Cinema became interested in biker themes a few decades later than motorcycles. And all because at the beginning of the 20th century, bikers as a phenomenon simply did not exist.
In fact, if not to prevaricate, then motorcycles did not attract much attention of the audience. Before the shooting of “The Savage”, only 14 films on motorcycle topics were shot. And this is for more than forty years.
They didn’t invest much in films about motorcycles and didn’t come up with twisted plots for them. For example, it is boring even to read about the plot of the short film “Uncontrollable Motorcycle”, filmed in England in 1909 and considered the first motion picture on motorcycle topics: a child put a bomb in his brother’s motorcycle, the motorcycle drove into the house and exploded.
This cinematic swamp would have continued to suck all living things into its mire, however, the “Savage” came and changed the status quo.
“Savage” – a revolution in cinema on motorcycle topics
«Дикарь» цепляет уже тем, что его сюжет не основывался исключительно на буйной фантазии сценариста, а отталкивался от реально произошедших событий 1947 г. на мотофестивале в Холлистере. Суть в том, что две банды байкеров устроили бесчинства и форменный погром на этом фестивале. О беспорядках трубили вовсю американские СМИ, и эти события нашли живой отклик как в сердцах простых американцев, так и воротил Голливуда, решивших «хайпануть» на теме.
A budget was quickly found, a good director was invited, and a top actor of the early 50s, Marlon Brando, was invited to play the main role of biker Johnny, that same “savage”. And the movie took off. It is not known what exactly Hollywood bosses wanted: to pour a bucket of slop on bikers and defame them in the eyes of the audience, or to romanticize them. But one thing is for sure – it did not work out to pour a tub of slop on the motorcyclists. On the contrary, the tape raised a wave of unprecedented interest in bikers. Later, many members of biker clubs admitted that “Savage” changed their worldview and contributed to the decision to join the biker movement.
In many ways, this is the merit of Brando himself and his acting skills. It is interesting that the role of a daring and masterful rebel was the best fit for him. Brando himself did not have a mild disposition, his relatives described him as an unbearable person, and his father sent him to a military school because of the conflict nature. Apparently, in “The Savage” he came off to the fullest.
In general, “The Savage” significantly influenced future biker films and laid down the clichés of biker cinema, for example, the negative image of motorcyclists; the hostility of the townsfolk towards them; the protagonist’s attempts to enter into a relationship with the lovely protagonist. Another significant contribution of the tape to the biker subculture was the romanticization of leather jackets, which has become a must- haveitem for motorcyclists.
“Golden Age” of biker cinema
In the period from the mid-50s to the end of the 70s, money for filming biker films flowed like a river. Critics jokingly wrote that a new genre had appeared – “biker” (by analogy with the western). Everyone wanted to surpass the success of The Savage, or at least try to snatch some fame and fees on the wave of interest in bikers. The growth in the number of films can be demonstrated by the statistics:
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After “The Savage” in the 50s, only 9 films were shot on motorcycle topics.
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In the 60s, the number increased to 43 films.
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In the 70s, the number of “bikers” rose to an astronomical 96 films per decade.
However, for the most part, directors shot one-time slag. Only Easy Rider 1969, which was later elevated to the rank of cult films, can be called out of the general range of mediocre tapes.
Why did the audience love this movie so much? I think that, firstly, the departure of the writers and the director from all the biker clichés in cinema that took root after the triumph of The Savage played a big role. Secondly, the neglect of the storyline. The essence of the film in a few words: having raised money on drugs, two bikers go on an endless American journey, ending with their death at the hands of American cattle.
The entire tape consists of cuts of events that happened to the main characters. Sometimes they meet hippies and hang out with them in their commune, sometimes they communicate with a drunken lawyer, sometimes they periodically have a snack with rednecks who bully them.
The film is very hard to watch, and its ending is tragic. During the credits, the feeling of hopelessness does not leave, the feeling that bikers have to pay for their freedom with the rejection and hatred of the townsfolk who are disgusted with the idea of freedom, and our life itself, like the journey of the main characters, is meaningless and always ends in death.
If we take into account not only the philosophical aspect of the film, but also other aspects, it is not difficult to notice the influence of “Easy Rider” on fashion. In particular, bikes with long forks on the front wheels became popular after its release, as did the Stars and Stripes American flag paint on gas tanks.
Fading trend
By the end of the 70s, the audience’s interest in biker cinema had declined significantly, films began to fail more and more often at the box office, they began to be made less often. Of the famous paintings of the last forty years, I can single out only two:
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“Chasing the Shadow” In the center of the plot is a police officer embedded in a biker gang. A rare movie that realistically shows the life and relationships of bikers in the club, and does not concentrate solely on clichés about bad bikers.
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“Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man”. An interesting action movie that tells about two friends who accidentally find out that the bar where they were regulars will soon close due to overdue debts to creditors. And who would have thought that, as a result, the two bikers would be confronted by a powerful corrupt banker?
Moto series
The most successful biker-themed series at the moment is Sons of Anarchy. The name of the series repeats the name of the biker club, around the members of which the entire storyline revolves, in particular, around one of them, Jax Teller, whom film critics nicknamed “Hamlet in leather jackets”.
How cool is this series? A detailed demonstration of the inner life of biker communities, close attention to the smallest details like patches, biker clothes and motorcycles. The series also shows well how bikers earn their living and how they achieve dominance in the territory that they consider their own.
Source: cryptomoto.org