Movie Review: The truth about speed and Formula One in 'Rush'

 

Most certainly, the lives of Hunt and Lauda are a huge canvas. Omission in a biographical film is key to making it all work; otherwise, you end up with a clunky homage. Still, Howard harnesses the many aspects of speed and revs it up like an F1 car before we’re pulled full throttle into the narrative. Am iffy about the first person voice-overs, but it helps that Hans Zimmer did an impeccable score for this. Aside from the amazingly, poetically shot racing sequences, Hemsworth and Bruhl possess great chemistry as rivals who grudgingly respect each other and, by their enmity, are inspired and pushed to the limit by their own ambition. I’ve seen a meme making the rounds that juxtaposes the real characters with the actors and they do look uncannily like them, even down to the physical sizes. Kudos to you, casting director! Driven by ambition and powered by machines that go to a swift 200 mph, the infamous story of the charismatic playboy and jock Hunt versus the nerdy and cold Lauda is like a car wreck of emotions swirling in a soup of dreams about triumph. The story jumps back and forth but chooses to begin when Lauda and Hunt’s rivalry grew from the days of competing in their twenties in Formula 3. It includes a catastrophic crash during the 1976 German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring that could have killed Lauda but only leaves him severely burned – bouncing back with nary a day at rehab – and climaxes in the race for the World Championship in Japan, in the torrential rain under the ominous shadow of Mt Fuji. One of the most interesting things here is the intersection of physics, mechanics, and driving talent. And how the two drivers possess all three but in various capacities. Lauda is a mechanical genius with a great working knowledge of physics and a disciplined focus. Hunt is suffused to the brim with skill, talent, and braggadocio, and little else. He also vomits before each race, an effect of adrenaline. Lauda is cold, has very little in the way of social aptitude (though I suspect he’s not really interested in acquiring any), and (unfortunately) he looks like a rat with his buck front teeth. Meanwhile Hunt is handsome, blonde, and well-liked because of his confident, rakish air. You couldn’t ask for better rivals, hey? A tad less compelling are the dramatic scenes. But they do provide a good context of how much F1 has eaten up their lives. Relationships suffer when you have a great, artful passion, but Hunt and Lauda take it, like everything in their lives, to the extremes. There’s also a problem with the treatment getting sidetracked into weird bromance (albeit very reluctant) territory, but some of the cliché aspects can be overlooked and easily sat through for the glory and glamor of the racing sequences. The women in the lives of the two drivers are a great side story on their own, bringing intensity and a mitigating the impact of their addiction to speed. For example, in the opening scenes with what is presumably one of his first girlfriends, Hunt takes a very willing Gemma (Natalie Dormer flashing her stuff like she did in “Game of Thrones” and “The Tudors”) and devotedly takes care of her when she visits the Formula 3 track; then she disappears 10 minutes later – an adoration as swift as a race lap. Hunt does eventually marry ( and he ties the knot with a supermodel, of course – Olivia Wilde as Suzy Miller) and when his rival also finds a partner, the love of their women alternately brings them back to earth and sets them adrift, bringing pathos and impact at crucial points in their lives. Lauda’s wife Marlene (Alexandra Maria Lara), especially, just with her mere presence informs and influences one of his decisions to race despite his previously calculating stance. “Happiness is the enemy,” he tearfully tells her during their honeymoon. Meaning: now he has something to live for. Meaning: he is impelled to take fewer risks on the racetrack to acknowledge her love. These characters may seem a little caricaturish at some points but you couldn’t invent them – I mean, if Howard was faithful to their characterization. Hey, sometimes truth IS weirder than fiction. Other than that Howard takes us on a sometimes exhilarating, sometimes sorrowful ride through the lives of these racers who drive around in circles, on roads that are sometimes as twisted and convoluted as an F1 race track. Strap yourself in for one rousing viewing. — BM, GMA News “Rush” is currently screening in all major Metro Manila theaters. The views expressed in this article are the author's own.