The World's Fastest Indian

IN THE LATE 1960'S, AFTER A LIFETIME OF PERFECTING HIS CLASSIC INDIAN MOTORCYCLE, BURT SETS OFF FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE WORLD, INVERCARGILL, NEW ZEALAND, TO CLOCK HIS BIKE AT THE BONNEVILLE SALT FLATS IN UTAH. WITH ALL ODDS AGAINST HIM, BURT PUTS HIS IRREPRESSIBLE KIWI SPIRIT TO THE TEST, BRAVING THE NEW WORLD.

A movie that exudes affection and goodwill, is an unabashed mash note to a lovely character from New Zealand's recent past. Burt Munro, played by Anthony Hopkins, is a cantankerous Kiwi with an obsession: he's been tinkering with his 1920s-era Indian brand motorcycle for years, pushing it to ever-faster speeds. It's the 1960s, and Burt has the utterly mad idea of taking the bike to the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, site of world records for speed racing. The movie takes a while to get to the journey--and then the journey takes a while--but the genial atmosphere prevails. (People of a certain age, for whom the word "Bonneville" evokes pleasant associations with hotrods and world-speed records, will not be disappointed in the film's location shooting, or its sense of awe.) Hopkins is not quite on-the-money casting for the jovial, happy-go-lucky Munro, and his accent wavers, but he nails the emotional scenes and the fascination with speed. Smaller bits are well-filled by Diane Ladd and Christopher Lawford (son of Peter), who looks uncannily of the era. New Zealand director Roger Donaldson doesn't take any chances here, but the story clearly means something to him, and that sense of commitment carries the film through its sleepier moments.