I came across an article about movie cliches and wondered how many motorcycle cliches are always put in film. After a quick google these are the same three featured on every website that lists cliches....
Motorcycle engines in movies can inexplicably change from 4-stroke Otto cycle to 2-stroke cycle operation.
Motorcycles usually change from Harley Davidson choppers when engaged in highway operations to Yamaha Dirt bikes when operated off-road (as in "Then Came Bronson").
Police Harleys will morph into Triumph Bonnevilles when operating in tight quarters (on the ship in "Magnum Force").
These are a little lame and thought there had to be more...a few I came up with and would love to hear yours;
The hero/heroine/sex symbol will always have perfect hair when they take their helmet off no matter how long they've had it on or how hot it is. This is particularly annoying if the girl has long flowing hair.
Movie motorcycle gangs have the shiny bikes (even though they aimlessly ride around the countryside) always wear tshirts and vests (colors) but apparently have no saddlebags for anything else and certainly never have sleeping bags or tents strapped to thier bikes...I mean where do they store their chains and axes when they're not terrorizing some poor helpless cross country car driver??
There are drunk bikers. There are old bikers. There are NO old drunk bikers.
Don't know about clichés , but I have a hell of a lot of biker truisms...
Regards, Wizzard
"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, throughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming --- ' WOW, WHAT A RIDE!!!! ' " - Author Unknown
A blazingly fast streetbike on the slickest possible tires can zip through brush and loose foliage in the woods, weaving in and out of trees and jumping fallen logs with the greatest of ease and still come out shiny at the other end of the dirt road. (movie, 'Torque)
The hero/ine can crash their bike on the freeway, flipping over cars/guardrails/what have you at obscene rates of speed and still get up and walk away without so much as a scuff on their designer leathers. (Torque, once again)
Tricked out sportbikes can ramble through farmer's fields and navigate gravel roads at high speeds with nary a twitch from the suspension/steering (Biker Boyz)
I'm sure there's more, but there was only so much I could remember
WhyteGryphon wrote:A blazingly fast streetbike on the slickest possible tires can zip through brush and loose foliage in the woods, weaving in and out of trees and jumping fallen logs with the greatest of ease and still come out shiny at the other end of the dirt road. (movie, 'Torque)
The hero/ine can crash their bike on the freeway, flipping over cars/guardrails/what have you at obscene rates of speed and still get up and walk away without so much as a scuff on their designer leathers. (Torque, once again)
Tricked out sportbikes can ramble through farmer's fields and navigate gravel roads at high speeds with nary a twitch from the suspension/steering (Biker Boyz)
Don't forget, Ice Cube can jump a crotch rocket off the front of a locomotive, landing on the rough wooden tracks without turning the bike into an instant low-rider trophy bike.
James bond perfectly controls the angle of his lowsiding cruiser underneath a helicopter blade without as much as a scratch to him or his passenger. Passenger btw doesn't freak out at all through all of this. Huh. If it was me I'm quite positive my foot would be broken off. Guess that's why i'm not james bond.
Well I know I can ride through palm trees shooting a gun with each hand and not wreak. Or not.
I can also jump from the window of a moving car onto the back of a bike, change places with the rider while still moving and have him jump into the car.
And so much worse. Custom Chopper can almost outrun the "fastest bike in the world?"
And of course, my personal favorite is how easy it is to talk back and forth on bikes at highway speeds. You can hear every word, who needs an intercom?
Biker Boys
Seat stand on a Hayabusa at RACE SPEEDS?
For that matter who wears a 3/4 helmet on a sportbike anyways?
Of course I'm generalizing from a single example here, but everyone does that. At least I do.
Sevulturus wrote:And so much worse. Custom Chopper can almost outrun the "fastest bike in the world?"
Yup, I was lovin' that scene, too! On closer inspection, that bike was a Yamaha Warrior. I found it strange that they cut the "chain" off that bike to kill that dude's brother...especially since Warriors have a belt drive.
I also love how many red lights they blew through at triple digit speeds without hitting a single car. The stupid thing should have been animated!
Michael Douglas in an '80s movie called Black Rain. He is a cop who rides an old XR1000 Harley (nice bike just the same) who goes down to the docks and races "punks on crotch rockets" for money. In one scene he blew away one of these said punks who was riding an 1100 Katana. They had to dub about 27 gear change noises in for the Katana so it would look like he was doing something other than idling past the Hog. Still, I can't say as I minded the movie...for the time....
I think it was Paycheck had a BMW Rockster doing wheelies, jumping over things and riding through a water pipe, you know all the things that normal bikes can do and BMW's can't.
I spent my therapy money an a K1200S
The therapy worked, I got a GS now
A touch of insanity crept back in the shape of an R1200R
