Race (2016)

The Jesse Owens story is extraordinary. It deserved a film for sure. But it deserved to be told with care. I have no doubt there was a ton of passion from everyone involved with the making of 'Race' but I also think there was just too much information for the filmmakers to give Owens the proper big screen adaptation. At times the film is special as Stephan James gives a really good performance as Owens, but other times I felt myself wondering why I was watching a film focusing on a handful of other characters when this was supposed to be a legit Jesse Owens biopic.

James' performance is probably the standout here but the entire cast rounds out the film well. Jeremy Irons, Carice van Houten, William Hurt, and even Jason Sudeikis bring plenty of credibility to one of the most important stories in Olympic history as Jesse Owens attempted to overshadow Hitler's regime by breaking records in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Although predictable and cliché at times, I found myself enjoying the relationship between Owens and his coach/trainer played by Sudeikis. I wasn't however that found of them including so much focus on the other aspects of the Berlin Olympics (though still interesting material).

I understand these Olympics had many moving vehicles that were important to the overall history of the event, but I just ended up wishing Jesse Owens got more of a focus. With that said, the times when he got his time to shine, the film was at its best. The last act of the film in Berlin felt very cinematic. The games, beginning with one long shot, felt like something made for an IMAX screen. The CGI for the Olympic Stadium also looked surprisingly well for a lower budget film (apparently 5 million). Overall, I don't think this film is as fascinating as the story it's based on is, but there's still redeemable qualities to make it a winning sports drama in my book.

+James' lead performance

+CGI

-Covered too much for its own good

6.3/10

Fmovies: "A man has to present an image to the world." Jesse Owens (James) is a college track star. His coach Larry Snyder (Sudeikis) pushes him to be the best he can be. Jesse pushes himself on and off the track to be the best person and athlete he can be. Everything is going as he wants, he becomes a record breaking collegiate champion with his Olympic dream in his sights. The only thing stopping him is his conscience. With Olympic gold in his grasp Jesse must decide if he is willing to compete in Germany, as an African-American, with Hitler watching. This movie is in my wheelhouse. Not only is this a sports movie but its a true story as well. I knew the basics of the Owens story, but this movie goes deeper into the pressure put on him from both sides of the Nazi debate. Even knowing how the movie will turn out the drama was gripping enough to keep me interested and wondering how he got to where he was at. Sudeikis actually does a really good job in a non comedic role and is almost the perfect choice for the coach. This is a movie I cannot say enough about. I highly recommend this, and the use of the n-word is limited so this is OK for family viewing as well. Overall, a sports movie that once again shows the triumph of the human spirit and how everyone is equal when the gun goes off. I give this an A-.

It was with some trepidation that I went to see this movie. Jesse Owens had been my sports hero since the eighth grade when I discovered that he had been holding the world broad jump record for 24 years, an extraordinarily long time for a 12-year-old to contemplate, and won four gold medals at the 1936 Olympic Games. But I had the lingering fear that the biopic would emphasize his awards rather than the quest for excellence, as evidenced by his performances, and the usual self-flagellation that whites are supposed to feel for their past treatment of African-Americans even though history can't be changed. I was also put off by the multi-layered but generally meaningless title "Race" which like similar recent one-word titles such as "Rush," "Flight," and "Room" smack of artistic pretension and self- importance, professing to offer so much more than they can possibly deliver.

Happily, I can report that my fears were unfounded. The movie was, by and large, wonderful and a worthy tribute to perhaps the greatest American track and field athlete ever. Yes, it does show some of the seamier sides of the African-American – and, to a lesser degree, the Jewish – experience at home and during the Berlin games as well as the German people's attitudes at the time but director Stephen Hopkins wisely does not dwell on them too much, since to do so would bring a biased 2015 perspective to the earth-shaking events which were unfolding at the time and the outcome of which had yet to be determined.

Fortunately, the film's main focus is on the athlete during his record-breaking years of 1935-36 and Canadian born Stephen James does an admirable job in portraying the legendary Owens. He manages to keep the emoting down to tolerable levels, presenting Jesse as a polite, respectful, family man with just enough bravado to appreciate his own God-given talents. His performances on the track (and in the broad jump), while hard to emulate the original, are convincing enough. Particularly good are the scenes showing him break or tie four world records at the Big Ten Conference Championships at Ann Arbor, Michigan on May 25th, 1935.

Less credible is Jason Sudeikis' portrayal of Coach Larry Snyder. While he may have been a difficult taskmaster, he comes off as too boorish and too bombastic to earn Owens' unwavering respect. Their relationship, at times, is not entirely convincing. I have to note here that his repeated reference to Charles Paddock's victory in the 1924 Olympic 100 meters is incorrect. Paddock won in 1920. Harold Abrahams of Great Britain won in 1924 (as shown in "Chariots of Fire.").

To be sure, there are questions that the movie does not delve into deeply enough but for a true blue lifetime Jesse Owens fan like myself, the overall effect of the movie is extremely satisfying, not too much and not too little. It is memorable enough that I will want to get the DVD when it comes out.

Race fmovies. It's easy to get distracted by… well, life – even when you're doing something important (maybe, ESPECIALLY when you're doing something important). If you have a faithful "significant other" who is not around at the moment, you may be tempted to stray from "Miss Right" in favor of "Miss Right Now" (or "Mr.…" whichever the case may be). If you're determined to accomplish something big, you may be confronted with people who believe you will fail (and even want you to fail) – and openly express those feelings, whether out of pettiness, jealousy or even the color of your skin. If you're succeeding at something that draws a lot of attention, others will want to use you or your accomplishments to further their own personal, financial or political goals. These are just some of the distractions competing for the main character's attention in "Race" (PG-13, 2:14). Of course, I think we'd all agree that, in the end, what defines each of us is how we deal with our distractions. Jesse Owens learned that lesson well.

Stephan James plays the legendary runner from the ages of 20 to 23, the years that turned him from virtually unknown high school track star in Cleveland, Ohio to the man who defied Adolph Hitler's myth of "Aryan" racial superiority at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin, Germany. Jesse (actually, "J.C.", notwithstanding his elementary school teacher's misunderstanding his name) is in a long-term relationship with Ruth Solomon (Shanice Banton), with whom he has a little girl, but he has to say goodbye to both of them (and his large family) to begin his higher education and college track and field career at The Ohio State University in Columbus. It is there that he meets track coach Larry Snyder (Jason Sudeikis), the man tasked with turning Owens' raw talent into even greater accomplishments.

Owens first struggles with, then learns to overcome the distractions of sexual temptation, racial prejudice and the competing interests of some pretty important people who are determined to make Owens a pawn in their games of politics and perception. Early on we see Owens' incredible performance at a 1935 Big Ten track meet in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he put together what many people consider the most impressive 45 minutes in sports history. While at a meet in L.A., Owens' growing fame attracts the attention of the sexy, glamorous and wealthy Quincella, otherwise known as major distraction no. 1. Throughout his life, and even as a famous athlete, Owens has to endure the indignities of being forced to use "colored" entrances to buildings, being literally pushed aside by his white teammates and having racial epithets screamed at him while he's competing. (This is major distraction no. 2, but it also shows the illogic and hypocrisy of racism as his successes lead those who treat him horribly to cheer, embrace – and use him.) This brings us to major distraction no. 3 – the politics which swirled around Jesse Owens.

As Owens works hard to become a better runner – and a better man – the pattern of ethnic and racial discrimination in the Olympics' designated host country overshadows (and even threatens to derail) Owens' growing list of successes and his potential future accomplishments. The U.S. Olympic Committee (with Oscar winners Jeremy Irons and William Hurt representing conflicting positions) debate whether it's more important for the U.S. to boycott the Berlin games t

They say those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. I guess this motto is the reason Hollywood continues to make historical figure movies at least once a year. This weekend, the life of track legend Jesse Owens comes to the silver screen in the movie entitled Race. While the Oscars may eat up these kinds of movies, they sometimes get overcredited with being the best movie over the year. So once more I dive into my local theater to review the latest in cinematic productions. Let's get to it then.

When it comes to historical biographies such as Race, you look for a portrayal that elicits pride, passion, and other emotions that will inspire the audience. And once more Hollywood manages to bring all of that to bear with cinematic magic. Race is packed with well edited sequences that show the struggles Owens faced in his day as he trained to become the champion. The racial fervor of the times is brought in full force with extras intensely screaming with furious scowls painting their faces. Captains and financers of the Nazi regime are even more chilling, as they radiated the menacing energy we've come to know from history, adding suspense to the film. The emotion it brings will truly unnerve some people, and I'm sure some group will get offended by the portrayal of some Race in this movie (despite the inspirational theme in this movie).

But the negativity is only one side of the coin, and Race does an even better job with their more lighthearted moments. The training sessions are just the ice breaker to preaching the morals of hard work and determination. Once at the meets, things get turned up a notch with blaring music and beautiful shots raise your emotions to new heights. With each shot of the gun, each stride across the track, I felt roped into Owens world. And the finaleÂ… well lets just say the morals they preach would be grand for today's society could stand to learn from. Of course being based on actual events, this suspense can be missing if you know Owens accomplishments already, which is unfortunate in these types of movies.

Yet even the best editor can only do so much and we switch our focus to the actors now. Stephan James gets two thumbs up from this reviewer for his portrayal of Owens. He was able to capture the work ethic of Jesse, delivering powerful lines to motivate the audience, but not to cross the line into cheesiness and overdramatic presentation. In addition he adds a nice comedic edge that balances his character out into a new light. Jason Sudeikis also did his role justice playing Larry Snyder, the coach of our Olympian. Rarely do you see Sudeikis in a serious role, so it was refreshing to see him tackle this part. He has emotional fervor, bringing fire to the screen as he defends his morals and encourages his athletes to give it his all. Sure the screaming rants were a little over done, but all in all it worked for me. However, don't think his comedy has been drained away, Sudeikis still brings his comedic timing to the picnic and reigned his ridiculousness in for this film. These two have great chemistry and together really sold the story.

Yet with all the good I've mentioned, we should probably talk about some of the limitations to this film. The first is of course the predictability of this story. YES I know when it comes to historical biographies you have only so much to work with, but it still slightly takes away from the suspense and mystery. A second limitation was the lack of seeing his relationship with his teammates that c

The correct name of the movie is "Race bait". A movie that should be about an athlete and his great achievements is made into muh discrimination and muh Nazis. Obviously the Hollywood propaganda machine has run out of ideas on "How can we twist historical events to make our left ideology printed on people's minds?" this leads to many bs scenes with no historical context (example: laws against minorities in Germany weren't implemented until after the Olympics and people talking about it for most of the movie about something that doesn't exist yet). What exactly wasn't it OK at the time? they even had Jews and homosexuals in the SA and SS, but let's make it a propaganda movie about politics instead of making it about what Jesse really was about: constant work to improve, perseverance, winning and becoming the best. The guy was better treated in Nazi Germany than in the US and is probably rolling in his grave at this bs movie.