neumu [ cinematronic ]




	Biker Boyz
	Reggie Rock Bythewood Lawrence Fishburne, Derek Luke, Orlando Jones, Djimon Hounsou, Lisa Bonet, Brendan Fehr, Larenz Tate, Kid Rock 2003		Sagebrush matinees about a young gun trying to outdraw the cool-handed, fastest-in-the-West oldster have been remade and retooled time and again with samurai warriors, spies, boxers and race-car drivers taking the place of cowboys. "Biker Boyz" changes the milieu in radical fashion: The film is set in the previously unplumbed world of African-American motorcycle clubs. But the essential conflict, a face-off between cross-generational adversaries with differing styles, is the same as that of that hoariest "High Noon" knock-off. Smoke (Lawrence Fishburne of "The Matrix") is the aging king of the cycle racers; he must fend off a challenge by the Kid, (Derek Luke of "Antwone Fisher"), a novice rider whose dad was Smoke's mechanic. Big-time father issues are at play. Other than the unlikely sight of an army of brothers riding custom bikes through night-shrouded L.A. streets, it's the usual melodrama spiked with two-bit psychology and helter-skelter digital effects that make the races look plausible. The actors — including Orlando Jones, Djimon Hounsou, Lisa Bonet and rap star Kid Rock — are a fit crew, cycling through stock routines.