Not the Definitive Racing Movie, But Zips Along.

Rating: 5/10 (3 October 2013)

I was energised by the reviews for this seemingly out-of-water subject for director Ron Howard. Especially the talk of the technical advancement of small cameras that can give you a microscopic glimpse of the physics at play when racing a formula 1 car. I was almost stunned at how cliché sounding the exposition was in the first act. I thought, OK it starts out by-the-numbers, but it will finish off a winner (can't help with the racing analogies). I was disappointed how little racing footage was shown. I have yet to see a properly made movie about the drama that occurs on the track during a race. I don't know why directors claim that watching racing is boring. We get glimpses of the forces at hand as the camera is jerked around when attached to the car. I suppose ultimately they are afraid to spend the money to make such action scenes.
It was made clear in the reviews that this was not a film about racing, but about two prominent characters from the racing world. With the 70s period being depicted, it's almost like "Forrest Gump" or something as we relive 1976. I was also feeling kind of trapped in the script that insists on keeping the story factual. The movie spends a great deal of time on relationships, and exploring what their relationships are about. But I felt their was too much time in sacrifice for good old racing footage for the touchy feely stuff.
If there was any talk of Oscars, the only one I would consider is Daniel Bruhl for lead actor. That is kind of strange that the marketing features Chris Hemsworth, despite the striking persona Niki Lauda displays as a major component to this film. Worth noting is the careful balance of action, tech talk, and marital relations the script adheres to. Such as a major race being shown through the wife watching it on TV.
I enjoy racing movies sometimes, but not when it really isn't about racing. This movie spends less than half the time on racing, and the rest doesn't resonate in an award winning way. Despite my cynicism about this imbalance, there were certainly some poignant quotes that made me think. So credit that to the screenplay. As for director Ron Howard, the only sense of his style that helps perhaps is the pacing. He keeps the momentum going, deliberately sacrificing a beat or two that would normally allow a heavy moment to sink in. For this film it works, because it represents how shallow the main characters are. My final verdict is that it is a watchable movie, but still is not the definitive racing movie. I would wait for the DVD