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It has been a vroom-vroom summer.
Benny doesnt talk much inThe Bikeriders.
Johnny wants him to lead the group and doesnt understand why Benny wont accept his succession offer.
But Kathy getting Benny to put down roots instead of wandering further on the open road isnt a triumph.
Do they venture to understand the opposite perspective?
Do they lash out with fear and hatred?
Do they diminish someones beliefs if they dont entirely align with their own?
The river is too patrolled, the terrain too dangerous, the lifestyle too lonely.
Both are shaped by institutions and forces outside of his control, and neither is exactly what he wants.
When Elliss father says to him, Enjoy the river, son.
These are all contradictions that cant hold, especially as the gang becomes violent and policing becomes more widespread.
Whatever idyllic Go West, young man vision Benny has for himself evaporates, just as Elliss did.
All of this means, of course, that Benny isnt really a good husband or a good mentee.
But to some degree, for both of them, it is.
Kathy is married to a man still ensnared in the terrain of the past.
He had once told Johnny, Youre a grown-up, man.
I dont want that.
Kathy insists to Danny that Benny doesnt miss riding, which already feels unlikely.
He made the decision to marry Kathy, and that kind of vow should be honored, after all.
DoesThe Bikeriderssecretly resent Kathy?
