49
Metascore
18 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 75Chicago TribuneMichael WilmingtonChicago TribuneMichael WilmingtonA sports bio movie that I really enjoyed about a sport and sports hero I barely knew existed: the World Hour Record competition for bicyclists and its gutsy, tormented and most unusual champion, Graeme Obree.
- 67Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam ArnoldSeattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam ArnoldObree's psychology is fascinating and, even though the competitive scenes mostly involve him racing against himself in a spectator-free indoor track, the movie manages to give its audience a suitable adrenaline rush here and there.
- 60Washington PostWashington PostMiller is key to the film's success, with his earnest, sweet-faced looks and evident dark side. He plays Obree with just the right understated intensity, a believable competitor who fights back fiercely with his wits and a few tight-lipped words.
- 50VarietyEddie CockrellVarietyEddie CockrellHelmer Douglas Mackinnon does what he can to make the most of emotional bullet points and gloss over the lack of connective tissue.
- 50The A.V. ClubKeith PhippsThe A.V. ClubKeith PhippsThere's real triumph to Obree's story, and real adversity, too, but the film contents itself with the pretend versions of both.
- 50Chicago ReaderAndrea GronvallChicago ReaderAndrea GronvallBrian Cox does sturdy work as the minister who helps Obree combat depression, and first-time director Douglas Mackinnon gets a big assist from Obree himself, who doubled for Miller in some shots and filmed others with a camera strapped to his handlebars.
- 50TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonaghTV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonaghIt's a shame it's not a better movie, but its small virtues include an uncompromising performance by English actor Jonny Lee Miller.
- Scotsman not only lacks vision, a true sense of how to mesh Obree's sporting triumphs and personal setbacks, but it also lacks passion. What it needs, as strange and tacky as it may sound, is a bit more madness.
- 38New York Daily NewsJack MathewsNew York Daily NewsJack MathewsFor a much better film about a similar story, rent "The World's Fastest Indian," with Anthony Hopkins on a motorcycle.
- 30L.A. WeeklyScott FoundasL.A. WeeklyScott FoundasIt has a terminal case of the cutes crossed with the labored earnestness of a disease-of-the-week melodrama.