BMX Stunts and Budding Romance? That’s So ‘Rad’
Junk Food Cinema is a monthly spotlight on trash flicks, hidden gems, and (not) guilty pleasures.
by Natalie Bauer
What is the culmination of 1980s cinema?
A) The bicycle flying across the moon in E.T.
B) Marty McFly introducing his high school to the future of rock ‘n’ roll in Back to the Future
C) The pageantry of the parade in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
D) Johnny lifting Baby into the air in Dirty Dancing
E) Darth Vader revealing to Luke Skywalker the truth about their relationship in The Empire Strikes Back
If you replied yes to any of the aforementioned scenes, then you have failed this impromptu quiz.
The ultimate triumph is, of course, the dance routine in the 1986 coming-of-age sports movie Rad where Cru and Christian perform on BMX bikes in slow-mo to “Send Me An Angel,” the synth-pop anthem of the decade.
Rad, directed by former daredevil Hal Needham (who also served us Smokey & The Bandit) is a generally engaging dark-horse tale that counters fierce courage opposite to corporations, delves into the wonderful spell of budding romance, and mainly advertises the greatest BMX antics that have ever been displayed on film.
This supplement to the 1983 movie BMX Bandits is chock-full of dazzling arrays of bunny hop spins, ninja drops, back flips, and every other skill imaginable, all thanks to for-real, professional BMX bikers. The cheeseball soundtrack is a garnish.
Keep your eyes peeled for Ray Walston (Fast Times At Ridgemont High) as an especially cranky, retired resident. Pro wrestler H.B. Haggerty materializes as a provincial law enforcement officer. Marta Kober (Friday The 13th Part 2) stars as one of Cru’s neighborhood nonprofessional BMX companions. And naturally Eddie Fiola, who was the influential backbone for the movie, carries out a lot of Cru’s stunts.
This may not be the most authentic movie of the 1980s, but it deservedly scores a podium position among enthusiastic devotees, many of whom probably found it the same way I did: digging through deep-dive VHS tape rentals in local neighborhood video stores for years after its release.