Bikesure’s top 10 classic motorcycle movies – which is your favourite?

by Frazer Ansell
August 1, 2017

You can’t beat classic motorcycle movies and there have been scores of them over the years.

The team at insurance specialist Bikesure have come up with their top 10 ten must-see motorcycle movies.

So here we go, it’s lights, camera and action for the film world’s finest exploits on two wheels.

Easy Rider (1969) is an iconic road movie, written, produced by and starring Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper. Easy Rider features two custom-built Harley Davidson choppers, built specially for the film and based on sketches by Fonda. With two Harleys and almost non-start bike action, this is clearly the big daddy of classic motorcycle movies.

Wild Hogs (2007) is a comedy that sees a middle-aged group of friends (Tim Allen, John Travolta, Martin Lawrence and William H. Macy) undertake a cross-country motorcycle roadtrip to California on four Harleys.
The Great Escape (1963) features Steve McQueen in the famous chase scene, escaping from a German prisoner of war camp on a TT special 650 Triumph. Not strictly a classic motorcycle movie, but top bike action nevertheless, with McQueen performing all his own stunts.

Ghost Rider (2007) is an adaptation from Marvel Comics starring Nicholas Cage who plays Johnny Blaze, a stunt motorcycle rider who becomes Ghost Rider, a superhero-type character. For the stunt riding Cage rode a Buell motorcycle. As Ghost Rider he rides a customized chopper named “Grace” which transforms into the “Hell Cycle”.
The World’s Fastest Indian (2005) is a film based on the life of speed bike racer Burt Munro, who set numerous land speed records for motorcycles under 1000cc. Munro’s bike of choice was an Indian Scout motorcycle on which he reached the fastest ever officially recorded speed on an Indian, 190.07 mph. It’s easy to see why bikers still have an enduring love for the Indian classic motorcycle.
Terminator 1 & 2 (1984 & 1991). In the sci-fi action film, Terminator 1 Arnold Schwarzenegger plays The Terminator, a cyborg sent back in time to assassinate Sarah Connor. The 1984 film features a chase scene between Connor and The Terminator, Connor riding a Honda Scooter and The Terminator on a Honda 750. In the 1991 sequel, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Schwarzenegger rides a Harley Davidson Fatboy.
Top Gun (1986) stars Tom Cruise as Lieutenant Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, a young Naval aviator training at the Navy’s Fighter Weapons School. In the film Cruise, rides a Kawasaki Ninja GPz900R. It was this film that inspired Cruise’s love for motorbikes.

Purple Rain (1984) is a musical film starring Prince as The Kid. In the film Prince rides a customised Honda 400A.
Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), the eighteenth James Bond film, features a BMW R1200 motorbike, one of the only motorbikes used in any Bond film. The film sees Bond and Wai Lin ride the R1200 in an extended chase scene which includes some impressive rooftop jumps puts this 007 romp among the best classic motorcycle movies.
And finally one for all the family, Wallace and Gromit: A Close Shave (1995). An animated film featuring Wallace, an eccentric inventor and his dog, Gromit. In the short film, Wallace and Gromit give chase to a sheep-rustling dog, Preston, on their customized motorbike and sidecar, but the chase doesn’t run smoothly.

So what makes your top 10 classic motorcycle movies?

OK, that’s the Bikesure top 10 and believe you me, a number of wonderful motorcycle film cameos which didn’t quite make the grade were consigned to the cutting room floor. But which are your classic motorcycle movies?