Episode 191 - Rad: LIVE!

[Cam Bert 8145]

One of the things I found the most fascinating about this movie is the creepy and weird way the "bad guy" talked. He constantly had this odd slightly slurred low guttural wheeze about what he was saying. Like if you ever heard a guy talk like that in real life you'd immediately think "Boy, that guy is up to no good." Then when they were getting drunk at the dance he was talking the same way. This leads me to one of two thoughts. Either the character was a secret alcoholic or the actor was. The evidence is pretty inconclusive. One one hand you have this business man who lost his contract with Mongoose and is gambling everything he has on this Helltrack idea and Bart winning it all, and on the other you have an old character actor filming Rad in the boonies of Canada in the winter. It really could be either.

[OrigamiMami 395]

I still need to listen to this ep of HDTGM, but I put this elsewhere on the internet, so just a c&p move on my part:

 

 

 

 

Watching it right now. This thing has Burt Reynolds production all over it. Hal Needham as the director, he is really a stunt coordinator guy (or was since he has since passed). Alfie Wise, the weaselly guy that props up Jack Weston, is from my hometown in central PA, and as such is someone you look for in a Burt Reynolds movie. Really Alfie's character isn't even needed, but for whatever reason he shows up in these Burt Reynolds/Hal Needham movies.

I like the part towards the end when Cru does his paper route, throws the newspaper before the clock hits a quarter-after, the woman inside is happy for him, then turns and walks away from the newspaper like, "glad the kid got here in time, but fuck that paper."

At 1 hour 17 minute look for the little sister character attempts to grab Lori Loughlin's arm, but goes b00b instead.

In the early races, Cru runs off track, and rejoins the race down the track, this would actually have earned him a disqualification, and his results tossed. while its not illegal to leave the circuit, you do have to rejoin where you left the circuit. (I raced way back in the day.)

[i'll hold the mike 165]

In the early races, Cru runs off track, and rejoins the race down the track, this would actually have earned him a disqualification, and his results tossed. while its not illegal to leave the circuit, you do have to rejoin where you left the circuit. (I raced way back in the day.)

 

This is like the most egregious thing in the movie that it needs to be mentioned several times!

[i'll hold the mike 165]

Two things:

 

1) I wonder if Paul felt sympathy with the Hell Track announcer when Duke grabbed the mike and started explaining the race.

 

2) I referred to that bike-hopping maneuver as "bike humping". I feel like if Jason had been in a more amorous mood we would have gotten an "I came" moment.

 

[Quasar Sniffer 4174]

I can't get over how low the stakes are for Cru. It's initially set up like he has to make a life-altering decision between taking a chance on BMX racing or higher education. "Oh no! The qualifying race is on the same day as the SATs!" "Don't worry...you'll have a chance to take them again in six months." Aaaaaaand problem solved...like, a third of the way into the movie no less. The remainder of the movie presents other seemingly insurmountable random challenges that are just as easily erased, usually in the very next scene.

What makes the SAT conflict even less substantial is that the SATs are an industry, a product that is sold to students and schools, so it behooves them to have as many kids as possible take the test every year. They are also not dumb-dumbs and know that students who are in the process of applying to college are probably KINDA FUCKING BUSY, so there are multiple test-taking opportunities every semester for most school districts. Even if students can't make it to the test session in their own school district, or their school is too small to host one, they are given the opportunity to travel to a neighboring district to take the test.

 

What would have made Helltrack have more urgency is if there was a SAT session later that afternoon and Cru agreed to take the test after he finished the race, meaning he would have to rush to the nearest school, on his bike, to make it in time. Maybe that was a stipulation that his mom could give him for participation in Helltrack; that he take the the SATs that semester or else she would not sign the consent form. That way, you establish a better relationship between Cru and his mom, make Cru more sympathetic because he is willing to acquiesce to the VERY REASONABLE request from his very patient mother that he at least take the SATs, and you eliminate the unnecessary business of trying to forge his mom's signature. Maybe you still include a gag about his sister saying, "oh, well now I don't have to forge her signature for you AGAIN" or something. Also, you could have the already-exhausted Cru racing to get to the school to take the SATs, which itself would be another test of his endurance and BMXing abilities, above and beyond any of the other Helltrack competitors. Pass one test to take another!

[FUCK! 189]

I still need to listen to this ep of HDTGM, but I put this elsewhere on the internet, so just a c&p move on my part:

 

 

 

 

Watching it right now. This thing has Burt Reynolds production all over it. Hal Needham as the director, he is really a stunt coordinator guy (or was since he has since passed). Alfie Wise, the weaselly guy that props up Jack Weston, is from my hometown in central PA, and as such is someone you look for in a Burt Reynolds movie. Really Alfie's character isn't even needed, but for whatever reason he shows up in these Burt Reynolds/Hal Needham movies.

I like the part towards the end when Cru does his paper route, throws the newspaper before the clock hits a quarter-after, the woman inside is happy for him, then turns and walks away from the newspaper like, "glad the kid got here in time, but fuck that paper."

At 1 hour 17 minute look for the little sister character attempts to grab Lori Loughlin's arm, but goes b00b instead.

In the early races, Cru runs off track, and rejoins the race down the track, this would actually have earned him a disqualification, and his results tossed. while its not illegal to leave the circuit, you do have to rejoin where you left the circuit. (I raced way back in the day.)

 

 

NAH BRA! This is Hell Track! No rules!

 

You also have to think of this movie as if BMX racing is the only sport that exists. No highschool football. BMX is the most important thing in this world.

[sycasey 2.0 2301]

I remember the commercials for this movie (coincidentally, I was also 10 at the time), and I was angry -- as a kid who said "rad" a lot -- that a movie had the audacity to co-opt that word. I was like, "that's MY word!" and had zero interest seeing the movie that ripped it off.

 

[RyanSz 3140]

Jason sort of touched on the notion that the bikers do whatever they want during the course... but I am here to say that Cru is a no-good dirty cheat and should not be the champion of Hell Track!

 

PROOF #1: During the last qualifying match, there are three separate instances where Cru is the ONLY biker who ignores the course.

 

First time is during the downhill section where he is just riding down an unclear path and ends up taking out another competitor.

 

 

Then Cru jumps a corner cutting off a number of other bikers.

 

Finally, he veers off the sanctioned, dirt path to ride on hard concrete. Cru's cheating is so egregious, because riding on a harder material will surely give him an advantage. You even know it's not allowed for Cru must jump a barrier at the end to get back onto the official course.

 

 

 

PROOF #2: Obviously Cru shouldn't have qualified based on the evidence already provided, but he's even more obvious in the finals. When Cru was trying to make up some lost ground, he does a big backflip to illegally get ahead. It's obvious it's illegal for the announce calls it a "SHORTCUT!" Since when are shortcuts allowed in any kind of race? I mean for an event that has a thick-ass rule book, you'd think they would have some language about staying on the god damn course!

 

Cru... you are a low down dirty cheat!

 

That said, this movie is awesome and appreciated the call out from Paul at the opening of close of the episode.

 

Sincerely,

Pete the S-Man

This was actually brought up by self-admitted RAD superfan Daniel Tosh on an episode of his show, and to this point was the last time Bill Allen was on the show.

 

Omission:

 

The one thing I noticed the hosts missed involves the final race where the announcer says that if a racer doesn't make the jump onto the stage at the end of the lap leading back to the drop, they were eliminated. When Cru makes the jump the first time there's another racer named "Hollywood" Mike who falls over the side of the ramp, yet a lap later he is shown wiping out again in the middle of the track. I assume someone on set noticed this as there is a line forced in at that moment from the announcer saying something along the line of "oh it looks like Mike wiped out for a second time, now he really has no chance," when all they needed to do was remove the line about elimination from the race.

 

Also, since they are both at the star level required to be on the show, if either Bill Allen or Lori Loughlin go on Dancing With the Stars, and they recreate the bike dancing scene from this film, they should just win the season right then and there.

[SevenDollarsWorthofHoobastank 226]

I'm gonna go on record as saying "BMX Bandits" is MUCH better than "Rad". The villains are much more entertaining, the score is much groovier and the acting is.....well okay, admittedly not MILES better, but at least a quarter of a mile better.

 

Me and my older brother and sister used to watch BMX Bandits on repeat on VHS, along with "The Goonies". Both those movies really fed my appetite to want to explore. I spent many a days during the summers riding my bike around town with my friends looking for shit to get into.

[hotironskillet 137]

Here are my thoughts on this movie:

 

1. If Cru were my paperboy, he'd not only not get a tip but I'd be calling his supervisor for driving over my lawn every day.

 

2.There's no way that kid sister would have quietly stayed in that garbage can while Cru had that conversation with his mom.

 

3.Those dirty mattresses they had on the practice jump ramp really bothered me. They looked so stained and gross and probably smelled bad. You know they probably pulled them out of someone's trash pile. And I'm sure they didn't bring them inside when it rained so they were all damp and moldy.

 

I was at this show and it was super exciting to hear the podcast after seeing it. I'm not embarrassed to admit that I listened to it three times.

[hotironskillet 137]

I watched this movie for the first time last night with my 10-year-old son (who loved it, btw), and during the ass sliding scene, he said "what is that...a sewage pipe??" Then I listed to the pod and Jason said the exact same thing, haha. I just thought it was a drainage pipe, not necessarily for human waste.

 

 

I really hope that town isn't dumping solid waste into the lake but with those corrupt fat cats in charge, anything is possible.

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

One I thing I thought was odd about 'Rad' was the log-line: in a movie that features some quintessentially '80's music, including a whole slew of Australian royalty Johnny Farnham and Real Life's 'Send Me an Angel', the log-line of this film is:

 

"A Hometown Kid on His BMX Against the Best in the World. At Helltrack… The Heat Is On."

 

With a line like that, how do they not include Glenn Frey's 'The Heat is On'? It was a huge hit in 1984, and would have fit this movie perfectly for a training montage. Do you think they couldn't get the rights so subbed in a Johnny Farnham B-side instead?

 

[IRONicmerMAN 391]

Random question: does anyone know what song the ukulele-based Second Opinion them was modeled after? it sounded so much like a song I'm familiar with, but I couldn't nail it down and it's driving me bonkers. Moving on, it was probably one of the best Second Opinion themes to date.

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

Random question: does anyone know what song the ukulele-based Second Opinion them was modeled after? it sounded so much like a song I'm familiar with, but I couldn't nail it down and it's driving me bonkers. Moving on, it was probably one of the best Second Opinion themes to date.

It's 'Thunder in Your Heart' from Rad!

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Od3D6W4twn4

[IRONicmerMAN 391]

It's 'Thunder in Your Heart' from Rad!

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Od3D6W4twn4

Crap. Definitely not what I was thinking, but I appreciate you giving me a new song to listen to while I crunch numbers at the office!

[achoohorsey16 34]

Sorry if someone already posted this but I wanted to share something I saw on the IMDB page, although I cannot find it anymore of course: The main theme of the film, played at the beginning and end, wasn't part of the soundtrack and because it was written solely for the film it has been "lost to the ages." As if you couldn't just rip the song from the film if you needed a copy of it.

[achoohorsey16 34]

Where was the Oscar nomination for Jack Weston? I was more creeped out by his town hall speech than anything Anthony Hopkins did as Hannibal Lector. And that happened before he was revealed as the villain of the movie.

 

Speaking of this guy and his henchmen - if they were wanting to secure an endorsement deal with a winner of the Hellrace, why didn't they just wait until after the race was over and then propose it to the guy who won? Why did they have find the person first and then make sure they win the race? It didn't make sense to me.

[achoohorsey16 34]

During the race, after Cru does his backflip, the announcer says, "Hulk Hogan, eat your heart out!". What does this mean? I don't think Hulk Hogan was particularly known for doing backflips.

 

Yes yes yes thank you, my boyfriend and I were so confused by this too. I mean some wrestlers do backfilps but Hulk was such a shitty wrestler, he definitely wasn't doing them. Hell, he was basically pacing around the ring while his competitors were selling him.

[achoohorsey16 34]

3.Those dirty mattresses they had on the practice jump ramp really bothered me. They looked so stained and gross and probably smelled bad. You know they probably pulled them out of someone's trash pile. And I'm sure they didn't bring them inside when it rained so they were all damp and moldy.

 

Bed Bug City!

[Aaron TE Price 30]

Supposedly this town is so small that everyone seems to know each other but crazy lady who left her oven on and wants to bonezone Cru, isn't aware that she's talking to his own mother when gushing about him at the race.

[Cakebug Tranch 6873]

Supposedly this town is so small that everyone seems to know each other but crazy lady who left her oven on and wants to bonezone Cru, isn't aware that she's talking to his own mother when gushing about him at the race.

That lady also said that the parade (or her inability to remove her cake from the oven) was "UnAmerican." Seems like she's got a pretty 2018 interpretation of what that word means way back in 1986, where "UnAmerican" equals "inconvenient."

[FrancisRizzo3 212]

As someone who lives in Bay Shore now, I had the same reaction as Paul when the twins were announced as being from Bay Shore, Long Island. In watching those neverending introductions, it struck me that every other place mentioned is either a big city or a state. So why Bay Shore? Is not like viewers in 1986 would assign any character traits to the twins based on common knowledge of their hometown. The actors are from Oregon, so no connection there. The one writer, Geoffrey Edwards, is Blake Edwards' son and from LA, so no connection. And the other writer, Sam Barnard, didn't have much info out there.

 

From a resident's perspective, the twins could certainly be from Bay Shore, buy, based on their attitude and likely wealth, would have probably been from the rich side of town, and would have said they are from Brightwaters, not Bay Shore (for non-residents, Brightwaters is an incorporated village that's part of the hamlet of Bay Shore.)

 

Also, Paul, we need you to bring HDTGM home triumphantly for a show at the Boulton Center Theater on Main Street.

[FrancisRizzo3 212]

I have to agree with Jason's reaction to the bike dancing song, Reel Life's amazing "Send Me an Angel." It is the reason I bought their album as the first cassette I ever purchased.

 

Have you ever seen a soundtrack song played in its entirety in a non-musical film?

[FrancisRizzo3 212]

Move title: Bike Rock

[FrancisRizzo3 212]

Regarding the blacked out names in the credits, those were writing trainees that the filmmakers wanted to credit, but WGA rules wouldn't allow it, so they had to be cut out.