Customer Reviews

BMX Bandits

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

OK, I'm 54 years old and what am I doing watching a movie like this... Remember how as a kid you liked to watch more adult-themed movies so you could fantasize about what it would be like when you grew up? Well, I sometimes watch a film like this so I can fantasize about what it was like when I was a teenager. It's one of my guilty pleasures. The only thing I don't miss is the teenage angst. Fortunately this movie didn't have too much of that, it was just fun.

The BMX sport which later became a craze was just getting started when I was in high school, and it was interesting to watch here. The film is not Oscar material, and some would consider it a hokey teen exploitation movie. Thankfully there wasn't any noticeable bad language or explicit sex. One reviewer said it fits into the "so bad it's good" category. Maybe, but for me anyway it seems a little better than that.

Also, as an American I found it more interesting to watch because it's an Australian-made film. I bought it in a five-movie collection DVD I found in the bargain bin at WalMart, and I wasn't really paying too much attention to who was in it when I popped it in to relax one evening. As I was looking at the girl, I thought, "She looks kind of familiar with her Aussie accent... hey wait...could it be? It's Nicole Kidman!" Her presence made me keep watching to see how she handled her earliest film role.

The criminals in the movie start off as real badasses, with ominous music playing in the background (which later becomes amusing). A couple of them quickly degenerate into "Home Alone" style bad guys ineptly chasing the two dudes and Nicole all over the city (including going down the tubes of a water slide!). The teenagers could now identify them, and had taken the walkie-talkies (remember them?) that the crooks needed to tap into the police band radio frequency to stay ahead of the cops. In the police station there is a police woman who seems willing to be sympathetic to the teens. I thought she was hot. When the chief's back is turned, she bites one of her fellow officer's ears. I envied him.

All in all, I enjoyed this movie, and if you don't expect too much from it, you might also. The scenery is really good to look at, and the sunny seaside city really lifted my spirits. The exuberance of young people having a good time did, too.

This movie was hysterical when I caught it on cable as a kid. My brother and I watched it hundreds of times.

Nicole Kidman was unknown when it came out. Now that she's a big star, she probably wants it to be forgotten, but I'm glad it isn't.

It's a great kid's action movie. Anyone who's ever been on a BMX bike will love it, and if you have a sense of humor you'll find David Argue absolutely hysterical.

It's a guilty pleasure!

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."

The quality is as good as it was in the 80's and the DVD is a great quality and value for the price. This is the classic BMX movie starring Nicole Kidman.

I'll leave reviews of the movie to other reviews. My review is about the question of whether or not to upgrade your DVD copy to a Blu-Ray copy. The answer is: YES.

You wouldn't expect an 80s-era, low budget movie to be improved on quality-wise with a Blu-Ray release, but I think you will be pleasantly surprised. They can't work miracles, obviously -- the audio isn't going to pop in a way it never did before -- but the colours in the picture, and the quality of the picture are way beyond what I would have expected for a movie like this.

Obviously, it's not going to look as good as a brand-new release, but it's easily the best transfer of this movie to date.

(Bmx bandits) the quality was horrible!the sound went in and out,like someone took it straight off vhs.disappointed!Never even heard of the company it was made from deffinently a bootleg.I did'nt think amazon had bootlegers!they need to remaster it or something.can i get a special edition or something.

Please note that the people here complaining about the poor quality of this movie are NOT talking about this latest release of the film. The new version is in anamorphic widescreen, and is flawless.

I have seen previous versions of the film, and they all had distorted full-screen pictures. That has been corrected, and the movie looks terrific.

As for the movie itself, it is a lot of fun, and seeing Nicole Kidman at 15 is a treat. This is a kids movie that adults will enjoy as much as the young ones will. Highly recommended.

I purchased this DVD a while back from a merchant on Amazon. It's an old classic movie that I remember watching growing up. I use to love this movie back in the day but fast forward a decade later and it's just a way to kill time. The quality of the DVD received was not good. It just seemed like an old showing on TV was copied onto the DVD. Not sure if it was just an issue with my merchant or not. The acting is not great but it's fun to see Nicole Kidman back at the beginning of her career. If your interested I would recommend at least watching it once. If your into Australian teen biking, drama, and a dash of romance your looking at the right movie.

Great vintage BMX movie. BMX race bikes with large number plates, mag wheels and funky race clothes. Not great as far as video or sound quality, but a good trip down memory lane for old BMX'ers and a look into the old days for kids who are new to BMX. And it's pretty cool to see Nicole Kidman as a kid before she really became famous. Overall, it's worth watching when you're not racing.

This movie is an Australian version of an 80's Disney type movie.
Kids on bikes fight it out with a robbery gang
and win.
The chase scenes are patently fake, but there
are some very good stunts.
The horror movie humor of the grave yard chase
is pretty funny.
All in all pretty written for a fluff movie
on a small budget. This movie was probably Nicole Kidman's
first big role?