suspenseful

Rating: 7/10 (18 February 2014)

James Hunt's arrogance and snobbishness makes Niki Lauda's buck-teeth and resulting the lisp seem charming. It's amazing how much these two actors look and sound like their characters, the way Lauda speaks in clipped sentences, the way Hunt's like, "Yeah, whatever". I can't even drive, but the dialogue in this film is how race car drivers explain racing, from too fast in the corners, to rain on the track, to the grip on the tires. It's ironic that Lauda wanted to boycott the race he was hurt in. And I like how the film shows the way the right kind of adversity makes people better at what they do. The dark clouds covering the sun seem so literary I don't know how I feel about them in a film, but it was a good way to show the dread involved. I think the film could've been longer. I saw an interview with Ron Howard where he said it was hard to get it down to two hours, and I wish he'd made this three hours or so. It felt like a sample tray of these two men's lives. (Am I being too feminine here?) Although I wouldn't want anything weepy, a little go get'em, honey, would've warmed my little girl heart. (And can you tell I really couldn't stand the Englishman?) But as I'm writing this I know I'm wrong. It is a good film the way they have it.