Race
Film
Review
by Kam Williams
Inspirational Biopic Recounts Jesse Owens' Triumphs at 1936 Berlin
Olympics
Jesse Owens
(Stephan James) is famous for winning four gold medals at the 1936
Olympics staged in Berlin. The in track and field events events in
which he competed included the 100 meter dash, the 200 meter dash,
the long jump and the 4 x 100 meter relay race.
What makes
Owens. feat is remarkable is that he had to overcome not only racism
at home but the prejudice he encountered in Germany which has
embraced Nazi notions about whites being a master race. So, not only
did he have to deal with discrimination in the States but prejudice
on the part of Adolf Hitler (Adrian Zwicker).
Directed
by Stephen Hopkins (Lost in Space), Race is a character-driven biopic
which has much more to offer than an account of Jesse's historic
assault on the record books. For, in addition to recreating the
tension surrounding each of the contest, the picture devotes
considerable time to fleshing out the protagonist's personality.
As the film
unfolds, we learn about Jesse's humble roots in Cleveland, and that
he was the first of his family's ten children to attend college. When
he left for Ohio State, he already had a baby (Yvanna-Rose Leblanc)
with Ruth Solomon (Shanice Banton), the childhood sweetheart he would
eventually wed and remain married to until his death in 1980.
At the
university, Jesse forged a close relationship with his track coach,
Larry Snyder (Jason Sudeikis), who also served as something of a
surrogate father. And when his confidence was being undermined by
bigoted officials on the U.S. Olympic Committee, Snyder decided to
pay his own way to accompany his promising protege to the games in
Berlin.
There,
Jesse was shaken to be greeted with the N-word. He was equally
shocked by see signs in stores declaring "No Jews or dogs
allowed." Nevertheless, he managed to block out the madness all
around him while concentrating on performing in the Olympic stadium
to the best of his ability.
Jesse's
prevailing over Aryan athletes infuriated Hitler who refused to shake
his hand, as was the proper protocol, at least with white gold
medal-winners. Despite pressure from the Fuhrer and his henchman
Joseph Goebbels (Barnaby Metschurat) to follow suit in the snub,
German long jumper Carl "Luz' Long (David Cross) went out of his
way to embrace the champion ostracized on account of his skin color.
(Postscript: The two remained friends until Carl perished while
fighting on the front lines in World War II).
Regrettably,
Jesse's reception back home wasn't much better, given how the White
House never publicly acknowledged his remarkable achievement. A very
inspiring, long overdue tribute to a great patriot and
African-American icon.
Excellent (4
stars)
Rated PG-13 for profanity, mature
themes and ethnic slurs
In English and German with
subtitles
Running time: 134 minutes
Distributor: Focus Features
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