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41 MOTORCYCLES ON SCREEN Since the beginning of the twentieth century, filmmakers have been drawn to the uniquely cinematic appeal of the motorcycle. The breakneck speed, the unmistakable designs, the ravenously revving engines: motorcycles provide myriad aesthetic possibilities for the screen. Beyond the sound and fury of the bikes themselves, the exoticism of biker gangs and the utilitarian usefulness of motorcycles as common transport offer bases for tales of great danger alongside incisive portraits of life on the ground. Blending the seminal Hollywood classics that helped define motorcycles in the popular Western imagination with lesser known but equally captivating entries in the film canon, ‘Motorcycles on Screen’ dives into portrayals of the early years of motorcycling, and examines what possibilities may lie ahead of us in the future. It looks at how motorcycles and motorcycle culture have been used in cinema to depict ideas of freedom, danger and fraternity around the world, and how the motorcycle has been used as a potent symbol in experimental filmmaking. While representations of motorcycles permeate almost every film genre, the power and relative unpredictability of early bikes meant their primary role was to facilitate stunts and comedy. Each of the big three screen clowns — Chaplin, Keaton, Lloyd — took advantage of the machine’s potential for slapstick pratfalls with destructive chase sequences in films such as Mabel at the Wheel 1914 and Get Out and Get Under 1920. Its capacity for adventure steered some of the first travel films (such as A Motorcycle Trip among the Clouds 1926), in which intrepid explorers would traverse remote parts of the world, whose cinematic language continues to be felt in road movies like The Motorcycle Diaries 2004. Despite some notable exceptions — the resplendent official vehicle of Groucho Marx’s Rufus T Firefly in Duck Soup 1933, for one — the sound era initially led to a quiet period for motorcycles on screen, as new technical limitations and audience tastes pivoted towards different kinds of drama. However, this would change in 1953 with two of the most indelible images in cinema history: Audrey Hepburn on a Vespa, joyously careening through the bustling streets in Roman Holiday ; and Marlon Brando decked out in leather, the epitome of mid-century American cool, leaning back against his Triumph Thunderbird in The Wild One . These competing visions of freedom from the two burgeoning superstars would play a key role in defining the motorcycle as an instrument of rebellion in popular culture for decades to come. MOTORCYCLES ON SCREEN In association with the Gallery’s major summer exhibition ‘The Motorcycle: Design, Art, Desire’, the Australian Cinémathèque presents ‘Motorcycles on Screen’, which explores the rich history of the vehicle in cinema, from the silent era to today, writes Rob Hughes . Above Production still from Roman Holiday 1953 / Director: Wiliam Wyler / Image courtesy: Paramount Pictures Australia Opposite Production still from The Wild One 1953 / Director: László Benedek / Image courtesy: Park Circus