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I’ve been thinking, I can run this club forever. I’ve built this from nothing. This is our family. You and me kid. – Johnny

THE BIKERIDERS captures a rebellious time in America when the culture and people were changing. After a chance encounter at a local bar, strong-willed Kathy (Comer) is inextricably drawn to Benny (Butler), the newest member of Midwestern motorcycle club the Vandals, led by the enigmatic Johnny (Hardy). Much like the country around it, the club begins to evolve, transforming from a gathering place for local outsiders into a dangerous underworld of violence, forcing Benny to choose between Kathy and his loyalty to the club. – Synopsis via Universal Pictures Home Entertainment

THE BIKERIDERS is written and directed by Jeff Nichols. It is based on a book by Danny Lyon, who is of the same name. Nichols is best known for directing MUD and MIDNIGHT SPECIAL. He has this ability to create enticing films that are cleverly story-driven. He also tends to drop the audience into a story with both feet in a particular sliver of time.

It is plain to see that Kathy, Benny, and Johnny are the main characters but being that Kathy is the narrator, she is considered to be the lead. Her narration is from her interview time with the author, Danny Lyon.

The way that the movie is played out is with connecting incidents or events that need that need the stories bridged properly. Kathy is that bridge and how she narrates helps things come together.

Cast
Jodie Comer as Kathy
Austin Butler as Benny
Tom Hardy as Johnny
Michael Shannon as Zipco
Mike Faist as Danny Lyon
Boyd Holbrook as Cal
Damon Herriman as Brucie
Beau Knapp as Wahoo
Emory Cohen as Cockroach
Karl Glusman as Corky
Toby Wallace as The Kid
Norman Reedus as Funny Sonny

VIDEO QUALITY 5/5
The video is a 2160p HEVC presentation and it has a beautiful, filmic look. The images have a nice grain that, along with the sepia-like filter on the video, adds to the movie telling this story from 60 years ago. Aside from some “strategic” outfits for Kathy, the colors overall tend to be on the muted side. The textures on the vintage clothing plus the MC’s colors and patches feel authentic.

The sharpness lets no detail be missed from the fraying on the club colors and the wear on other clothing. It also shows how crisp some of the other clothing is. Finer details such as Kathy’s hair and the homeless look that Funny Sonny perfectly pulls off are also sharp. Honestly, just the textures on practically any item have a strong presence on the format. The dark scenes have inky blacks and shadows, courtesy of the HDR on the release. The skin tones are naturally toned and warm. There are no issues or errors that I could see in the transfer and this has been authored well.

AUDIO QUALITY 5/5
The audio is a Dolby Atmos mix that defaults to a Dolby TrueHD 7.1 mix depending on your setup. The LFEs are the most notable part of the track and it is mostly from the engines of the bikes. The music sounds excellent and is clear in the mix. The overhead channels widen the sound-field at particular moments such as the bike motors echoing upward. Also, the indoor scenes in the clubhouse and party scenes are very busy with sound. These scenes catch conversations, clanging bottles, and other sounds of a good time to keep the scenes lively. The narration from Cathy and other dialogue is prioritized well.

SUPPLEMENTS & PACKAGING 3/5
-Audio Commentary: with Writer/Director Jeff Nichols

-Johnny, Benny, & Kathy: This has the various cast and crew discussing the three main characters.

-The Era of THE BIKERIDERS: This talks about the clothing, bikes, and settings that make the film feel like is from The Mid-West in the 1960s.

-The Filmmaker’s Eye: Jeff Nichols: This discusses at how Nichols wanted the film to look and feel. Also, the experience of working with him.
 
Disc Details
4K Ultra HD
2-Disc Set w/ 1 4k UHD and 1 Blu-ray
Digital Copy
Slipcover included with the initial release
 
Running Time
116 mins
 
Edition Ratings
Rated R
 
Region Coding
Region Free

4k UHD
Video Resolution
2160p HEVC / H.265
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1

HDR: HDR10

Audio Mixes
English Dolby Atmos
English Dolby TrueHD 7.1
Spanish Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
French Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
German Dolby Atmos
Italian Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
Descriptive Audio
 
Subtitles
English SDH
French
German
Italian
Spanish
Danish
Dutch
Finnish
Norwegian
Swedish

Blu-ray
Video Resolution
1080p AVC MPEG-4
Aspect ratio: 2.39:1

Audio Mixes
English Dolby Atmos
English Dolby TrueHD 7.1
French Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
Spanish Dolby Digital Plus 7.1
Descriptive Audio

Subtitles
English SDH
French
Spanish

THE FINAL WORD 4.5/5
Before seeing this for the first time and seeing all who were involved, I had a feeling that the movie was going to be good. I always like learning about subjects or periods that I’m not overly educated in and this branches off from a Harley Davidson documentary that I reviewed some years ago.

As for the release itself, both the audio and video get top marks. It is a superb transfer and the Atmos track is clean. The extras are good but brief. Not that it is a downside necessarily but I wish there was more info about the book that this is based on. I highly recommend this release for the film’s story as well as the disc’s authoring.