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It has to be one of the tiredest tropes in Hollywood chase scenes: the bad guys all dressed in black leather on dark, anonymous motorcycles. I just didn't expect to see it from a company that supposedly is still trying to sell some motorcycles amongst all its fancy cars.
I'm talking about the latest in the BMW Films series. This one, titled "The Calm," showcases the all-electric BMW i7 M70 xDrive car (starting MSRP $119,300) and debuts today at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.
The seven-minute film stars Pom Klementieff and Uma Thurman as "secret agents" under assault by "mysterious adversaries." Joseph Kosinski (director of "Top Gun: Maverick") is the executive producer and Sam Hargrave directs (a stunt coordinator who has moved into directing). One wonders how much this production cost BMW per minute of video.
The rear seating area of the i7 features a 31-inch entertainment screen with a 36-speaker surround sound system. "As Official Automotive Partner of the festival, BMW will mobilize more than 200 fully electric vehicles to transport guests and transform the luxury sedans into exclusive private cinema lounges to deliver an unforgettable premiere experience," according to BMW's news release.
Not being among those invited guests, I've only seen the trailer, so far, which includes scenes of Thurman in the back seat of a chauffeured i7 under assault by those "mysterious adversaries," who happen to be riding motorcycles and dressed all in black. They aren't even BMW motorcycles. They appear to be Zeros.
Look, I'm not one of those guys who likes to rant about how Hollywood movies and mainstream news media damage the reputation of motorcyclists, from a staged photo in Hollister, California, in 1947 to the latest big-budget, seven-minute video from BMW. I'm far more of a believer of focusing on what we do ourselves to form public opinions, good or bad, instead of focusing on how others portray us.
But still. Come on, BMW. You had to hire Hollywood talent to come up with the idea of the bad guys in all black on motorcycles? Any sophomore in the film program at the local college could have come up with something more creative than that.
BMW can probably safely ignore my opinion, however, since I'm definitely not the target audience for a $120,000-and-up luxury sedan with an entertainment system that's better than the one in my living room. The thing is, I could be in the target audience for a BMW motorcycle. This film sure doesn't make it any more likely, however.
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