'FASTEST' RIDE OF A LIFETIME.Byline: Bob Strauss Film Critic NO DOUBT Burt Munro Herbert James Munro (25 March 1899 Invercargill, New Zealand–6 January 1978 in Invercargill) set the under-1000 cc world motorcycle land speed record—which still stands—in 1967 at Bonneville Salt Flats with a self-modified Indian motorcycle. was a great guy. A real character, the New Zealand New Zealand (zē`lənd), island country (2005 est. pop. 4,035,000), 104,454 sq mi (270,534 sq km), in the S Pacific Ocean, over 1,000 mi (1,600 km) SE of Australia. The capital is Wellington; the largest city and leading port is Auckland. motorcycle nut spent what appears to be the majority of his long life sleeping in a cinder-block shed with his mechanics' gear and his beloved 1920 Indian Twin Scout. In the 1960s, he finally got it together to cross the ocean to L.A. and travel overland to Utah's Bonneville Salt Flats Bonneville Salt Flats (bŏn`əvĭl, bŏ`nēvĭl, bŏn`vĭl), desert area in Tooele co., NW Utah, c.14 mi (22.5 km) long and 7 mi (11.2 km) wide. , where he and the equally ancient bike eventually set a speed record. ``The World's Fastest Indian'' is about that journey. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Roger Donaldson, who wrote and directed the movie (and met Munro in the 1970s), Burt was so gosh-darn lovable that even his neighbors in the small, South Island village of Invercargill forgave for·gave v. Past tense of forgive. forgave Verb the past tense of forgive forgave forgive his revving motors at all hours and urinating on his lemon tree. The unattached elderly ladies of the community found him irresistible, but Burt was wedded to his dream of racing at the legendary proving grounds Blackarachnia is growing steadily more annoyed with the tension between her and the Maximals. . Hopkins pours on the optimistic charm, of course. But Burt Munro is little more than a fantasy figure for the elderly in ``The World's Fastest Indian.'' And however great it must have felt for the bloke to follow his dream, Hopkins seemed to be having a much better time back when he was stalking entrees to go with fava beans and Chianti. Bob Strauss, (818) 713-3670 bob.strauss(at)dailynews.com THE WORLD'S FASTEST INDIAN - Two and one half stars (PG-13: language, sex, drug use) Starring: Anthony Hopkins, Diane Ladd, Paul Rodriguez, Aaron Murphy. Director: Roger Donaldson.. Running time: 2 hr. 7 min. Playing: Media Center 8 in Burbank, Paseo Camarillo in Camarillo, Winnetka 20 in Chatsworth, Laemmle's One Colorado in Pasadena, Thousand Oaks in Thousand Oaks, Fallbrook 10 in West Hills, Westside Pavilion in West Los Angeles
In a nutshell: Anthony Hopkins plays real-life New Zealand motorcycle racer Burt Munro, who set a speed record at the Bonneville Salt Flats in his twilight years. |
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