‘Hard Miles’ ★★★1⁄2 Cast: Matthew Modine, Cynthia Kaye McWilliams, Sean Astin, Jackson Kelly, Jahking Guillory, Damien Diaz, Zachary T. Robbins and Leslie David Baker. Directed by R.
J. Daniel Hanna; produced by Christian Sander; screenplay by Sander and Hanna. A Blue Fox Entertainment release.
108 minutes. Rated PG-13 (strong language, thematic content, suggestive references, and some teen drinking). Available via Video-on-Demand.
For over 20 years, Greg Townsend has been taking a unique approach to his job. Instead of employing group therapy sessions or work-release programs to help those at Ridgeview Youth Detention Center, he takes them on the road. No vans or buses are used, no truck stops or rest areas employed.
These troubled young men ride bikes, ones they make in Townsend’s welding class. And we’re not talking a 10- or 20-mile spin, but a cross-country trek, sometimes over 700 miles, a journey he uses to open their eyes not just to the beautiful environment they travel through, but to the strength and perseverance many of them don’t realize they possess. Townsend’s story is the inspiration for R.
J. Daniel Hanna’s “Hard Miles,” a predictable but effective “sports-is-life” exercise that winds up being far more effective than it has right to be. While a faith-based film would have taken a ham-fisted approach and applied the sentiment with a trowel, Townsend eschews grand theatrics and refuses to spoon feed the audience.
Co-written with Chris.