American Flyers

A film about cycling. Marcus is a sports doctor. He is estranged from his brother David; they have not spoken since their father died. He goes to collect him. The aim is to train together for a race: a three-stage mountain event in Colorado. Something comes out on the journey. Their father died of a problem in a blood vessel in the brain, and it may run in the family; Marcus has his brother tested and keeps the result from him. From there the film runs on two lines. On one, the training and the race; climbs, descents, team tactics and a rival. On the other, the thing the brothers are not saying to each other. What the narrative is interested in is not winning but time: once it is clear who is ill, the meaning of the race changes. The racing was shot on real roads and the film's central event is taken from a race held in Colorado in those years. Kevin Costner plays Marcus, one of his main roles before he was known. David Marshall Grant, Rae Dawn Chong and Alexandra Paul are in the cast. The screenplay is by Steve Tesich, who had written about cycling before. John Badham directed. Who it is for: anyone who likes sports films and stories about brothers. Who it is not for: anyone bothered by emotional shortcuts; the film ties illness directly to the race and its ending is a great deal too neat.