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Features: DVD
This charming Academy Award winner (1980, Best Screenplay) cycles high on comedy as four friends come to terms with life after high school. When top-notch cyclist Dave (Dennis Christopher) learns that the world's bicycling champions are always Italian, he attempts to turn himself into an Italian, driving his parents (Barbara Barrie and Paul Dooley) crazy. But everything changes after he meets the Italian racing team--an encounter that ultimately leads him and his friends (Dennis Quaid, Daniel Stern, Jackie Earle Haley) to challenge the local college boys in the town's annual bike race.
"A delightful sleeper..." TV Guide On Line
"Winning, unpretentious..." Leonard Maltin's Movie & Video Guide
"A smashing movie...rapturously funny, totally unique and eccentric..." Rex Reed, Vogue
Editor's Note
BREAKING AWAY is a winning coming-of-age story with unusually well drawn characters, smart social commentary, and a terrific ensemble of fresh-faced actors soon to be famous. The rivalry between townies and college kids sets the scene for the story of four friends trying to figure out their future after high school graduation in Bloomington, Indiana. Raised together in the working-class quarry town, the boys consider themselves Cutters, proud of their father's heritage as limestone workers in the once prosperous factory town. But there is no future for the boys as Cutters, and not one of them has plans for college. So now that Mike (Dennis Quaid) is no longer a star quarterback, Moocher (Jackie Earl Haley) can't decide if he wants to break up or marry his girlfriend, and quick-witted Cyril (Daniel Stern) can no longer play the class clown, they have no idea what to do with themselves. Luckily, avid cyclist Dave (Dennis Christopher) knows exactly what he wants. He aspires to be one of the world's best bicyclists. There's only one obstacle: The leading racers are Italian, and Dave is not. A romantic dreamer, he races around his hometown, singing opera, speaking in an Italian accent, and stumping his parents with his newfangled Italian ways. When his affair with Katherine (an Italian exchange student) evokes jealousy from a few big boys on campus, Dave decides that a bike race is the only way to settle the score and prove that Cutters are not losers. The film features a remarkable performance from character actor Paul Dooley, who shines as Dave's befuddled and frustrated working-class father. Screenwriter Steve Tesich's script is an intelligent and humorous masterpiece, full of subtle humor and insightful dialogue. All the components combine to make one of the most charming comedies of all time.
| Features | Scene Selection | | Theatrical Trailer | | TV Spots | | Interactive Menus | | Widescreen & Full Screen Versions | | Audio: English Stereo Surround, Mono; French Mono | | Subtitles: English, Spanish |
| Technical Info
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Release Information
| | Studio: Foxvideo |
| Release Date: 12/6/2006 |
| Running Time: 100 minutes |
| Original Release Date: 1979 | | Catalog ID: 2002908 | | UPC: 00024543029083 | | Number of Discs: 1 |
Audio & Video
| | Original Language: English | | Available Audio Tracks: English [CC], English, French Dubbed | | Available Subtitles: English, Spanish | | Video: Color |
Aspect Ratio | | 1.85:1/4:3 |
| Cast & Crew
| Awards |
Oscar (1980) |  | Steve Tesich, Winner, Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly For The Screen | | | Barbara Barrie, Nominee, Best Supporting Actress | | | Peter Yates, Nominee, Best Director | | | Patrick Williams, Nominee, Best Music, Original Score | |
British Academy Awards (1980) | | Dennis Christopher, Winner, Most Promising Newcomer In A Leading Film Role | |
Golden Globe (1980) | | | Peter Yates, Nominee, Best Motion Picture Director | | | Steve Tesich, Nominee, Best Motion Picture Screenplay | | | Dennis Christopher, Nominee, New Motion Picture Star Of The Year (Male) |
| Memorable Quotes| "I want an answer, Evelyn. What are we going to do with him?" Dad (Paul Dooley)|"I don't know, dear. We could strangle him in his sleep."----Evelyn (Barbara Barrie) | | "They're gonna keep calling us Cutters. To them it's just a dirty word. To me, it's just something else I never got a chance to be."----Mike (Dennis Quaid) to Cyril (Daniel Stern), Dave (Dennis Christopher), and Moocher (Jackie Earle Haley) | | "What's the matter?"----Evelyn|"He's shaving!"----Dad|"Well, so what!"----Evelyn|"He's shaving his legs!"----Dad | | "Refund?! Refund!?"----Dad |
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| | Professional Reviews | New York Times
"...Wonderful. Here is a movie so fresh and funny it didn't even need a big budget or a pedigree..." 07/18/1979 p.C22New York Times
Included in the New York Times's "10 BEST FILMS OF 1979" 12/30/1979 p.II:1 Premiere
[Quaid] makes a vivid impression." 06/01/2005 p.122 VideoHound's Golden Movie Retriever 8 of 10
An honest, open look at present day Americana with tremendous insight into the minds of average youth... Great bike-racing photography.
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