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The Girl on a Motorcycle
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Wikipedia article
{{Infobox film
| name = The Girl on a Motorcycle
| image = The-Girl-on-a-Motocycle.jpg
| image_size =
| caption = French theatrical release poster
| director = Jack Cardiff
| producer = William Sassoon
| based_on =
| screenplay = Ronald Duncan
| story =
| starring =
| music = Les Reed
| cinematography =
| editing = Peter Musgrave
| studio =
| distributor =
| released = October 1968
| runtime = 91 minutes
| country =
| language = English
| budget =
| gross = 626,331 admissions [http://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c?anno=2&depth=2&hl=en&rurl=translate.google.com&sl=fr&tl=en&u=http://www.boxofficestory.com/box-office-alain-delon-c22669761/26&usg=ALkJrhjAfv9GyLf89UJXbTf7phzHgR9JSA Box Office information for film] at Box Office Story
}}
'The Girl on a Motorcycle' (French: 'La motocyclette') is a 1968 British-French erotic romantic drama film directed by Jack Cardiff, starring Alain Delon and Marianne Faithfull and featuring Roger Mutton, Marius Goring and Catherine Jourdan. It was listed to compete at the 1968 Cannes Film Festival but the festival was cancelled due to the May 1968 events in France. 'The Girl on a Motorcycle' redefined the leather jacket for motorcyclists into a catsuit that Faithfull wore in the film.Quilleriet, Anne-Laure. 'The Leather Book'. New York: Assouline, 2004. It was the first film to receive an X rating in the United States. Edited by Warner Brothers to get an "R" rating, the film was released as 'Naked Under Leather' in the United States.
Plot
The film is set in France and Germany.
Newly married Rebecca leaves her husband Raymond's bed on her prized motorbikeher symbol of freedom and escape. During her ride to visit Daniel, her lover in Heidelberg, she indulges in psychedelic and erotic reveries as she relives her changing relationship with the two men. Her flashback scenes reveal the background story. Rebecca met Daniel while working at her father's bookshop a few weeks before her marriage to Raymond, a school teacher. Daniel gives Rebecca motorcycle driving lessons on a Norton motorcycle. They quickly become lovers. She asks him if he will marry her, and he simply says "No". She tells him that she is soon to be married, and he says he will give her a wedding present. A Harley Davidson Electra Glide motorcycle is delivered to Rebecca at the bookshop. Her father says she should refuse it, but she asks Raymond what she should do and he says she should do what will make her happy. She rides the motorcycle from France to Germany to be with Daniel. On the return trip, after having several drinks of kirsch in a small village bar, she decides to go back to Daniel rather than Raymond. She drives fast and recklessly, and although she wears leathers she has no helmet. Her ride to Daniel ends prematurely when she collides with a truck which swerves in front of her, throwing her head-first through the windscreen of an oncoming car, which then crashes into the truck.
Cast
* Alain Delon as Daniel
* Marianne Faithfull as Rebecca
* Roger Mutton as Raymond
* Marius Goring as Rebecca's Father
* Catherine Jourdan as Catherine
* Jean Leduc as Jean
* Jacques Marin as Pump Attendant
* Andr Maranne as French Superintendent
* Bari Jonson as First French Customs Officer
* Arnold Diamond as Second French Customs Officer
* John G. Heller as German Customs Officer
* Marika Rivera as German Waitress
* Richard Blake as 1st Student
* Chris Williams as 2nd Student
* Colin West as 3rd Student
Cast notes
*Faithfull's riding double in medium to distant shots was Bill Ivy, British GP champion and former world champion motorcyclist.Production
The film was made on locations in France (including Haguenau), Germany (including Neulauterburg), Switzerland (including Geneva), and Belgium. The bookshop scenes were filmed at a bookshop in Geneva. In many of the scenes where Marianne Faithfull is seen driving the Harley Davidson Electra Glide motorcycle at high speeds, she was seated on the motorcycle which was attached to a platform that was being pulled by a vehicle in front of it. Many of the scenes were filmed in the English language and then again in the French language. Cardiff received extensive cooperation from the police in blocking the roads, so many scenes show only the lone motorcycle and no other vehicular traffic. The final crash scene was staged on an abandoned airstrip in England. The "psychedelic" colour effects were achieved by solarizing the film during post-production.
Reception
The film was the sixth most popular movie in general release in Britain during 1968."John Wayne-money-spinner" 'The Guardian' (31 December 1968)
Home media releases
'The Girl on a Motorcycle' was released on VHS in 1998 and DVD in 1999 by Starz/Anchor Bay. A remastered edition on DVD and Blu-ray Disc was released in 2012 by Jezebel. Both versions contain the same film material, commentary by director Jack Cardiff, and original theatrical trailer. However, the earlier version is approximately 91 minutes long, while the later, remastered version, is approximately 88 minutes long. This time discrepancy is due to the earlier version playing at a slightly slower speed.
References
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