Despite getting pushed out of 2023 during the WGA/SAG-AFTRA strike and being forced to find a new distributor, the excitement for writer-director Jeff Nichols’s new film, The Bikeriders, remained pretty high. After all, it boasts a cast full of big-name talent and spotlights a unique culture. Unfortunately, its face-value potential and intrigue isn’t enough to overcome poor execution.
Inspired by Danny Lyon’s 1967 photo-book of the same name—which chronicles his experience with the Illinois-based motorcycle club, Outlaws MC—the film follows the fictional Vandals MC. On the surface, Nichols puts together the right aesthetic and style for this grounded historical epic. The leather/denim jackets that tout the colors and symbols of the Vandals and other clubs create an eye-catching visual identity that carries meaning. The way Nichols captures the Midwest is genuinely stunning and immerses you into the freeing open road that the characters deeply love. Plus, this cast is perfectly selected—evoking the group’s rough, tough, and familial nature in every frame. In those aspects, Nichols does a great job capturing this era of motorcycle clubs and turning it into a cinematic experience.
However, all the hard work done on the front end of the film is constantly marred by how badly chopped up this narrative is. Although the film establishes a framework that sees Lyon (Mike Faist) interviewing different members of the crew and their families about their experience and history, it never forms a cohesive story. The film jumps around way too much between perspectives and never dictates a timeline of events that’s easy to follow. It’s a scatterbrained viewing experience and there are multiple times where story beats are bizarrely executed.
For instance, there’s a scene where a group of young men want to approach the Vandals’ leader Johnny (Tom Hardy) to ask him about joining their ranks. However, the scene of them actually asking doesn’t take place until days later in the story and several scenes later in the film. It’s baffling as to why these scenes don’t just take place together and there are disjointed moments like this littered throughout. The Bikeriders is clearly a victim of the dreaded cutting room floor and it heavily impacts a viewer’s ability to really connect with what’s happening.
With the story all broken apart and roughly stitched back together, it becomes impossible to get real depth with these characters, ultimately resulting in a wasted cast and hollow experience. It’s a shame that a cast made up of talent like Hardy, Austin Butler, Jodie Comer, Michael Shannon, Norman Reedus and many others is given such little material to work with. The film mostly lets the personalities of the ensemble do the driving and the only standout moments come when the crew talks about what the club means to them.
There’s definitely something intriguing and kind of emotional about seeing this crew talk about how they’ve been outcasted by society and simply want to find a sense of belonging. The Vandals absolutely represent themes tied to found family—the core of every motorcycle club—and it really feels like Nichols captures the voice of a lost generation in these moments. Unfortunately, it’s not enough to make the ride worthwhile, as a lot of the other plot threads, arcs, and characters simply lack a connective pull or straight-up context.
The relationship between Benny (Butler) and Kathy (Comer) isn’t given much time to develop and you never really understand why they’re so drawn together—especially as the club complicates their relationship. It feels like Nichols tries to embed a thematic thread about generational shifts that isn’t clear in its messaging and leads to the film’s final stretch feeling rushed and unimpactful. Most of the Vandals aren’t even given proper arcs and simply overstuff the film with their firm looks and crude jokes. Some of them even exit the film without warning, so their lack of importance is obvious and creates underwhelming story threads.
It doesn’t even feel like you really get an in-depth look at this unique pocket of American counter-culture, and that’s the most disappointing part. The Bikeriders could’ve really dug into our perceptions of motorcycle clubs and offered a more personal perspective. Instead, it just has basic depictions that you could find in most crime movies when it comes to loyalty and protecting your own and doesn’t make a distinct mark in any way.
The Bikeriders is a massive disappointment given what it could’ve been and wastes its potential and strong cast on a story that never finds its footing. It’s an incoherent mess that has the right look and feel, but can’t capture its voice effectively – leading to an unfortunately forgettable experience.
