Genres

Visitors Review

Dylan Greenberg 2013-05-25 02:35:30

A genuinely good movie.

I love this movie. The DVD from Severin films was in amazing quality,and the new restoration was absolutely beautiful. I think one of thebest parts of this movie is that it doesn't matter how old you are toenjoy this movie. Sure, it was targeted towards kids, but really anyonecan see it. And I'm not a guy who just praises underrated movies likethis, either. My previous review was of the 1988 art film Alice, so Iam serious when it comes to critiquing films. The cinematography andatmosphere in this movie are beautiful, and the use of bright, vibrantcolor reminds me almost of the Award Winning Dario Argento filmSuspiria. The stunts are incredibly well done, and overall fun towatch. Nicole Kidman is perfect as the BMX riding tomboy, and her twomale friends make great comic relief as one is an optimist, and theother is a pessimist. The sound effects are unique, as "swooshing"sounds play whenever a bike rides past the camera or performs a certainstunt. The film is very cartoonish, almost like Dick Tracy. Whetheryou're 8 or 88, BMX Bandits is a fun movie to watch. You can play itinstantly on netflix, or buy the DVD from Severin films.

2013-05-24 12:22:16

BMX Bandits

This review is from: BMX Bandits (DVD) This movie is very hard to find and was excited to find it on Amazon. I was less than thrilled to receive a "copy", but my son didn't seem to mind and the price wasn't too bad.

Wizard-8 2013-05-14 15:44:29

If you're not in the target audience, forget it

"BMX Bandits" has built up somewhat of a cult over the years, theobvious reason being that it involves BMX enthusiasts, as well as thefact that a pre-fame Nicole Kidman is one of the stars. However, Idon't think it can be called a good film. While it was made fortheaters, the movie constantly has a visual appearance that makes itlook like it was made for television. There is also a bit less BMXracing than you might think - after a few minutes of it at thebeginning of the movie, there is no more for the next half hour. Andwhile the director tried to pump up the BMX sequences with carefullyselected camera angles, it doesn't hide the fact that the BMX racingand stunt work isn't very exciting. But I'm not the target audience.Kids will probably like this movie a lot more than I did, though Ithink even they will find the movie has more than its share of slowspots.

2013-05-14 02:53:11

Ordering BMX Bandits

I was tickled to find BMX Bandits when my husband had been searching for it for decades with no luck. He was so surprised to find it in his Christmas stocking! The DVD came very quickly, well in time for Christmas. Thanks so much!!

celtic43 2013-05-07 06:01:32

For Nicole fans only!

This is for the diehard Nicole Kidman fans only. (That is, unless you'reaged about 12 and like seeing kids on BMX bikes foiling dastardlyvillains.)If you're a fan of Ms Kidman, it will be fascinating to see her at the ageof around 15 acting her socks off in a pretty basic kids' movie. Otherthanthat I'm afraid there's not much going for it.

Evans 2013-05-07 03:15:10

Best Movie Ever?

Probably! This film set the bar extremely high for Aussie film makers and put Hollywood on notice, that Australian cinema was an artistic force burgeoning with raw talent from the director to the lowliest extra.Filled with high drama, this iconic tour de force will keep you on the edge of your seat, and make you laugh out loud, sob dejectedly, shriek in terror, and cry out in triumphant jublilation in equal measure. Cut from the same cloth as the Pianist and The Passion this film has forever changed the face of western culture!

Sean Axmaker 2013-04-22 06:23:54

... Trenchard-Smith directs the BMX action with high energy and gets a lot of personality and camaraderie from the teen actors.

2013-04-21 15:47:20

the bmx track at the end of the movie

This may be interesting to fans of this movie. Most of the movie wasfilmed in Manly, NSW, Australia which is a coastal town not far fromSydney. A ferry ride across sydney harbour away, in fact.The BMX track at the end of the movie, just before the credits roll isactually Hickeys Lane BMX track which was located in Penrith, New SouthWales, Australia.Penrith is a city west of Sydney and I lived there from 1984 to 1989. I have fond memories of riding my BMX at Hickeys Lane and it's great toactually see it in a movie.If you play the BMX track part of the movie slowly, you can see theBlue Mountains in the background behind the park.In the end credits there is a thank you message to Western Sydney BMXClub. Penrith now has a new BMX track and from what I have read on theinternet, Hickeys Lane BMX track is no longer in use.Regards,Ashley Irons

Jason Butler 2013-04-12 07:32:42

australian bicycle exploitation kid-flick that's wheelie good!

I went to see BMX Bandits when it first came out with an eleventh birthdayparty gang of mates. We were mostly BMX fanatics and figured we'd be runningout of the cinema pulling pretend stunts on our handy imaginary bikes butalas we'd kinda just wheeled out, a little let down. Cut to many years laterand I catch it on saturday afternoon TV and that's when I flip. I was tooharsh on the pic as a kid coz i thought it pandered to a younger audiencebut now looking back on my days as a kid it's got some innocent magic likethose british children's film foundation pics. Nicole Kidman is a star andher fellow BMX bandits form a fun team but it's the pursuing criminals thatsteal the show with their manic and obviously improvised actions anddialogue.And hey, any movie that ends with a flour bomb fight on wheels and a hugeexplosion of foam [which always renders the baddies useless] it's just gottabe top!

2013-04-11 17:51:08

More cheese than a plate of nachos.

This review is from: BMX Bandits [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray) The acting was bad. The stunts were obviously done by doubles. The action was completely unbelievable (I loved the magical off-screen use only tracking and teleportation device in the bad guys car) the story and plot were thin and full of holes.I loved it.This is exactly the cheesy flick kids love to veg out on. There's nothing too complicated to comprehend, just one scene poorly connected to the next.For those of you with the up-tight American "proper" mindset some of the dialog is a little racier than would be allowed in a modern G, maybe PG feature. No real dirty words, just the occasional sexual dialog that just a little over the line for the strong conservative mindset that I'm guessing is completely in the clear for Australia during the early 80's when this was shot. It's not Disney clean, but might be just within Dreamworks clean.

delasky 2013-03-24 20:56:48

Best. Movie. Ever.

If I was on my deathbed, and my loved ones were gathering around me, andiftheyasked me if there was anything I wanted to do before I died... I wouldreply, "Show meBMX Bandits, one last time." Obviously, this will never happen, as I havenoloved ones,and in fact will probably die alone. But enough about me.BMX Bandits is an unparalleled achievement in cinema history, rankingrightup therewith, "Out of the Body" and "Birth of a Nation." It basically features anubile NIcoleKidman (in tight BMX pants ;-) ) and her band of mates, Goose, and P.J.Confused? That'sbecause those names are BMX lingo. This film is jam-packed with BMXtomfoolery andother high speed things. Look for a wizend David Argue (remember his roleinGallipoli?)as the colorful crook, "Whitey." Watch as him and his partner-in-crime,JohnLey(Mustache) are unable to kill three kids on bikes. Even with a muscle car.And a trunkfulof guns. Thrills and chills ensue. Scary Graveyard Hide-and-go seek! Foamfertilizer!Male short shorts! Complicated movie-within-movie descriptions. And oneextremelyawkward kiss. This movie is not to be missed.

2013-03-24 07:27:48

movie is great. quality and performance of dvd awful.

I ordered this movie for my granddaughter. Her dad grew up watching it and I was so excited to find it for her. Boy were we disappointed. We could not even watch it. It skipped whole scenes, the picture quality was even worse than most pirated dvd. I am so disappointed with it. I recommend the movie for any youngster but be very careful who you order from.

2013-03-22 19:30:55

Bad Bad Bad

Horrible sound quality and the picture is blurry. Oh and the return policy is only if unopened which sucks because you expect it to be a decent movie and for someone to be able to sell that it's ridiculous.

Michael_Elliott 2013-03-22 08:15:48

Decent for What It Is

BMX Bandits (1983) ** (out of 4) This Australian kids film turned a good profit when it was firstreleased and gathered a small cult following but the majority of peopleare mainly going to know it for featuring a very young Nicole Kidman inone of her earliest roles. In the film, BMX riders (David Argue, JohnLey) and their new friend (Kidman) get caught up with a bunch of badguys who mean them harm and of course the police are too stupid tofigure things out. There's really not much plot to BMX BANDITS but I'msure fans of the bike will enjoy this little adventure fantasy a lotmore than your average viewer. The 1980s were full of films like thisthat were aimed at children to try and get them to use theirimagination. In America we got films like THE GOONIES so I think we gotthe better end of the stick. This film is certainly far from horrid andI'll at least give director Brian Trenchard-Smith credit for keepingthe film moving at a very good pace from start to finish. As silly andstupid as the plot gets, there's no doubt that the director handles itin a good fashion and manages to make the film a lot more bearable thanmost directors would have. In fact, I could see the majority ofdirectors reading the script and doing it for no other reason thanmoney, they didn't have anything else on their plate or just doing itto try and get to something bigger and better. Again, at least makingthe film look professional and keeping it moving is a major plus in mybook and the director should be happy with that. The performances areall pretty mixed at best but I'd say that the majority of them areunimpressive. As for Kidman, you'd certainly never look at thisperformance as a clear hint of a future Oscar-winner but she's cuteenough and charming enough. Plus, today you get the charm of seeing anOscar-winner in such an early role and this adds more fun to it thanI'm sure the film had when it was originally released. With all of thatsaid, this is still a pretty silly film that just doesn't have enoughplot to keep it entertaining throughout. I'm sure young kids will havefun with the bikes and the adventure but everyone else should probablyjust stay away.

dirtychild 2013-03-19 11:22:58

The film Nicole doesn't want you to see...

This movie is perfect for a drunken video night at home. Nicole Kidmanstars as one of the teenage BMX bandits and a check-out chick at the localsupermarket. The kids come across a bunch of stolen walkie-talkies andgetcaught up with some "nasty" goons. Don't miss the classic going down theManly waterslides on BMX bikes. Luv Nicole's perm! And the BMX banditsmatching outfits! And the goons'"scary" halloween masks!80's children classic!A total stinker - but in the "it's so bad it's good" category.Plus a must see for all those Nicole fans out there.

2013-03-18 22:46:00

The DVD Is Bad; The Movie Is Even Worse

First things first: I have an older pressing of "BMX Bandits," and it is a technical disaster. There is a new (2011) anamorphic version available that evidently fixes the malfunctioning menus, washed out colors, and frequently inaudible sound found on earlier versions (it's probably the worst sound quality I have ever heard on any DVD.) It's even available on Blu-ray! For fans of the movie that's great news, but I couldn't stop wondering why anyone would go through the effort. I understand watching movies for nostalgic reasons and there are a few films that I feel that way about, and I respectfully realize that this film has a following. I don't get it though: it's in the Australian coming of age comedic crime bungle genre, and stars a very young Nicole Kidman as Judy, who with her friends P. J. (the wonderfully named Angelo D'Angelo) and Goose (James Lugton,) ride their bicycles over, on, and through things in one big chase. Kidman even takes her BMX down a water slide. Don't even ask why. That's pretty much it. The film pits the teens against organized crime and the police to control some stolen goods. What is this incredible cache, you ask? A set of amazingly clunky police radios. There must not be much crime in Australia, because the cops make this their highest priority case, and before it's over we are treated to dramatic interactions with robbers in pig masks, lots of boating (in)action, a pointless chase through a cemetery at night (lightning included, naturally,) and psychoanalysis by radio, among other insipid plotpoints. To make matters worse, there are some simply wretched 1980s songs and a relentless soundtrack constantly assaulting the audience with boring electronic piano noodling. Of course the big "attraction" here is the BMX riding, which fills endless swaths of screen time. For a film that's really just a series of chases stitched together with a couple of expository sentences about (or on) the stolen walkie talkies, it is stunning how boring this picture can be. The menu didn't work properly in my copy in that I couldn't fast forward (seriously; I could skip chapters though, oddly.) You will see why this is a big deal if you watch the movie. Sometimes I miss the '80s, too, but there are many better ways of remembering that decade than watching Nicole Kidman and two guys ride bicycles all over Australia. The plot is thin, the acting is terrible, the hair is huge, and the music is like fingernails on a blackboard. In the words of then-First Lady Nancy Reagan, "Just say no."

2013-03-18 07:29:32

Brian Trenchard Smith is THE MAN of 80s action

This review is from: BMX Bandits (DVD) The director of this movie is also responsible for Escape 2000(aka Thatcher Death Camp), Day of the Panther, Dead-End Drive-In, Leprechaun 4, Demonstone, and a handful of other movies that are slowly being released on DVD. His movies are often more complex than meets the eye, but for those who want to just zone out with their nightly movie in a Joe Bob Briggs/ "movies for guys who like movies", 80s and 90s action-packed kind of way, this man is the director for you! I'd bet anyone who appreciated some of John Carpenter's masterpieces (Halloween, Escape From New York, The Thing, and They Live) as well as fans of that special blend of unintentional humor and over-the-top violence that can be found in movies such as Universal Soldier, Terminator 1, Total Recall, The Killer, etc. would really appreciate this director's capabilities. I'd highly recommend this or Escape 2000 as an introduction to one of the most underappreciated action movie directors of our time.

2013-03-17 19:05:37

BMX Bandits

This review is from: BMX Bandits (DVD) An old Australian film, brings back memories for Aussies. Great for kids and a kick to see Nicole Kidman as a teenager. A fun film for all, no hidden meanings, no foul language - just fun.

Tom Holloway 2013-03-14 12:41:02

Cool movie!

I have similar feelings about this movie as a lot of the otherreviewers.As kids, my friends and I used to rent it at all opportunities. I can stillremember fighting in the car over who got to look at the cover!I watched it again a few years back. The plot seemed silly. The acting wasno longer brilliant. Overall it dropped about 2 stars!But I still enjoyed seeing it again. It was good memories.Of course having Nicole Kidman in one of her first movies ever is also greatfun to watch. Who'd have known she'd go on to become such hotproperty.P.s. She must spend a fortune keeping her hair straight!

rikosheavr4 2013-03-14 02:06:47

Probably the best vintage fiction BMX film

Fond childhood memories of this film were strong enough for a re-watch.Now in my early 30's I can appreciate the nuances of BMX Bandits. Thestory is original and the setting of Australia is ideal. Nicole Kidmanshows her early magical acting skills and the two young lead actors areequally engaging.The story follows Two teenage boys and one young girl(Kidman) trying to get enough money by any crazy scheme to fund theirBMX passion. They get involved by accident with some bank robbers andthe story unfolds. A reasonable family film with little to no badlanguage or nudity. SOme good Australian humour and a very early 80'sfeel. Do not expect a high budget film with fancy stunts and explosionsas you will be very disappointed.