Race (2016)

I have to say, I was disappointed with Race.

A sports biopic about black Ohioan athlete Jesse Owens and his troubled life as a rising

athlete in 1930s America certainly had promise, and wasn't afraid to go extremely in-depth

and political, to the point of addressing the issues surrounding should America even go to Germany for the Olympics due to Hitler and the Nazis' rule, and involving the propaganda filmmaker, Leni Riefenstahl.

Unfortunately, the film plods along at a very pedestrian pace, and the spark of emotion and realism that is present in amazing sports films like Chariots of Fire is nowhere to be seen in this film.

The subject matter is presented beautifully though, and this film is a great source of information for people wanting to learn about Jesse Owens, Hitler, and racist methods in the 1930s.

There is also a great character and performance in here: I particularly enjoyed Jason Sudeikis's role as Owens's kind but firm and troubled coach, he was definitely a standout character in the movie for me. Unfortunately, other actors in the movie suffer, as their characters are just so formal and lifeless they can't possibly bring them to life, like Jeremy Irons and the lead, Stephan James.

Stephan James wasn't the original person the filmmakers wanted for Owens: Star Wars-star John Boyega was their original choice, but he had to back out due to him filming The Force Awakens. However, even if it was John Boyega, the character of Jesse Owens is not portrayed as a likeable, headstrong character: in fact, I didn't care about him. So even if it was John Boyega, I don't really think the film would have changed that much.

Which is why I'm ever so thankful he is quite possibly the coolest Star Wars traitor alive.

Race handles its subject matter marvellously, but you can't deny it is lifeless and pedestrian, with only one likeable and compelling character, and unless you're doing a course on any of the subject matter in this film, it's probably best you should give it a skip, as with no true intention of viewing in mind, it's a boring experience. Race was wasted potential, and I will give it a 5/10.