RACE (2016)

Genre: Biography/Drama/Sport
Director: Stephen Hopkins
Cast: Stephen James, Jeremy Irons, Jason Sudeikis, William Hurt, Carice van Houten, Eli Goree, Shanice Banton, David Kross, Tony Curran
Runtime: 2 hrs 15 mins
Rating: PG
Released By: Shaw
Official Website: http://www.focusfeatures.com/race

Opening Day: 3 March 2016

Synopsis: Based on the incredible true story of Jesse Owens, the legendary athletic superstar whose quest to become the greatest track and field athlete in history thrusts him onto the world stage of the 1936 Olympics, where he faces off against Adolf Hitler’s vision of Aryan supremacy. Race is an enthralling film about courage, determination, tolerance, and friendship, and an inspiring drama about one man’s fight to become an Olympic legend. Race tracks the journey of James Cleveland “Jesse” Owens (portrayed by Stephan James of Selma). As a student and athlete in Depression-era America, Jesse bears the weight of family expectations, racial tension at his college Ohio State University, and his own high standards for competition. At Ohio State University, Jesse finds a savvy coach and stalwart friend in Larry Snyder (Jason Sudeikis) ? who is unafraid to push the young man to his limits. Bolstered by the love and support of Ruth Solomon (Shanice Banton), with whom he has a young daughter, Jesse’s winning ways in intercollegiate competitions earn him a place on the U.S. Olympics team… …if there is to be a team going to the 1936 Olympics at all; the American Olympic committee weighs a boycott in protest against Hitler with committee president Jeremiah Mahoney (Academy Award winner William Hurt) and millionaire industrialist Avery Brundage (Academy Award winner Jeremy Irons) debating the issue. Once Brundage prevails with the committee and U.S. participation is confirmed, Jesse enters a new racial and political minefield after he arrives in Berlin with his fellow athletes. As filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl (Carice van Houten of Game of Thrones) readies her cameras to record the Games under the steely gaze of Nazi officials, Jesse reaffirms his determination to compete with excellence and honor. With the world watching, he will place in sharp relief his own country’s history of racism as well as the Hitler regime’s oppressiveness. Forever defining what an athlete can accomplish, Jesse Owens races into history as an inspiration to millions, then and now.

Movie Review:

‘Race’ is the newest biopic to be released in cinemas. ‘Race’ is based on real life extraordinaire athlete, Jesse Owens. Most biopics nowadays are either hits or misses, with many of the hits being Oscar contenders. Despite its title, ‘Race’ is not trying and has no chance to compete in the Oscar race and as also evident in the release date- weeks after the nominations have been released and too early for the next awards ceremony. However, ‘Race’ offers strong performances and is a truly, uplifting film.

The story of Jesse Owens (Stephan James) is widely known around the world but maybe not as prominently as he once was. During the pre war era of the late 1930s, Jesse was able to overcome the numerous barriers in his life to achieve ultimate success- not only as an athlete, but also as a human being. Partly due to the guidance of his coach, Larry Snyder (Jason Sudeikis), Jesse manages to obtain victory in the 1936 Olympics, where he stood against Adolf Hitler's vision of Aryan supremacy. ‘Race’ not only celebrates Jesse Owens' quest to his accomplishments but also his legacy.

This film is being helmed by director, Stephen Hopkins who previously did films such as, ‘Predator 2’ and ‘Lost in Space’ which were both not well received by critics. However, ‘Race’ shows a significant improvement in his directing abilities. There is no doubt huge passion in the making of the film. Being a performance driven film, Hopkins manages to bring out the utmost out of his actors performances. Shot decisions made by Hopkins not only elevates these performances but also provided a consistent vibe to the characters. This is especially so for the main plot featuring Jesse Owens, which will be further dwelled into later. There is an inspiring resonance from the film’s depiction of Jesse’s story, which the audience can bring home. However, in spite of this, Hopkins falters in the pacing of the film. At a runtimes of 2 hours and 14 minutes, it does feel a little too long. Many subplots felt quite unbalanced and slow as compared to the main narrative and the tone at times feel a little ‘made-for-TV’. One being the romance between him and his wife, Ruth (Shanice Banton), which could have been better executed and had potential to bring more heart into the film.

Joe Shrapnel and Anna Waterhouse wrote the script for ‘Race’. They manage to depict the conflicts in which Jesse was facing at that time perfectly, showing us how he was being judged due to his race and the struggles of the sudden rise to fame. But the aforementioned, few subplots are not handled due to the writing. A particular subplot even felt shoehorned into the script last minute and was very out of place in the film. It is about a political debate over whether America should boycott the Berlin Olympics due to the Nazi ideologies of Germanys’ leaders. Jeremiah Mahoney (William Hurt) and Avery Brundage (Jeremy Irons) are featured in this subplot. Sadly, even with such high caliber actors (Irons and Hurt), this plot point felt very unnecessary to the Jesse Owens’ story.

Speaking of actors, Stephan James’ portrayal of Jesse Owens has award potential. He manages to capture the heart and the essence of the character and also, carry the film. Although Jesse Owens is not relatable for most people due to his incredible talent and majority not being able to feel his struggles in terms of being a minority, it is the inner turmoil Jesse was going through that brings about a wave of emotions. This inner turmoil was due to the conflict of being both a talent and a voice for his people at that time. James manages to express what Jesse felt, dare I say, perfectly. Jason Sudeikis stepped out of his comfort zones and played a serious character, which differs from his usual comedic roles. Many did not know what to expect from his character before going into this film and some were even worried. But surprisingly, Sudeikis did a great job. Coach Larry was a broken character that did his best to train Jesse Owens. As Coach Larry, Sudeikis is both charismatic and likable. His on screen appearance with James is filled with chemistry.

The rest of the performances are solid. Shanice Banton played the love interest well enough and Academy Award winners, Jeremy Irons and William Hurt, did a fine job in showing us the tension that took place behind the scenes. However, all three of them were underutilized that lead to their subplots being a detractor in the film. There were also two standout performances. This comes from the subplot whereby Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels (Barnaby Metschurat) appoints filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl (Carice van Houten) for the filming of the Games and propaganda. Actress Carice van Houten provided a sympathetic touch to her character. The character of Joseph Goebbels steals every scene he is in. Credit to Metschurat for playing the serious role into such dramatic effect. Even though Goebbels had little dialogue in the film, his presence sent chill down audiences’ spine. This allowed the subplot of the disagreement when the filmmaker tries to create her film as honestly as possible while the propaganda minister wants it in favor of the Nazi regime, to become one of the highlights of the film.

The film also features a number of exhilarating sports events. Audiences can feel the intensity before these events through the eyes of Jesse Owens and there is a layer of nervousness as if are about to take part. Initially these events are a feast to the eyes but towards the middle, they start to feel repetitive. The last act’s sport events, which were also the best, really contributed greatly to the story and reemphasize the messages present in the film. This brings me to my next point.

The ending manages to tie up those previously mentioned lose subplots and reiterate its message. Despite the predictable happy ending, ‘Race’ does let viewers know how harsh times were at that time. This is done through text before the credit rolls. This suits the film tone and message; after all it took place before WW2. Although just like in every underdog story where there is the message to believe in yourself, the film manages to not beat you over the head with it. Instead, it is worthy of its duplicitous title; ‘Race’ manages to speak out about issues concerning racial discrimination. In addition, the end of the film includes a message about sportsmanship. ‘Race’ also challenges one to think about one’s moral values and do what is right.

Overall, ‘Race’ has strong messages and themes that will leave audiences with different afterthoughts. It is an inspiring film that is fit for everyone to give it a viewing. ‘Race’ takes place in an important part of history and many can view the film as an educating experience. It is a worthwhile story about Jesse Owens. Despite bringing nothing new and rather paint-by-numbers, ‘Race’ is a solid biopic about a true athlete and an important historical figure.

Movie Rating:

(To win the gold medal, Jesse Owens had to be fast on the track but ‘Race’ was both fast and occasionally, slow, leading to a flawed but nonetheless engaging biopic)

Review by Celestine Pang