Reviews provided by RottenTomatoes
Janet Maslin, New York Times: Here is a movie so fresh and funny it didn't even need a big budget or a pedigree. Read more
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader: Peter Yates, previously typed as an action director, lends the film a fine, unexpected limpidity, and the principals are mostly excellent. Read more
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: Breaking Away is a wonderfully sunny, funny, goofy, intelligent movie that makes you feel about as good as any movie in a long time. It is, in fact, a treasure. Read more
Richard Schickel, TIME Magazine: There are a few moments when the picture's easygoing pace turns into wobbliness, but these are insignificant compared with its many moments of shrewd insight into the lives of amusingly shaded but very recognizable human beings. Read more