Ay Carumba!

Rating: 8/10 (30 November 2013)

"Men love women. But more than that, men love Cars".
Hear, Hear! Absolutely! Studies say men think about sex every 3 minutes. Hmm, but no doubts about the 2 minute gap. That's reserved for machines. Curves of metal, humming engines and the adrenaline.
This week at the movies, Ron Howard's 'Rush' pays tribute to the Man- Machine relationship and it doesn't get more intimate than this.
Rush is inspired by real life rivalry between Formula 1 racers James Hunt (Hemsworth) and Niki Lauda (Daniel Bruhl). Them ruled the tracks in the 70's and it was their riff that kept them ahead.
The film boasts of well written and performed characters. Hunt is a partying brat, a womanizer who believes in enjoying the life to the fullest. Niki Lauda on the other hand is a complete contrast. He's disciplined, knows his tech inside out and being the son of a businessman, knows the economics of the trade. One's a British and the other a German, even the accents are different. The only thing common between the two is the passion to drive, and unconditional love towards their machines.
Its a simple story of these drivers trying to beat each other with their rivalry acting as the main catalyst. Look out for their interesting verbal conflicts for lighter moments.
Now for the hero of the film. Cinematographer Anthony Dodd Mantle takes us to places where no one has ever been. Close ups of axle joints, acceleration pedals, exhausts of the engine breathing fire and screeching tires as the cars move at the speed of 170 mph are breathtaking. Especially the starting of the last race in Tokyo where the tracks are wet after rain, the first skid of the tires are shown in slow motion throwing water droplets away from its periphery. I mentioned intimacy, didn't I? All he does is use his experience of handling primitive digital cameras right from the days of Dogme95.
Never has being seated in a cinema hall been so thrilling. Don't forget to put your seat belts on, you are in for a ride.