New Movie Review: The World's Fastest Indian
Oct 7, 2005
Dominic Corry
In late 1960s Invercargill, aging motorcycle enthusiast Burt Munro
(Anthony Hopkins) realised his time on this planet was perhaps in
its final stretch, so he pooled his resources in a last ditch
attempt to fulfil a long-held dream. This was to race his extremely
souped-up 1920 Indian motorcycle at the annual world land speed time
trials at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, USA, and attempt to set
a new world record.
The World's Fastest Indian is an unadulterated pleasure from start
to finish that'll have you welling with national pride. It's a
refreshingly old school portrayal of classic Kiwi values ably
anchored by a remarkable lead performance from Anthony Hopkins.
The plot of The World's Fastest Indian embodies the making of the
film itself - everything about it screams labour of love. It's easy
to forget that Roger Donaldson has spent the last twenty years
generating slick Hollywood product (like No Way Out, Thirteen Days
and The Recruit) - The World's Fastest Indian feels intrinsically
"local" and doesn't go out of its way to cater to an international
audience. It oozes "New Zealandness," and is all the more lovable
for it.
This borderline parochial, guileless (but never naive) worldview is
further represented by how much of the tension in the film comes
from the precariousness of Burt's journey through the big bad world
of America, and how close his dreams come to derailing throughout.
But it's his plucky Kiwi spirit that sees him through, which gives
the viewer all the more reason to get behind him. It's not that
Munro doesn't find his fair share of allies in the States, but it is
portrayed as an unforgiving and alien expanse, albeit one that never
intimidates this tenacious Invercargillian.
Anthony Hopkins does a quietly amazing job of perfectly embodying
the classic old kiwi coot. With all his grandstanding performances
of the last few decades, it's easy to forget that he can be a subtly
affecting actor. He's almost become a caricature of himself, with
his relentless (and ever diminishing) portrayals of Hannibal Lecter,
and various other "loud" roles. But here, with his pitch-perfect
mumbling and understated speaking style, you'll actually find
yourself forgetting you're watching Anthony Hopkins (a rare feat
these days) and marvel afterwards how masterfully he slipped into
the role.
Few of the supporting characters stick around for long, but they all
generally get a moment to shine - most memorable are Diane Ladd as
an extremely hospitable American widow and young Aaron Murphy as
Burt's worshipful neighbour Tom.
Although unique in content and subject matter, The World's Fastest
Indian in many ways follows the traditional cinematic model of the
"uplifting" movie. Which is nothing to be ashamed of, but which may
compromise its chances of winning awards. The bodies who give these
out tend to frown upon "feel good" movies, but to characterise The
World's Fastest Indian as simply that is incorrect. It is a
masterfully put together movie with an Oscar-worthy lead
performance.
Despite positive receptions at various festival screenings, some
American critics have unfortunately pigeonholed it as a film "about
and for old people". Which is balls, as the themes of The World's
Fastest Indian couldn't be more universal, and it possesses a
youthful vitality more potent than most ostensibly "younger" films.
The film could be accused of being a bit cute at times, but it stops
well short of over mythologizing its central figure. The ending is
perhaps a little abrupt, but that serves to highlight how despite
his ultimate accomplishments, Burt's journey was truly his
destination.
In a post-Whale Rider and In My Father's Den landscape, The World's
Fastest Indian shows that not all our cinematic successes need to be
contemporary stories - it demonstrates how New Zealand has a rich,
storied past with many unexplored corners. This film may be
traditional in tone, but it never feels irrelevant.
It never betrays its unapologetic New Zealandness, going so far as
to wear it boldly in its sleeve, but there is nary a hint of
cultural cringe in sight, furthering the notion that we may have
finally moved beyond our red-faced national self-perception. A
powerful story such as this, told in such an appealing populist
manner, can only help.
The World's Fastest Indian is an unqualified joy throughout and it
marks a career highlight for Donaldson, another local success
showing the rest of the world just what we're made of down here.
Highly recommended.
Dominic Corry
