Sidehackers
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| Sidehackers | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Gus Trikonis |
| Starring | Ross Hagen Diane McBain |
| Release date(s) | 1969 |
| Running time | 82 min. |
| Country | U.S.A. |
| Language | English |
| IMDb profile | |
Sidehackers is a 1969 film (also known as Five the Hard Way) about motorcycle racing with a twist. Each motorcycle has a sidehack, in which a passenger rides and tilts to one side or another when going around curves. There evidently was a true sport around this movie, as the credits thank the Southern California Sidehack Association.
The basic premise of the film centered on Rommel, a mechanic/sidehack-style racer, who turns down the offer of J.C., a hot-tempered entertainer, to join his act after J.C. witnesses a sidehack race for the first time. During this time, J.C.'s abused girlfriend, Paisley, falls for Rommel and attempts to put the moves on him. He quickly turns her down harshly and sends her away crying. Later, when J.C. and his crew return to their hotel, they find Paisley drunk and her clothes tattered, claiming that Rommel raped her. Angered, J.C. and his men beat Rommel unconscious and kill his fiancee, Rita. Rommel then spends the rest of the movie plotting his revenge against J.C., who goes into hiding from the police.
The film's end is nihilistic in nature. After both Rommel and J.C.'s men have killed each other, the two men brawl. When Rommel manages to gain the upper hand, he elects to walk away when the police are about to arrive, but J.C. picks up a gun and shoots Rommel from behind. The last images of the film are a flashback of Rommel and his fiancee rolling about in a grassy field.
[edit] Mystery Science Theater 3000
Sidehackers was the featured movie in episode 202 of Mystery Science Theater 3000. The episode is notable for a unique gag pulled during the movie, when Cambot added an ESPN-like score graphic during one of the racing scenes. The episode is available on DVD from Rhino Entertainment as part of the third volume of Mystery Science Theater 3000 DVD box sets.
The MST writers initially did not watch the entire film when they selected it for the episode. During writing, they were horrified after watching a scene where Rommel's girlfriend Rita is brutally raped before being killed (which was later deleted). After this incident, they watched a movie from beginning to end before writing for the episode.
