I’ve long known that Chuck Norris was generally not in many films that were good, even when they were released, but he was a working movie star that put out a LOT of films. He’s famous for his martial arts, but with the exception of the “The Way of the Dragon“, I don’t think I’ve actually seen him do much actual legit martial arts in a film. “Breaker! Breaker!” is no exception for either of these points, it’s not a great film, and Norris does more big rig driving than he does karate. I should really give him a break on this, as I think I’ve only seen about 10 of his films, and this one came out right when he was getting started.
At the time it came out, big rig movies like Breaker Breaker, Smokey and the Bandit, or Convoy were all the rage, which is hilarious to me now, it seems like such a random aspect of Americana to idealize, a lone man on the road traveling from town to town with only his CB radio to keep him company (or pet monkey in one case).
One great thing about Breaker! Breaker! is that I finally get to see Chuck Norris’ Action Jeans in action, he’s wearing them for the entire film! From the time he drives into the fake city to the time that he breaks out of the fake city jail, he’s got his Action Jean on, and looks great wearing them.
Wikipedia says that the success of this film helped put Norris on the map, but I can’t imagine it’s worth many people’s time if they’re not either Chuck Norris or big rig movie fans.
I saw all three of those movies in a theater… and my father and I used to watch Movin’ On, B.J. and the Bear, and it’s spinoff, The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo.
do you feel you’ve been influenced to be a mass transport cowboy riding in a convoy?