Film Reviews

The Flying Scotsman

• Rating:
• Director: Douglas McKinnon
• Starring: Billy Boyd
• Details: UK / 96mins (15A).

Based on the true story of Scottish cyclist Graeme Obree, The Flying Scotsman documents one man's quest to break the world one-hour record. Helped by his manager and best bud Malky (Boyd) with local priest (Cox) pitching in, Obree goes about designing his own revolutionary bike but comes up against opposition in world champion Chris Boardman and racing official Ernst Hagemann (Berkoff), who doesn't look kindly on Obree's invention. The Flying Scotsman is a little movie with lots of charm and has much in common with The World's Fastest Indian, another small story with a big heart. The supporting cast do what's asked of them without anyone upping their game and thoroughly engaging us, but Miller is totally believable as a man who wants to achieve something worthwhile in his life and we can almost feel the pain in his legs as he pushes himself over the edge. It's not without its problems, however, as it spends a lot of time looking around for a suitable antagonist and can't seem to find one anywhere. Building up Steven Berkhoff's stuffy race official into a mean, ogre type doesn't pay off so it turns to Obree's depression for help. Making the protagonist his own worst enemy was an interesting take, but it comes too late and feels tacked on at the last minute; the fact that it doesn't feel real isn't down to Miller's depiction but because of that, it wasn't given room to breathe.

Review by Gavin Burke