It’s been near a month since my last top ten, I almost feel like it wasn’t missed at all, and with Premium Rush hitting theatres this weekend I felt it best to take on a topic that will probably bore you all to tears, movies and bikes. So let’s get on with the counting…
10. Donnie Darko – Opening Scene
It’s odd to be starting this list with an opening scene from a film which actually has little to do with bikes as anything else. However the scene remains particularly striking, because like most great films it takes the opportunity to grab you and give you a small idea of what kind of tone this film looks to take. Just calmly following Donnie as he wakes up on the side of the road next to his bike and rides home with some great mellow soundtrack in behind him is just so fun.
9. 127 Hours – Beating a Record
What I love so much about this scene is how it basically explains who this guy is. He’s not that guy who passively enjoys nature and is out here for no reason, he’s aggressive with his passion and the way he seems to want to push himself to break some silly record for just himself shows some greatness and what’s to come.
8. Torque – The Cat Fight
So I don’t think I can talk about movies with bikes without talking about the brilliant film that is Torque. Joseph Kahn decided to film a bike fight scene where two women (who say bitch about five times each in 3 minutes) fight while on bikes, riding bikes, doing spin kicks with bikes and surprisingly not crashing into anything.
7. The Shining – Tuesday
This low-key scene works so well, for the same reason every scene in The Shining works so well, because of how eerie it is from top to bottom. As we follow Danny peddling his big wheel around the empty hotel you can’t help but getting a sense of uneasiness as he stops and gets up going towards that door. Help me sleep at night please.
6. The Great Muppet Caper – “Couldn’t We Ride”
I did a marathon of the Muppet films last year, this scene was is one of those gems from the history of the Muppets that I dare say surpasses so many others that no one should ever forget it. It’s shocking the first time you see the camera come away and you see what must be a woman in a massive Ms. Piggy outfit and some similar setup for Kermit as they ride in tandem singing a great song. It’s gorgeous.