Review of Race (2016) by Eric M — 19 Feb 2016

"Race" is the type of old-fashioned historical drama that I'm a real sucker for, but honestly, Stephen Hopkins has done us all a real service by bringing Jesse Owens' story to life on the silver screen.

It might not be the most engaging sports story (for comparison, "42", which bears remarkable similarities in setting, theme and composition, does a better job of selling the magic of the sport of baseball) but the historical context is where "Race" draws its emotional power from.

It's an intriguing and unsung aspect of World War II: while Germans persecuted Jews, Blacks in America were persecuted in shockingly similar ways. Hopkins draws this out (aided by an excellent performance by Stephan James) during the Olympic sequence marvelously by repeatedly setting up racial obstacles for Owens, knocking them down in an inspirational and patriotic manner, and then undercutting that purity of the moment by reminding the viewer that both Nazis and Americans are enemies of both Jews and Blacks.

The inclusion of Germany's famed documentary maker Leni Riefenstahl (Carice von Houten) adds another fascinating angle. Hopkins might bungle the handling of the Owens romance/breakup/marriage, but it's a minor flaw in a film that otherwise is a thoughtful exploration of a disturbingly relevant story.