On Any Sunday

So, I am pretty sure that On Any Sunday tops the list of movies I have seen too many times.

I think I have watched this more than I have seen Star Wars. I know the story, the scenes and the nuances.

Bruce Brown did the movie, the surfer movie dude, with the backing of Steve McQueen. It paints a glorious picture of motorcycling which captures the individual nature of the sport at it's hey-day. A synaptic view, which faded almost at the moment it was filmed.


On Any Sunday is a snapshot of time and space.

A simpler time, when a guy might be a national champion through his own efforts. A glimpse of gladiators fighting for their own freedom, their own triumph and individual success.

I presume that the romance comes from the nostalgic goggles with which the content is viewed through, but the strength of personal struggle and triumph shines through all of that. The character of the folks featured cannot be contained in those rose tinted lenses.

Men like Mert Lawill, Dick Mann and even Steve McQueen carry the film, by simply being themselves. By simply expressing their passions, while being filmed.

I am sure I will watch On Any Sunday again, and again...

Only because I hope to attain that air of expression, that moment of purity, in the things that keep me going...