Rating: 
Summary: Dull and predictable cycling drama.
Review: "American Flyers" stars Kevin Costner and David Marshall Grant as Marcus and David, two brothers who share a passion for cycling. It attempts to be both a drama and one of those inspirational sports movies that have been done to death.Right from the start, "American Flyers" is weak in its storytelling. There was some sort of family fallout regarding the death of the brothers' father. Marcus blames his mom for something or other and hasn't spoken to her or his little brother in a year and a half. The reasoning is never made very clear. Anyway, Marcus calls and lets his mom and brother know that he is coming for a visit. He shows up late for dinner and then announces he is already going home the very next morning. All the while, he is quite mean to his mom. Nice guy. It's made all the worse by not allowing us to get to know the mom at all. She is one dimensional and hardly has any dialogue. The "story" has two main topics. The father died of a cerebral aneurysm and the viewer is left wondering if one or both of the brothers is going to suffer the same fate. The film is also about a bicycle race. I would go more into detail but you can guess what is going to happen right from the start. There is no suspense whatsoever. Throw in what amounts to a McDonald's commercial part way through the movie and you have a real dud. Rae Dawn Chong and Alexandra Paul also star as the brothers' girlfriends. Both give decent performances but it's all for nothing. Writer Steve Tesich was trying to repeat the success he had with his other bicycling movie "Breaking Away". He had obviously run out of original ideas and this film pretty much ended his career in Hollywood.
Rating:
Summary: Dull and predictable cycling drama.
Review: "American Flyers" stars Kevin Costner and David Marshall Grant as Marcus and David, two brothers who share a passion for cycling. It attempts to be both a drama and one of those inspirational sports movies that have been done to death. Right from the start, "American Flyers" is weak in its storytelling. There was some sort of family fallout regarding the death of the brothers' father. Marcus blames his mom for something or other and hasn't spoken to her or his little brother in a year and a half. The reasoning is never made very clear. Anyway, Marcus calls and lets his mom and brother know that he is coming for a visit. He shows up late for dinner and then announces he is already going home the very next morning. All the while, he is quite mean to his mom. Nice guy. It's made all the worse by not allowing us to get to know the mom at all. She is one dimensional and hardly has any dialogue. The "story" has two main topics. The father died of a cerebral aneurysm and the viewer is left wondering if one or both of the brothers is going to suffer the same fate. The film is also about a bicycle race. I would go more into detail but you can guess what is going to happen right from the start. There is no suspense whatsoever. Throw in what amounts to a McDonald's commercial part way through the movie and you have a real dud. Rae Dawn Chong and Alexandra Paul also star as the brothers' girlfriends. Both give decent performances but it's all for nothing. Writer Steve Tesich was trying to repeat the success he had with his other bicycling movie "Breaking Away". He had obviously run out of original ideas and this film pretty much ended his career in Hollywood.
Rating: 
Summary: Inspirational and motivating movie that gets me on the bike.
Review: Although a little cheesy at times, I watch this movie to get me in the mood to ride after a lapse in training. Kevin Costner should cite this movie on his resume.
Rating: 
Summary: Inspirational
Review: American Flyers is truly an inspirational film. Finally a movie that addresses the plight of gay male couples in American society. Kevin Costner and David Grant are excellent as two homosexual males trapped in hetero relationships. Their glances to each other were beautiful. I admire Kevin Costner for his courage and spirit.
Rating:
Summary: American Flyers is one of Kevin Costners best kept secrets!
Review: American Flyers was originally released in the Theaters on August 16, 1985. Before or after no film has ever as realistically and effectively captured bike racing in such a manner as this film. It depicts the "Hell of the West" a fictitious bike race modeled after the Coors Classic held annually in Colorado. It even features a cameo by the legendary Eddie Merckx who is considered by many to be the greatest cyclist of all time. In addition to the cycling aspect, this film should appeal to every one since the story is of a long standing rivalry between two Brothers and a family history of Brain aneurisms which may now threaten the life of one of the Brothers. The brothers are played by Kevin Costner and David Grant. They decide to compete in the Hell of the West and in the process of training for the race as well as competing in the race itself forge a renewed bond that is very touching and heart warming. For Kevin Costner fans this is one of his best performances and surprisingly I have never heard him mention the film in any of his published interviews. John Badham skillfully directs the film and viewers will find themselves thinking about the film long afterwards. It is a truly wonderful film and will leave you very satisfied. For any true movie fan this is a must for your collection, and your friends will thank you when you lend it to them.
Rating: 
Summary: Great for cyclists or '80s cheese fans; hell for others
Review: At times sublime, at times laughably awful, this ever-so-'80s relic of American cycling's grass-roots days never fails to put a smile on my face. This is the story of a type-A+ doctor/Olympic cycling team alternate (Kostner) and his unfocused-but-talented brother Danny and their somewhat wobbly voyage of male bonding, family catharsis and, of course, competitive cycling. We start with the annoyingly, eternally cowboy-hatted Danny getting a call from his estranged brother, a very skinny and huge-moustached Kostner (the pair in fact look far more like gay porn stars than athletes) informing him that he'll be visiting the family. We soon learn that their father has died of a cerebral hemorrhage and that each family member is bitter at the other for the way the final days were handled. Mom, worried that favorite son Danny may be next, has Kostner take Danny to his sports lab/university/hospital to check him out. After a few more minutes of painful family pathos and the introduction of Rae Dawn Chong as Kostner's love interest, the focus soon turns to training for the Big Race, and '80 cliches start a-flowin'. To blaring, cheezy synth music, we see Danny overtrain to a horrifying degree at the sports lab to cheering Spandex-clad "athletes," the pair take goofy training rides (inexplicably spinning about a 140 cadence) replete with whooping and hollering, dog chases and Danny improbably pulling a mile-long wheelie while waving that freakin' hat, which he must have Velcroed to his head for the ride. Oh yeah, along the way they also pick up a beautiful hippie chick who, naturally, will soon become Danny's love interest/the film's gratuitous nudity. The foursome finally get the team van to Colorado for the Big Race and there run into two of the most hilarious '80s stock characters ever: "The Cocky Bad Guy" in Cannibal and, of course, "The Russians." Who is more ridiculous is subjective. Cannibal rattles off some of the best bad one-liners in memory, charges photographers, and spends the most of the rest of his time either screaming or scowling. The lead Russian "cyclist" is a burly, furry giant in a hockey helmet, probably pushing about 290 pounds with 10 more in beard. About the only cliche' missing was a pre-race "wodka" chug and a diatribe against the evils of capitalism. Mercifully, the film turns 180 degrees with the start of the race. For the next half-hour or so, we are treated to some of the most beautiful cycling footage ever. The remarkably well-done scenes of the racers duking it out in the red rocks of the mountains are simply exhilarating. It truly captures the essence of racing, the speed, the sprints, the pain, the fear, the flow--it kicks butt. The rest of the film, while as predictable as the sunrise, is still great fun. Certainly, this film is not for everyone, and many will find it a truly painful experience. For me, though, the mix of hilarious '80s camp and incredible race footage make it a favorite.
Rating:
Summary: muy bien
Review: he visto este video desde que era ninio y l averdad es la unica pelicula que puedo ver las veces que quiera
Rating:
Summary: real trash even for a cyclist
Review: How can people like this piece of trash?What a stinker!I think the dad died from boredom after listening to his two idiot sons.And all that endless talk about "the Institute" which looked like it was setup in someone's garage.I can understand why some bikers would find this flick motivational.It motivated me to turn off the t.v. and go for a ride.I really believe this movie was produced by Satan.
Rating:
Summary: "Dances With Wolves" The Early Years
Review: I am an avid book reader and do not generally care to give up MY interpretation and imaginations for the "movie version". Yet, when I read some of the reviews for "American Flyers" (one of the movies I do enjoy), I felt compelled to respond. Kevin Costner is probably one of the few "Actor-Producers" that continually goes for the story and not for the glory. Even as early as "American Flyers", Kevin demonstrated his ability (and he was only an actor at the time)to take the cliche and transform it into joy, sorrow, love, and anger that was palpable. And, at the end, when the inevitable occurs, I find myself crying and smiling with everyone else. But I also think, "Wow, what a powerful performance to be able to evoke such emotions each and every time I see this movie!" Since "American Flyers", Kevin has continued to work "outside the box". If you think about it, most every movie is pretty predictable. What makes it great is that you want to watch it again!
Rating:
Summary: Trite and predictable
Review: I can't understand why so many people like this movie. It's completely predictable (don't worry, I won't give the end away), and works so hard to tug at your heart strings, that it goes overboard. The cycling in the movie is decent, but nothing to get too excited over. I guess, people who really like stories about family coming together, overcoming adversity, and bittersweet endings will like this movie. I got annoyed with how cheesy it was and with the fact that I had the ending figured out very far in advance. I did not enjoy this movie, but I can understand why people might. If you are getting this to enjoy good cycling, forget it. If you really like sad stories, you may like this, but don't blame me if you don't.
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