Rush
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Director Ron Howard’s “Rush” lives up to its name as it invites audiences into the heart-stopping world of Formula One racing in the 1970s. The film, based on a true story, follows rivals James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) and Niki Lauda (Daniel Brühl) as they battle through a season to become the world champion.
Hunt is a British playboy who represents the image and passion of racing as he strives for glory and has a lot of fun along the way, marrying a model and partying all night. Lauda is an insultingly blunt Austrian who represents the behind-the-scenes mechanics of racing as he relies on his intelligence in engineering and gives little thought to his lack of social skills with women and his fellow racers.
Both actors are extremely convincing in their roles and enchant the viewers into an up-and-down relationship where both men are seen at their best and worst through humbling episodes and redeeming moments. The two are more alike than they think, with a thirst to prove themselves. They make some frustrating mistakes as they struggle to manage lives beyond racing. In the end, the audience falls in love with both men and it’s hard to know who to cheer for.
Inside the thrilling roar of the engines and glamorous ‘70s costumes lives a rivalry that drives both men. At first, it’s defined by little things like cheeky comments spat at each other after races. The relationship changes as the men learn to respect each other as competitors and human beings after a string of events that shows their true colors.
Howard manages to make every race just as gripping as the next with his ever-changing camera angles. It is made disturbingly clear the true danger in every race with one scene showing a decapitated crashed racer. By switching among the wet track, the nuts and bolts of the cars and intense expressions on the racers’ faces, Howard creates a nerve-wracking feeling in viewers’ guts. Soon it becomes a question not of who will win, but who will finish alive. The film is a masterful storytelling of two men who test their limits and discover what is worth dying for.
— Amanda Hayes
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