Breaking Away - Directed by Peter Yates

Breaking Away is a 1979 comedy set in Bloomington, Indiana.

• It shows four young men who have graduated from high school and are taking a year off to decide what they want to do with their lives.
• We see them struggling to get along with themselves and their dreams, their parents, girlfriends, and university students.
• The Bloomington area is known for its stone quarries (çÃêŒèÍ).
• The boys are all the sons of blue collar men who cut stone for a living and are known as "cutters" (êŒêÿçH).
• They come into conflict with the wealthy, stuck-up University of Indiana students.
• It won an Academy Award for its screenplay.
• We will use it as a way of studying slang and some cultural features of the United States.

Main Characters:

Cyril (Daniel Stern) -- A skinny, gangly kid (later shows up in the "Home Alone" movies as one of the bad guys).

Mike (Dennis Quaid) -- a star quarterback when in high school. He has also appeared in "The Right Stuff" and "The Rookie".

Moocher (Jackie Earle Haley) -- the runt (short one) in the group.

Dave (Dennis Christopher) -- the main character. A cycling nut who wants to be Italian because all the best cyclists are Italian. He drives his father crazy.

Dave's Father (Paul Dooley) -- Used to be a cutter, but is now a used car salesman. He has a bad heart and is so on a diet. He can't understand his son. Pay particular attention to their relationship.

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