Classic and Not-so-Classic Biker Movies

If you already have the bike of your dreams or your budget is slightly limited you should consider picking up a couple of these classic and not-so-classic biker movies so you can enjoy the open road from the comfort of your couch. Here are our top 10 picks for biker movies in no particular order.

The Wild One (1953)

Back in the day Marlon Brando was one bad dude. For graphic proof, see this seminal, black-and-white biker flick. It shows what happens when small-town folk try to police the scourge of motorcycle gangs. Local authorities throw the leader of one such gang into the clink, and his cohorts bully, beat up and generally terrorize the townsfolk in retaliation.

The Wild Angels (1966)

One of the first and best of the ’60s biker movies, this intense drama stars Peter Fonda as Heavenly Blues, leader of a biker gang that destroys a hospital, takes over a church for a funeral and fights some rightfully annoyed townspeople. This movie features Nancy Sinatra, Bruce Dern and members of the Hell’s Angels of Venice, California, as themselves.

Hells Angels On Wheels (1967)

Hell’s Angels on Wheels takes you back to an era of gasoline fuelled rebellion. Starring Jack Nicholson as a prospect that comes to realize that there are a lot of sacrifices required to be in the club… and he doesn’t want to be one of them. Until that realization, however, he delights in the biker life which allows Nicholson to give his baby-faced killer grin a thorough work-out.

Hells Angels 69 (1969)

In this classic biker film from 1969, two brothers cook up what they believe is a great plan to go undercover as Hell’s Angels bikers to provide a cover for their planned robbery of Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. After the robbery, the two escape and change into nice clothing believing their new appearance will throw off the police. What they didn’t count on is the Hell’s Angels don’t like to be played for fools.

Easy Rider (1969)

Originally released in 1969, Easy Rider is widely regarded as the original ‘road movie’. It reflects the attitudes and longings of an entire generation as it follows two counterculture bikers (Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper) who travel from Los Angeles to New Orleans in search of the American dream. Jack Nicholson gives a star making performance as George Hanson. This film is filled with many biblical metaphors which never come off as pretentious but are very powerful.

Electra Glide In Blue (1973)

Blake plays a motorcycle cop named John Wintergreen who patrols the rural Arizona highways with his partner, nicknamed “Zipper”. Wintergreen is laid-back but upright about enforcing the law, while Zipper is lazy and hard-assed about busting hippies, even going so far as to plant evidence on a young man whose van they were searching. As the movie unfolds Wintergreen begins identifying with the hippies and his relationship with Zipper deteriorates to confrontation.

Chopper Chicks in Zombietown (1989)

This is a B-movie spoof that deftly mashes a biker movie with a good, old-fashioned monster flick. The resulting hybrid is hilarious and entertaining. The “plot” revolves around a gang of hot biker chicks who descend on a small town and elicit suspicious stares and disapproving clucks from the blue-haired locals.

Harley Davidson And The Marlboro Man (1991)

It’s better to be dead and cool, than alive and uncool. It is 1996. And in this lawless world there live two tough heroes. Harley Davidson is a tough but compassionate biker. His life – long friend, the Marlboro Man, is a former rodeo cowboy. They didn’t mean to rob a bank, but they did it for the right reasons. And they certainly didn’t mean to get drawn into a treacherous world where money is only a means to a much more dangerous end.

Beyond the Law (1992)

If you can buy Charlie Sheen as a rough-and-tumble undercover cop who infiltrates a murderous biker gang, you just might enjoy a decent little movie. It is based on the true story of a man who did indeed work his way into a drug- and gun-running gang, only to find himself starting to like the bikers more than his police superiors. It’s deeper than most biker flicks, with art-house aspects like symbolism and character development mixed in with the stuff you’d expect, like fights, drugs and sex.

Roadside Prophets (1992)

Construction worker Doe, whose best friend is his motorcycle, rides from L. A. to seek the “legendary” city of El Dorado in Nevada. His purpose: to dispose of the ashes of an acquaintance, who died while playing a video game. Along the way he gains a traveling companion (Horovitz) and meets various characters who are leftovers from the 1960s counterculture. A bit too self-consciously hip but a wry, potent look at modern-day alienation and how yesterday’s pop culture becomes today’s nostalgia.

Masters Of Menace (2000)

The Roadmasters Motorcycle Club doesn’t mean to break any laws, but the laws keep getting in their way. When one of their own is killed testing a new bike, they must violate parole to go to his funeral which makes their arch nemesis, the deputy district attorney very happy.