The World's Fastest Indian (2005)

The life story of New Zealander Burt Munro, who spent years building a 1920 Indian motorcycle -- a bike which helped him set the land-speed world record at Utah's Bonneville Salt Flats in 1967.

Director:

Roger Donaldson

Writer:

Roger Donaldson

Stars:

Anthony Hopkins, Iain Rea, Tessa Mitchell

10 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Anthony Hopkins	...	Burt Munro
Iain Rea	...	George
Tessa Mitchell	...	Sarah
Aaron Murphy	...	Tom
Tim Shadbolt	...	Frank
Annie Whittle	...	Fran
Greg Johnson	...	Duncan
Antony Starr	...	Jeff
Kate Sullivan	...	Doris
Craig Hall	...	Antarctic Angel
Jim Bowman	...	Cook
Alison Bruce	...	Doctor
Phoebe Falconer	...	Janice Springfield
Charles Pierard	...	Bank Manager
Barry Ryan	...	Burt's Neighbour

Storyline

For 25 years in Invercargill at the south end of New Zealand, Burt Munro (1899-1978) has been working on increasing the speed of his motorcycle, a 1920 Indian. He dreams of taking it to the Bonneville Salt Flats to see how fast it will go. By the early 1960s, heart disease threatens his life, so he mortgages his house and takes a boat to Los Angeles, buys an old car, builds a makeshift trailer, gets the Indian through customs, and heads for Utah. Along the way, people he meets are charmed by his open, direct friendliness. If he makes it to Bonneville, will they let an old guy on the flats with makeshift tires, no brakes, and no chute? And will the Indian actually respond?

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Plot Keywords:

motorcycle | utah | trailer | speed | mortgage | 

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Taglines:

Based On One Hell Of A True Story

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Sport

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for brief language, drug use and a sexual reference

Details

Official Sites:

Icon Film Distribution [uk] Magnolia Pictures [us]

Country:

New Zealand USA Switzerland Japan

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 October 2005 (New Zealand)

Also Known As:

A leggyorsabb Indian

Filming Locations:

Echo, Utah, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$25,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$958,836 (Australia) (7 April 2006)

Gross:

$5,128,124 (USA) (14 July 2006)

Company Credits

Production Co:

OLC / Rights Entertainment, Tanlay, New Zealand Film Production Fund

Technical Specs

Runtime:

127 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital EX

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Tim Shadbolt, who plays Frank in the movie was actually the Mayor of Invercargill in real life from 1998 to present (as of 2010).

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Goofs

In the bar on the way to Bonneville, the waitress offers Burt Munro his choice of beers-including Coors. At the time depicted in the movie Coors was not readily available outside of Colorado, if at all.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Burt Munro: [rolling a distance gauge] 93... 94... 95... 96... 97...

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Connections

Referenced in Kingdom of the Vampire (2007)

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Soundtracks

"You Are My Sunshine"
(Jimmie Davis / Charles Mitchell)
© Peer International Corp
Used by permission. All rights reserved

User Reviews

I never thought I would cry

It's a good thing I took my wife, because as all men know the only way not to cry is to look over at your wife/girlfriend and make fun of them for crying.

Seriously, I am a motorcycle aficionado but I truly think this movie transcends that. It's not a "guy's film" at all but a serious look at the life of a man that was average by his own reckoning - by ours he's a hero. When you find yourself looking at that and saying "I would have quit" and it was only the beginning of the movie, well, that's some tough stock Burt Munro came from.

And it's not tedious, not an uphill struggle all the way against insurmountable odds, none of those clichés. It's a great movie about a real guy and I can't imagine someone watching it and not being entertained, moved, and frankly, impressed.