Breaking Away

Movie review by Heather Boerner, Common Sense Media
Breaking Away Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 12+

Rousing bicycle-race tale has some profanity, mild violence.

PG 1979 100 minutes
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Parents say

age 13+

Based on 4 reviews

Kids say

age 10+

Based on 3 reviews

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that this tale of redemption offers a lot in the way of scary, tense, and violent scenes. Although no one gets critically injured, there's lots of fighting. Some kids also may want to imitate the dangerous things characters do in this film: Dave doesn't wear a bike helmet, use a bicycle headlight at night, or wear reflective clothing, and he races in front of cars on a red light. During a bicycle race, a cyclist puts a bike pump in the spokes of Dave's wheel, causing him to crash. Dave races while injured. There's lots of punching and kicking; some blood is seen, but no one is seriously injured. Characters drive around a college campus and discuss women's breasts. Several swear words are used, including "s--t," "hell," "t-ts," "goddamn," "bastards," "son of a bitch," and "damnit." Characters also call others "retard," "p---y cop," and "s--thead."

Community Reviews

silvermoon72
silvermoon72 Adult
April 25, 2021
age 14+

Great movie

This movie was out in 1979 and I was born in 1972. Honestly it's a very wonderful breath of fresh air to return to those times. This movie is like a trip to Disneyland in comparison to some of the garbage they put out today. A very lovely film about family, endurance, being a teenager, and small town America. A few swear words , no sex or nudity (brief mention of female breasts), and shows a more rough and tumble world but perhaps in some ways a more honest one. Can foster interesting discussions about cheating, honesty, class/status, etc. One big fight scene in the film.
Spencer H.
Spencer H. Adult
February 5, 2021
age 14+

Worth seeing at least once but NOT a film for families or small children

I am surprised at the reviews here on CSM saying this is a family movie. Even the DVD cover said so. This is not a family movie by any means and it is absolutely inappropriate for smaller children and in my opinion for pre-teenagers. Keeping in mind this was released before the creation of the PG-13 rating this film has a family-oriented PG rating. But the language in this alone would merit a PG-13 easily today. Lots of GD said and "s---", bastard, bitch hell damn, every profanity you can think of except the f word and rather frequently at that. The main characters father is bigoted especially towards Italians. Additionally he is a car salesman who is dishonest and teaches his son that it is ok to be dishonest to succeed in that business. He also insults and belittles his son out of frustration for not knowing how to relate to him. Daniel Stern's character makes a very inappropriate comment about women's breasts. The main character also lies as his father does and deceives a girl he is interested in. There is also some fist-fighting in a school cafeteria although it is brief and nobody is seriously injured. I found the movie somewhat entertaining. Definitely watchable albeit a bit slower than what I thought it would be. It picked up and got better towards the end. It was neat to see a 21 year old Daniel Stern before he starred in huge hits like Home Alone and City Slickers. It was also cool to see a 24 year old Dennis Quaid as well. The movie on the whole is worth at least one watch for sure but I cannot stress enough to you, do not let CSM or the "family feature" label of the DVD fool you. This is NOT an appropriate film for children and families and should not be viewed by anyone under the age of 14 in my opinion.

This title has:

Too much swearing
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What's the Story?

Dave (Dennis Christopher) and his friends have just graduated from high school. While his buddies amuse themselves by swimming in the rock quarry, Dave has bigger plans. Having won a racing bicycle, Dave has dedicated his life to learning to race it. He reveres the top racers on the Italian team from Cinzano so much he speaks in a cheesy Italian accent, listens to Italian music, and irritates his former stone-cutter father by calling him "Papa" instead of "Dad." While Dave's Italian act woos college girl Katherine, his dedication to his new identity isn't enough to get him noticed by the Cinzano team. Disillusioned -- with snobby, bullying college kids there to rub it in -- he feels like he has a lot to prove to get the respect he deserves.

Is It Any Good?

There are some wonderfully realistic touches to BREAKING AWAY. Anyone who's spent any time with teens knows they try on new identities like new outfits. But it's rare to see a film that shows a teen so deeply in the thrall of his latest obsession -- without it becoming something sinister or dangerous. Similar to the fact that there's no gratuitous sex or nudity in the film, Dave's love of cycling is innocent and pure. He's a character you can root for who still seems real. It makes this cycling movie much more than a good sports movie -- though it's that, as well. It's no surprise that Breaking Away won the Oscar for Best Writing and was nominated for four more, including Best Director and Best Picture.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about why Dave felt the need to pretend to be someone he's not. Do you ever feel like doing that? When is that acceptable, and when could it be harmful?

  • What similarities and differences do you see between this film and other "coming-of-age" movies?

  • What are the differences between "Cutters" -- "townies" who grew up in the college town of Bloomington, Ind. -- and the college kids who live there to attend Indiana University?

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