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Breaking Away

Breaking Away

Drama · Comedy · 1979

Dave, nineteen, has just graduated high school, with his three friends: the comical Cyril, the warm hearted but short-tempered Moocher, and the athletic, spiteful but good-hearted Mike. Now, Dave enjoys racing bikes and hopes to race the Italians one day, and even takes up the Italian culture, much to his friends' and parents' annoyance.

Movie details

Breaking Away

“The movie that tells you exactly what you can do with your high school diploma!”

1979 Drama · Comedy 1h 41m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

7.2 / 10

Community rating

Dave, nineteen, has just graduated high school, with his three friends: the comical Cyril, the warm hearted but short-tempered Moocher, and the athletic, spiteful but good-hearted Mike. Now, Dave enjoys racing bikes and hopes to race the Italians one day, and even takes up the Italian culture, much to his friends' and parents' annoyance.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Breaking Away?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Skater Girl

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Peter Yates

Written by

Steve Tesich

Dennis Christopher

Dennis Christopher

Dave Stoller

Dennis Quaid

Dennis Quaid

Mike

Daniel Stern

Daniel Stern

Cyril

Jackie Earle Haley

Jackie Earle Haley

Moocher

Barbara Barrie

Barbara Barrie

Evelyn Stoller

Paul Dooley

Paul Dooley

Ray Stoller

Robyn Douglass

Robyn Douglass

Katherine

Court is in session

Put Breaking Away on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Sincerity is not manipulation.”

The film risks embarrassment to make emotion communal, and that openness is harder than fashionable detachment.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“The strings are showing.”

Every cue tells you exactly what to feel and when, leaving sentiment to do the work character should have done.