Movie Review Rewind: Rush (2013)

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Formula One racing is completely foreign to me. I do not know much about the sport except it’s fast, dangerous, and every driver who gets behind the wheel knows each race could be their last. So it goes without saying that I did not have a clue about the renowned, merciless rivalry between the British playboy James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) and the straight-laced, practical Austrian Niki Lauda (Daniel Bruhl). Rush is exhilarating on the track and engaging off the track. It not only focuses on the two men’s quest on becoming World Champion, but we see the lives they live and quickly realize just how polar opposites they are. And no matter how high the risks are, Hunt and Lauda push each other to their absolute limit while never slowing down or looking back.

Based on a true story, the film centers around Hunt and Lauda and the battle for the 1976 World Championship. As the audience, we are taken all over the world witnessing the intensity of the sport, but more importantly, how these two drivers became legends. Hunt has the looks, the confidence, and the charisma to be the rock star of Formula One. He lives the lifestyle to prove it. He is wild yet courageous and in his line of work that can make or break a man. Then there is Lauda, who is compared to a rat throughout the movie, and is not such a likeable guy. However, he has the brains and precision to become a champion. He contains such a strong conviction about his car and skills along with the undeniable grind to be the best. And where Lauda really separates himself from Hunt is in discipline. It is embodied in to Lauda while Hunt rebels against it.

Now it’s pretty clear Hunt and Lauda’s personalities and their way of living are completely different, but they do share some similarities whether they realize it or not. For example, they are both driven and live to be on the track. Each want to win no matter the sacrifice. They both strap themselves in to a bullet going over 170 mph, trying to cheat death and cannot get enough of it. Hunt and Lauda share the same fears, the same passion, and the same hunger for competition. It is the reason their fierce rivalry may have turned in to a true friendship in the end.

Hemsworth and Bruhl are perfectly cast and are outstanding together in the film. Hunt is the bad boy of Formula One racing. He parties, drinks, and gets any woman he desires. Yet beneath his playboy image, there’s a guy who just is just as insecure as the rest of us, but will never show or admit it. He’s just too damn proud. It’s a flashy role in which Hemsworth gets an opportunity to do something more challenging and, in return, becomes that much more rewarding. It’s undoubtedly his best performance so far in his young career.

As Lauda, Bruhl has the more dramatic role. Honestly, I didn’t know much about the guy except his biggest film up to this point is Inglourious Basterds, but I do not even remember him being in it. But I will not make that mistake again. His performance is top-notch and demands your attention. Bruhl’s portrayal brings a lot of emotion to the film especially after a major event occurs. It may be tough to watch, but it is where Bruhl elevates from good to great.

Rush would not be as compelling or as thrilling without a great director behind the camera. Ron Howard creates a riveting sports drama and surrounds it with pulse-pounding, white-knuckle racing action. There are some components that make the film stall including an unnecessary love interest (sorry Olivia Wilde but you know it’s true), but Howard knows the story is with the two magnificent drivers and trying to never let off the gas. Howard has not done too much in the past few years. The Dilemma was his last film and we all know he is better than that. No need to fear because the director of Frost/Nixon and A Beautiful Mind is back in full force.

Rush is directed with brilliance and style. Howard not only spotlights two men who refuse to lose, but he makes sure you will never forget the terrifying consequences for those who have been infected by the need for speed. It is the only thing that makes these guys feel alive. Truly alive. That’s the real Rush.

Brandon Vick is a member of The Music City Film Critics’ Association and the Southeastern Film Critics Association, the resident film critic of the SoBros Network, and the star of The Vick’s Flicks Podcast. Follow him on Twitter @SirBrandonV and be sure to search #VicksFlicks for all of his latest movie reviews.

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