X
  • 1985
  • PG-13
  • Warner Bros.
  • 1 h 53 m
  • 1985
  • PG-13
  • Warner Bros.
  • 1 h 53 m

Summary Sports physician Marcus persuades his unstable brother David to come with him and train for a bicycle race across the Rocky Mountains. Marcus doesn't tell David that he has a brain aneurysm which could render him paralyzed or dead at any given moment. While David powerfully heads for the victory, Marcus has to realize that the contest is...

Directed By: John Badham

Written By: Steve Tesich

  • 1985
  • PG-13
  • Warner Bros.
  • 1 h 53 m
  • 1985
  • PG-13
  • Warner Bros.
  • 1 h 53 m

American Flyers

Metascore Mixed or Average Based on 9 Critic Reviews
50
User Score Available after 4 ratings
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Summary Sports physician Marcus persuades his unstable brother David to come with him and train for a bicycle race across the Rocky Mountains. Marcus doesn't tell David that he has a brain aneurysm which could render him paralyzed or dead at any given moment. While David powerfully heads for the victory, Marcus has to realize that the contest is...

Directed By: John Badham

Written By: Steve Tesich

Where to Watch

Top Cast

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Critic Reviews

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Metascore
Mixed or Average Based on 9 Critic Reviews
50
22% Positive
2 Reviews
78% Mixed
7 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews

Critic Reviews

 View All
Metascore
Mixed or Average Based on 9 Critic Reviews
50
22% Positive
2 Reviews
78% Mixed
7 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews

  • All Reviews
  • Positive Reviews
  • Mixed Reviews
  • Negative Reviews
70
Badham and scriptwriter Steve Tesich keep the syrup and scenery flowing along nicely.
FULL REVIEW
63
American Flyers is shaky at the core, because it tries to tap-dance around its own central issues.
By Roger Ebert FULL REVIEW
60
Not only do the pair have to prepare for the upcoming race, but, hey, they also have to deal with a hysterical mother, a dying father, and the knowledge that one brother is destined for the same fate as pops. Not quite as sickly as it sounds, with a fair few hints of the onscreen magnetism to come.
By William Thomas FULL REVIEW
50
Predictable and maudlin. [14 Oct 1985]
By Jay Scott FULL REVIEW
50
Though the racing action scenes are initially satisfying, one soon tires of the mountain scenery. And the obvious-from-the-start ending robs the race of whatever dramatic tension it ordinarily might have possessed.
By Rick Kogan FULL REVIEW
50
Disjointed and underdeveloped. John Badham's direction is equally uninspired, though the climactic race, shot on location during the Coors International Bicycle Classic, is filmed with an abundance of breathtaking helicopter shots that capture the beautiful scenery.
FULL REVIEW
40
Even though American Flyers is a fatal disease movie involving a couple of bike-racing brothers, it's the film - and not any character - that dies as you watch it.
By Vincent Canby FULL REVIEW

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Details

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Production Company WW Production
Release Date Aug 16, 1985
Duration 1 h 53 m
Rating PG-13
Genres
Tagline They're four one-of-a-kind people taking a chance...and going after a dream that will change their lives forever. [Theatrical]
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