Race (2016)

• Year: 2016
• Released: 19 Feb 2016
• Country: Canada, Germany, France
• Adwords: 6 wins & 8 nominations
• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3499096/
• Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/race
• Metacritics: https://www.metacritic.com/movie/race
• Available in: 720p, 1080p,
• Language: English, German
• MPA Rating: PG-13
• Genre: Biography, Drama, Sport
• Runtime: 134 min
• Writer: Joe Shrapnel, Anna Waterhouse
• Director: Stephen Hopkins
• Cast: Stephan James, Jason Sudeikis, Eli Goree
• Keywords: biography, sports, nazi, racism, historical figure,

	7.1/10
	56/100
	11% – Audience

Race Storyline

In the 1930s, Jesse Owens is a young man who is the first in his family to go to college. Going to Ohio State to train under its track and field coach, Larry Snyder, the young African American athlete quickly impresses with his tremendous potential that suggests Olympic material. However, as Owens struggles both with the obligations of his life and the virulent racism against him, the question of whether America would compete at all at the 1936 Olympics in Nazi Germany is being debated vigorously. When the American envoy finds a compromise persuasive with the Third Reich to avert a boycott, Owens has his own moral struggle about going. Upon resolving that issue, Owens and his coach travel to Berlin to participate in a competition that would mark Owens as the greatest of America’s Olympians even as the German film director, Leni Riefenstahl, locks horns with her country’s Propaganda Minister, Josef Goebbels, to film the politically embarrassing fact for posterity.

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Race Movie Reviews

A disappointment, but certainly not a failure

The best thing about this movie is the performance of the star, Stephan James. He is very good as Jesse Owens.

The biggest problem with this movie is the length, 134 minutes. It is WAY too long for what it has to offer. As one of the other reviewers on here says, the director tried to put far too much material into it. The first hour or so, before we get to Berlin, plays like a so-so made-for-TV movie and should have been cut drastically. Once we get to Berlin, things get much better, but even then, it could have used cutting. We spend a lot of time with Leni Riefenstahl, for example, but why? We never see what she ends up doing with her Owens footage in *Olympia*, her documentary of the 1936 Olympics.

That leaves the other problem, the script. Too often it isn’t very dramatic. (Contrast it with *42*.) Yes, some of the events in the Olympics are very moving, but that’s largely because of the events themselves, not because of the way they are presented. A good script doesn’t just repeat historical events, it puts them together in a way that makes them effective, leaving out what isn’t effective, and presents them in powerful language that makes them stick in the memory. This script doesn’t do that.

If it’s true that this is the first feature-length film about Owens, then it’s good to have it. There isn’t anything here that will harm his reputation.

But neither, alas, is there a movie here that will fix it indelibly in the minds of viewers. That movie remains to be made, and, I hope, will start with a much better, much shorter script.

———————

Since writing the above, I’ve read Jeremy Schaap’s book *Triumph: The Untold Story of Jesse Owens and Hitler’s Olympics*. (It’s not a very good book, I’m sorry to report. A lot of personal opinion, often not enough documentation. For a better, if much shorter, account of Owens in Berlin, see Ch. 6 of William J. Baker’s *Jessie Owens: An American Life*) It would seem that this movie hews fairly closely to the historical truth, for whatever that’s worth. (This is a feature film, after all, and not a documentary.) Sometimes it “fills in the gaps,” perhaps most notably with its explanations of why Avery Brundage did what he did and why Owens was put on the 4 x 100 relay team to the exclusion of one of the Jewish runners who had practiced for it. The movie makes Brundage out to be venal, willing to do dishonest things for money. For me, that detracted from what appears to have been his fundamental racism against both Blacks and Jews.

I also found it strange that this movie does not deal with the immediate aftermath of the Olympics for Owens – he was barred from further Amateur Athletic Union competitions, and all the offers of money from various American individuals and groups vanished. Before he had even returned to America, in other words, Owens had already been cheated of part of his success.

Now I need to watch the movie a second time, to see where else it diverges from or extrapolates on history.

Doesn’t race enough to the finish

Do have an appreciation for biopics and have done for a long time. Regardless of how true to the facts they are (often not for the sake of drama, which is nearly always the most common criticism of them) many are well made, well acted and interesting on their own terms with good intentions. Some of my personal favourites actually are biopics. Jesse Owens was a fascinating person with a fascinating story.

Both Owens and his story, meaning his personal life, how he came to be what he became, the obstacles he had to overcome and what it was like at the time, were/are much more interesting than shown in ‘Race’ and both deserved better. Am not saying that ‘Race’ is a bad film, actually thought that it was well intended and did have its fair share of good qualities. It just could have done far more with its subject, being too conventional and it should have been more focused.

‘Race’ looks great, the period detail is beautifully and evocatively recreated and the big races (which do thrill) and the first entrance into the Olympic stadium were strikingly and cleverly shot without being too showy so it doesn’t become overblown. The CGI wasn’t cheap and didn’t jar, didn’t even think it was that obvious but maybe that’s just me. Rachel Portman’s music score is unmistakably beautifully orchestrated, have always found Portman’s compositional style distinctive and lovely to listen to, and a mix of subdued and with the right amount of intensity.

The film is at its best in the relationship between Owens and Luz, Luz’s admiration for Owens is never less than convincing, and in the entertaining interaction between Owens and Snyder. Actually also did like everything with Avery Brundage, the film does downplay what he was really like but his scenes did intrigue me and still found Brundage interesting. It also helps that the cast is a strong one. Stephan James does a great job as Owens, very commanding throughout and with much fire and emotion, and Jason Sudeikis surprisingly excels in a departure role for him. David Kross is admirable too and Carice Van Houten has fun as Liefenstahl, the best supporting turn though comes from Jeremy Irons, even when Brundage is written in a downplayed way Irons is still quite sinister at the same time.

Did admire ‘Race’s’ good intentions and also that it had a goal of making Owens and his story better known to younger generations.

While saying that the cast was solid, there was an exception to me and that was Barnaby Metschurat, his Goebbels being too much of a caricature to bring any kind of chills. ‘Race’ does try to cover far too much with too many subplots, even in its pretty long running time too much of the film felt under-explored and somewhat bloated. The same problems apply with the script. Pacing is an issue too, with the film taking too long to get going and then becoming too rushed towards the end.

For all Van Houten’s efforts, personally didn’t see any point to the Liefenstahl scenes when there is no real reason given for why they or she were there. They just felt like padding and should have featured less. Had more of a problem though with the Owens and Ruth storyline though, that was very underwritten and badly slowed the film down. It is the portrayal of the racism where ‘Race’ especially plays it too safe, it was much worse at the time than what is shown and instead of the “trying hard not to offend” approach there really should have been much more intensity and sinister edge to it. Got very little out of the Waldorf scene and that is not a good sign.

Owens himself also felt underdeveloped, there was not near enough of what he was like as a person with there being more prominence on his importance and why. As well of course too much of the other subplots which distracted too much.

All in all, not a bad film but could have been more. 5/10

bland sincere docudrama

It’s 1933. Jesse Owens (Stephan James) leaves his home in Cleveland to go to Ohio State. Former track star Larry Snyder (Jason Sudeikis) is the coach of a losing program. He sees natural talents in Owens and aims to win gold in 1936 Berlin. Owens has a daughter with Ruth Solomon. Meanwhile, the US Olympics Committee is debating boycott supported by Jeremiah Mahoney (William Hurt). They send construction magnate Avery Brundage (Jeremy Irons) to Berlin to meet Leni Riefenstahl (Carice van Houten) and Joseph Goebbels (Barnaby Metschurat).

This is a very sincere, functional historical drama. Stephan James does sincere work. There is very limited drama before the games. There are snippets of insights into this track and field world. The best is Snyder talking over the football team in the locker room to demonstrate a hostile crowd. However, I’m not sold on Sudeikis in this dramatic role. He doesn’t have the gravitas. He always seem out of place in this role. The first half really holds very little drama or surprises.

Jesse Owens’ romantic challenges hold little interest. The NAACP and others pushing for boycott adds a little color. The drama seems to come from Luz, Brundage, Riefenstahl, Goebbels, and finally the replacement of Marty Glickman and Sam Stoller. This indicates a better drama not in the biopic of Owens but a drama behind Berlin 36.