The Boys in the Boat (B or 3/4 stars)
Based on Daniel James Brown's 2013 book which became a #1 New York Times bestseller, 'The Boy in the Boat' (directed by George Clooney), focuses - not on the Nazi preparation for the 1936 Summer Olympic Games, but instead on the University of Washington's rowing team that would remarkably make the USA team and contend for a medal in the games. The plot begins sometime in 1935 in Seattle, with the world embroiled in the misery of the Great Depression. Our main character, Joe Rantz (Callum Turner), a student at the Univ. of Washington, is facing suspension from college due to an unpaid tuition bill. Unable to land a job, he tries out for the rowing team after learning that participants would be given paid part-time positions.
Of the hundreds of would-be talented rowers, only 8 are chosen following an enervating series of intense try-outs. Joe is one of the strongest guys there and harbors the requisite talent to make the team. With his $$ issues at least temporarily resolved, he starts bonding with the other young men in the J.V. boat as they develop into what would become, in their coach's (Joel Edgerton) words ... the best team he had as ever seen. I don't think it is any big surprise to learn that this J.V. tea would leap over the Varsity crew to become America's Olympic team -- what happens over in Berlin, I will not divulge. Other than Joe Rantz, the only other multi-dimensional character in the film is Coach Al Ulbrickson (Edgerton). Sure, there is Joe's girlfriend & Al's wife (Hadley Robinson, Courtney Henggeler). But characterizations of any sort are hones around those two main men.
'The Boys in the Boat' is one of the most conservative movies - and I don't mean politically - that you'll see this year. There is no profanity, sex or drug use of note. Clooney has simply made an old-fashioned, uplifting story about the triumphant arc of some underdogs and, there is still a hankering by audiences to watch films of this ilk {it has done quite well in the box office, as well}. Clooney's film radiates with classiness, prestige & dignity. Sure, it is sentimental, but I would not refer to it as saccharine, and the narrative is structured well enough to not get mired in extraneous thematic elements.
Martin Ruhe's cinematography is lovely; as is the period production design & costumes. Alexandre Desplat provides his usual melodic music score. And the sports elements are exquisitely recreated. Though many of us who know how the final Olympic race ends - and with Adolf Hitler in attendance - there is an element of suspense in the way George Clooney executes it -- really elegant work. Winning a medal becomes quite important as a viewer because we are invested in Joe, and that's a testament to Callum Turner's empathetic, stellar performance of a man who has nothing ... except this team.
Turner has impressed me before {Emma, The Fantastic Beasts series}, and I'm glad that his rising star is shining brighter with this role. The 1936 Games are best known for the triumphs of Jesse Owens, but thanks to this film {+ the 2013 novel} ... the USA rowing team's hardships & Olympic journey gets a proper spotlight. Cynics may scoff that this movie is too low-key, too old-fashioned, too safe, and lacking deep characterizations, but less discerning audiences may be engaged by the very things that the cynics scoff at. I recognize the safeness of the film, and mildly enjoyed it in spite of that.
Of the hundreds of would-be talented rowers, only 8 are chosen following an enervating series of intense try-outs. Joe is one of the strongest guys there and harbors the requisite talent to make the team. With his $$ issues at least temporarily resolved, he starts bonding with the other young men in the J.V. boat as they develop into what would become, in their coach's (Joel Edgerton) words ... the best team he had as ever seen. I don't think it is any big surprise to learn that this J.V. tea would leap over the Varsity crew to become America's Olympic team -- what happens over in Berlin, I will not divulge. Other than Joe Rantz, the only other multi-dimensional character in the film is Coach Al Ulbrickson (Edgerton). Sure, there is Joe's girlfriend & Al's wife (Hadley Robinson, Courtney Henggeler). But characterizations of any sort are hones around those two main men.
'The Boys in the Boat' is one of the most conservative movies - and I don't mean politically - that you'll see this year. There is no profanity, sex or drug use of note. Clooney has simply made an old-fashioned, uplifting story about the triumphant arc of some underdogs and, there is still a hankering by audiences to watch films of this ilk {it has done quite well in the box office, as well}. Clooney's film radiates with classiness, prestige & dignity. Sure, it is sentimental, but I would not refer to it as saccharine, and the narrative is structured well enough to not get mired in extraneous thematic elements.
Martin Ruhe's cinematography is lovely; as is the period production design & costumes. Alexandre Desplat provides his usual melodic music score. And the sports elements are exquisitely recreated. Though many of us who know how the final Olympic race ends - and with Adolf Hitler in attendance - there is an element of suspense in the way George Clooney executes it -- really elegant work. Winning a medal becomes quite important as a viewer because we are invested in Joe, and that's a testament to Callum Turner's empathetic, stellar performance of a man who has nothing ... except this team.
Turner has impressed me before {Emma, The Fantastic Beasts series}, and I'm glad that his rising star is shining brighter with this role. The 1936 Games are best known for the triumphs of Jesse Owens, but thanks to this film {+ the 2013 novel} ... the USA rowing team's hardships & Olympic journey gets a proper spotlight. Cynics may scoff that this movie is too low-key, too old-fashioned, too safe, and lacking deep characterizations, but less discerning audiences may be engaged by the very things that the cynics scoff at. I recognize the safeness of the film, and mildly enjoyed it in spite of that.