RUSH Rated:R

Cat Says:

I remember, as a kid, my dad loving Mario Andretti. I even remember the accident that set Niki Lauda on fire. But, honestly, I didn't remember how that season ended up. Knowing I wanted to go see this movie I made the decision not to go look the result up. I'm very glad I did that. 

Quickly, this film is about the 1976 Formula 1 racing season and the two drivers, James Hunt and Niki Lauda, who were in the top two spots the entire season. In Days of Thunder they focused on the personal story the most and then there were a few racing scenes. As much as I love that film I was really hoping for a bit more of a balance between the personal story and the racing story of these two men. Happily I can say that the balance is perfect.

The film begins with both men entering the racing scene and how they moved up the ranks. Neither guy is perfect. Lauda is nicknamed The Rat. Part of this is for his looks and part is for his demeanor. He's not the kindest or most emotional guy in the world. Daniel Bruhel is perfection in this role. You do get to see the chinks in the armor of this man. You see how he lived his life, how he fell in love and found out what life is all about. You also get to see his fierce determination and how that made him into a world class jerk as well as a world class driver. Hunt is a playboy.  Played perfectly by Chris Hemsworth (yes, the guy from Thor) he is portrayed as a womanizer, a "live every day as if it were you last" kind of guy. Live wild, live crazy, drive yourself harder than you drive your car and, if it ends, then it ends and what a wild ride it was. He's handsome, charming and, basically a real jerk. But, as the movie progresses, you get to see how he finds out who he is, why he does what he does and how he comes to deeply appreciate the relationship he and Lauda find themselves in as the years go by. 

The racing scenes are intense. The accidents are graphic and are meant to be disturbing. There is sex, drug use and a big party scene that add to the fact that this film isn't for kids. Older teens who are into cars or racing could love it but I would say it's not appropriate for 15 and under. We really loved this film and I can not say one bad thing about it. It gets a rare 10 out of 10 from me. One of those I would have gladly just stayed in my seat to watch again. No surprise that Ron Howard is at the helm on this one. It is a racing masterpiece.