Rush

Director Ron Howard has proven himself skilful with films based on true stories in the past. From the space survival drama Apollo 13 to the psychological thriller A Beautiful Mind, Howard has shown an inate ability to get the maximum amount of drama and emotion from the stories he directs. Rush is certainly a story full of drama, the film, set in the 70s, portrays the intense rivalry between Formula 1 drivers James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) and Nicky Lauda (Daniel Bruhl). Both drivers are presented as polar opposites, Hunt the brash, easy-going playboy who seems to thrive on the danger of his chosen sport, and Lauda, the determined no-nonsense professional whose confidence borders on arrogance. Neither of these extremes is shown as “the good guy” in the rational Hollywood sense, each has his own failings and insecurities that push them in their careers and growing rivalry. One of the best decisions in making this film was not to choose one driver individually as a protagonist but to use both points of view to tell the larger narrative. This prevents the audience from falling into the familiar sports movie pattern of one character the audience roots for against the other. Indeed this film is less about the races than the personal battle of the two main competitors . Each man’s rise to the top is compared and contrasted heralding their oncoming collision. The script is sufficient in this but really the lion’s share of the credit goes to leading men Hemsworth and Bruhl. Both performances draw the audiences empathy so that come the final confrontation, you really are not sure who you’re rooting for. Though the film may be based more around character than spectacle the race sequences are still a sight to behold, capturing the out-of-control nature of the sport, the ever-present danger and the lurking spectre of death. Interestingly for most of these sequences we see things not from the crowds’ eye but from the driver’s perspective . This is particularly effective for Lauda’s accident (this is in the trailer so can’t be construed as a plot spoiler). So intense is the action that the camera actually frequently gets right into the inner workings of the car showing just what a volatile mass of pistons and flammable fuel they really are. When watching this you don’t wonder if something terrible is going to happen, you just wonder when. Of great assistance in conjuring up the said intensity is Hanz Zimmer’s score. You can actually hear the pistons of the engine pounding and the roar of the engine through the soundtrack. It would have been easy to do generic “excitement music” but Zimmer reaches for something more. On the negative side there is very little but sometimes the narrations that pepper the film can feel a little forced and unnecessary FINAL VERDICT 9/10 As someone who has never watched Formula 1 and knew nothing about either man I can honestly say I found this film gripping and intense.