The days may be getting longer, but there's still plenty of long cold nights to endure before the spring. Time to snuggle up on the sofa by the fire and watch a movie. Let me recommend your next DVD/Bluray rental choice.

Premium Rush

It's not often you get chance to review a Hollywood movie with a plot line revolving around cycling. It's been a long time since Kevin Costners efforts in American Flyers. It's Joseph Gordon-Levitt's turn, probably better known for his sci-fi appearances, Looper, Inception or if you're old school, 3rd Rock from the Sun.
He plays the part of fixie evangelist and bicycle courier Wilee in downtown Manhattan (where else, eh), tasked with the job of delivering an envelope on time. An envelope that the bad guys don't want delivered.

The movie makes novel use of CGI to demonstrate the mental processes cyclists have to compute on a daily basis. From planning a route across town, to the instantaneous 'how the hell do I get out of this one' decision making required when put in an imminent traffic collision situation. How many times have you been there, when doom is impending and time seems to slow down and give you the space to consider your options, albeit briefly, and choose the safest or softest of options out of it. The movie takes the time to play each of the considered options to its frequently disastrous conclusion using CGI. Which is a refreshing change from CGIs ubiquitous use to bring 30 story monsters to life on screen.

What about car chases? A movie's not a movie without a car chase, right, but a car versus bike, you can guess how that would end in reality, Aah, not in the Manhattan gridlock, in that situation, the odds quickly tilt towards the bike. Bike chases, Who-da-thought-it.

What about skids? Of course, i'ts a fixie, there's no other way to slow down, so there's lots of skid drifting action going on in all the chases.

The movie also answers the question 'Which is faster, steel fixie or Carbon 10-speed?' No spoilers, but Hollywood answers that question too.

I'm a fan of Joseph Gordon-Levitt, I have been ever since his appearance in 3rd rock from the sun, but sorry, Michael Shannon steals this movie with his bad guy badness :satan.

Don't go into this movie expecting a deep plotline, but do expect to be entertained, with enough plot twists to stop you falling asleep. Plenty of biking action and i you like to see bikes getting one over on cars, then you'll get a kick out of Premium Rush.

Well worth the ride to rental store.

But is he as good as Kevin Bacon in Quicksilver?

Sorry but NOTHING is going to surpass this for a cycling movie for 2013

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0npCFw9TEnA

I can't decide what I prefer.. Premium Rush or Quicksilver. I love 'em both but I think Premium Rush edges it because I ridden with half the people in it!

I like the 'outtakes' bit, JGL rode straight through the rear window of a taxi


It's completely ridiculous and over the top, my mum watched it and texted me asking if that's really what I did all day

Rik wrote:What about car chases? A movie's not a movie without a car chase, right, but a car versus bike, you can guess how that would end in reality, Aah, not in the Manhattan gridlock, in that situation, the odds quickly tilt towards the bike. Bike chases, Who-da-thought-it.

Didn't James Bond run out of helicopters once in the 1970s, and nick a 10-speed for a big downhill chase through town? It was in the USA so might have been someone else. I think there was a lot of chest hair involved.

Simonius_Titius wrote:

Rik wrote:What about car chases? A movie's not a movie without a car chase, right, but a car versus bike, you can guess how that would end in reality, Aah, not in the Manhattan gridlock, in that situation, the odds quickly tilt towards the bike. Bike chases, Who-da-thought-it.

Didn't James Bond run out of helicopters once in the 1970s, and nick a 10-speed for a big downhill chase through town? It was in the USA so might have been someone else. I think there was a lot of chest hair involved.

No, it must've been someone else