Rush

Rush is a simply brilliant movie. Ron Howard has been one of my favourite directors since A Beautiful Mind, he has a distinctive style that resonates extremely well for drama and emotional stories, so to go on an action packed, Formula One racing movie was an interesting move.

However, if Ron has shown one thing its that he really knows how to handle an epic production. I can feel how much fun he must have had putting this movie together. The research and planning is phenomenal! I was lucky enough to see this with a mate who is an F-1 fanatic and he was filling me in on all these little details that were in the background and how important they were in real life (thankfully they weren't necessary to know to move the story along) and my mind was blown. Apparently there was a six wheeled F-1 car in the 70's! WTF?!?! And its in this movie. Apparently sponsorship wasn't really done before this period of time and all of the sponsorship thats in the movie is as real as it was in the day. You will see Marlboro, Heuer, Texaco and all of the real brands splashed across the cars and the outfits which makes the whole deal feel real.

More than the research and attention to detail though is the attention to the acting of the main characters. Daniel Brühl looks just like Niki Lauda. Its mesmerising. His performance is spectacular and the makeup after his accident is spot on. When you see some of the real footage your mind does a bit of a double turn as you can realise how closely matched he was. I think Chris Hemsworth was supposed to be the 'main' character but for me Daniel Brühl stole the show.

Thats not to say that Chris's performance is lacking. He is a really beautiful man and its put on full display here with his charisma dialled up 13 notches, his million dollar smile flashing everywhere and his very convincing explanation of why racing car drivers are so idolised by us mere mortals. Its because they live so close to death, and that is what makes us shiver as we see them, see them truly living and living more than we ever will when on the track. The beauty in that statement is that Daniel's portrayal of Niki Lauda is the complete opposite. He is the German who calculates the percentages and anything over 20% danger to life is unacceptable. The simple beauty in these two very opposing, but realistic ways to live life and drive a Formula One car is what drives (no pun intended) this movie along. Without top tier performances from these two lead actors it would fall in a heap, but on the shoulders of Daniel Brühl and Chris Hemsworth it shines!

I really can't recommend this movie enough. And I really can't stress enough it should be seen on the big screen. There were only 5 people in the cinema tonight, on late night shopping, at a blockbuster movie. I know its been out a couple of weeks, but come on people. If we don't keep going to see these amazing films, we are going to be lumbered with Transformers 57, Avengers 35 and some other Marvel retread, DC Comics cross over crap every year and nothing as special as this will ever be made again.

Ron Howard is amazing, but he is only a mortal and wont be able to make movies one day. Once he is gone, the list of people capable of creating films like this will dwindle by one and I can't think of many non Zack Snider-esque big budget directors left who will take these risks. If we don't show the money people we want them, we wont get them, so get out and see this beauty of a film and sit back and relish that these super heroes were real people with real skills and could still capture the imagination of the world without needing a brand and a toy catalogue to make them exist.

SCORE: 9/10

IMDB Info for: Rush