small movie houses if often came to one in my area. Myself and a bunch of other bike racers never missed a showing...it turned into a cult movie for us and we probably went and saw it 10-15 times.. It was always fun to watch the reaction of the non-cycling movie goers to the scene when Dave was shaving his legs. Cracked us up! Cycling scenes were well done, and the one when he was drafting that big truck was great. The music score was really good and fit the movies plot. It was also cool for those of us who owned an Italian MASI racing bicycle like Dave rode! No matter if you are a bicycle racing fan or not do not miss this movie. My comments are based on the VHS issue.
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