top of page

The Queen of Accents & the King of Subtlety

All hail! The rulers of cinema and the box office.


The Bikeriders


Based on a book and true story of the same name, it takes place in Chicago in the 1960s and 1970s about a motorcycle gang and the young woman that fell in love with one of the members. The story explores how a small gang of motorcycle enthusiasts slowly evolved into a massive conglomerate of violent, blood-thristy criminals. All while giving the audience a love story to root for in the form of Kathy a young woman who happens to meet Benny (one of the gang members) in a bar that the gang goes to regularly. 


Most Valuable Performers


The stars of this fantastic film included Jodie Comer (Killing Eve), Austin Butler (Elvis), and Tom Hardy (Venom). Comer played Kathy who was the heart and soul of this movie as she represented the law abiding citizen who just so happened to be in a relationship with Benny (played by Butler). After watching the movie I quickly came to the realization that Benny didn’t have that many lines and most of the time when he was on camera his meaningful looks to either Kathy or Tom Hardy’s gang leader Johnny or the other bikers spoke volumes. Comer (who is from Liverpool, UK and is best known for her Russian accent after playing Villanelle from Killing Eve) developed a strong Chicagoan accent to play Kathy even when her character has an emotional breakdown later in the film she still holds on to the accent. 


Comer has a lot to do in this movie, as I mentioned earlier she is the emotional tether in this world. She is constantly reminding the guys (specifically Benny) of how easily one of them could die just by wearing their colors (their gang jackets) to the wrong side of town or a rival gang could just decide to kill one of them at random.


Kathy has a line in the movie where she explains to a reporter (who wrote the book that the movie is based on) that Benny is not an emotional man, she mentions that when someone he knows passes away that they are (for lack of a better word) ‘better off’ than those who are still alive are. This one line tells the audience everything we need to know about Benny, but it also shows us how much Butler has to convey on camera without shedding a tear or cracking a smile. Without verbally and emotionally expressing it Benny is supposed to tell the audience that: he loves Kathy, he loves Johnny, and that he does care about his identity as a motorcycle gang member and his fellow gang members. This movie cements the notion that Jodie Comer is the Queen of Accents and it hereby crowns Austin Butler as the King of Subtlety. Long may they reign!


P.S. - I watched this amazing film recently on Peacock while traveling, which may actually be the perfect way to watch a movie about a motorcycle gang.



Tele-Tunnel Vision suggestion: I would really appreciate any feedback you may have regarding the Tele-Tunnel Vision website, the Instagram account, the content, etc. Please click the link to fill out a brief survey. https://forms.wix.com/r/7136216761115870097

Comments


bottom of page