El Triunfo del Espíritu

RACE is a "by-the-numbers" bio-pic of Jesse Owens and his 4 Gold Medals won at the 1936 Olympics in the heart of Nazi Germany. A perfectly agreeable - and instantly forgettable - movie that skims the surface, but never really delves into, the events that transpired.

Director Stephen Hopkins has mainly worked in television and it shows as this film was nice, hitting on some controversial topics of race and politics, but never really hitting them too hard. As soon as the movie hits on a topic, it moves on to some sort of "feel good" moment, mostly of Owens winning a race.

While the stakes in the world were high at the time, the stakes in this movie never really seemed high. Partly, I blame the director, but there should also be fault found in the two lead performances of Stephan James (as Jesse) and Jason Sudekis as his coach, Larry Snyder. They both do some good "TV" acting, in that they hit a note of contemplation, or angst or sadness right before they jump to another scene and the previous scenes emotions were completely forgotten.

A case in point was the championships where Owens hurts his back right before competing. There's a confrontation scene between Owens and Snyder where the coach declares "I'm going to scratch you" from this very big race. Owens glares and says "no way" and then competes and sets all types of records and the injury was never spoken of, or referred to, or even was a factor in the race.

All in all a "fine" motion picture, one that I will forget that I saw when I look back at the films that I viewed in 2016.

6 (out of 10) stars and you can take that to the Bank (of Marquis

'Race' is an overall entertaining movie hampered by some fairly predictable flaws. It features pretty standard sports movie clichés, e.g., hard-ass coach with heart of gold, rival who becomes best friend, etc. The personal (melo)drama seems pretty mundane, and, as to be expected in historical dramas, certain liberties are taken with the facts for dramatic purposes. But there is interesting dramatic tension in the scenes in which the US Olympics commission debates boycotting the '36 games, and in Owens' personal struggle over whether to compete in the face of certain factions of the black community entreating him not to. The actual scenes of competition are presented in an exciting fashion. My favorite scene captures Owens' P.O.V. as he enters Berlin Stadium at the height of pre-War Nazi pageantry, Hindenburg flying overhead, Hitler waving in the stands to a thunderous chorus of "Sieg Heils." It must have been overwhelming. Carice van Houten plays Leni Refienstahl as a sympathetic character, defying Goebbel's orders to tell the true story of the 1936 Olympics, and Stephan James as Owens provides an enjoyable leading performance.

Racial discrimination both at home and in Germany are in the forefront of this movie so the races become a battle of good vs evil. The victories are that much more moving because of that. Lots of pointed references to how discrimination was in the U.S. before and after the Olympics.

The supporting cast are good. Jeremy Irons is effective as the questionable Avery Brundage who does some good by pushing for participation over boycott but also possibly being bought by the Germans. Carice Van Houten plays the infamous Leni. Strangely, instead of being shown as a Nazi propogandist, she is shown as a hero here pushing for including Jesse in her film. The actor who plays Goebbels is totally wrong for him. Google the real one. Stephan James as Jesse Owens doesn't overact and keeps his performance dignified. Jason Sudekis is good in a non comedic role as the coach.

Effecive use of effects to recreate the stadium and crowds.

A fascinating and well made movie

Attention younger generations:

Avery Brundage was an unapologetic and unbending racist Nazi sympathizer. To portray him as this farcical film does, as a hero fighting for Jesse Owens so perverts history that it should be a crime. And, Leni Reifenstal WAS a Nazi and supported Hitler and his actions throughout the war and its buildup without reservation.

The main underlying objective of this movie seems to be that Avery Brundage wasn't the renowned corrupt amoral Nazi sympathizer and racist anti-semite that history knows him to have been. For me, one of the most compelling stories in our history was totally ruined by the complete re-writing of history to vindicate the American racist anti-semitic Brundage, one of the most vile, despicable, destructive forces in the history of sport, not just for America but the world. Brundage was absolutely explicit in his contempt for Owens, Jews, and African-Americans, and never made ANY protests over the treatment of Owens or any other American.

Additionally, Leni Reifenstal supported the Nazis and Hitler without reservation throughout the regime, and if she indeed prevailed to film Owens, it was for the sake of the film, not because she rejected Hitler's racism and anti-semitism.

Why the history lesson and very little about the film? Because films like this which pervert history distort this and future generation's understanding of the times and the people. Everything but the fictional propaganda of a script, full of more lies than Trump and Clinton told all year, and ending with a totally fabricated meeting between Owens and Reifenstal, one last attempt to rescue her reputation and bastardize history.

This is appalling piece of film making. Beautifully told lies are still lies, and this film is one gigantic lie.

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 to make a statement about Germany's human rights abuses or for the American athletes (including the black and Jewish ones) to have the hard-won opportunity to compete – and maybe even to beat the Nazis at their own… games. Eventually, the debate literally arrives at Owens' doorstep as a representative of the relatively new NAACP puts significant pressure on Owens to refuse to attend the games as a way of striking a blow against discrimination. Owens now has the same debate within himself as the U.S. Olympic Committee had on behalf of all the athletes. It's no great mystery which decisions are made, but it's still interesting to see these stories play out on the national and international levels – and on a very, very personal level.

"Race" is solid entertainment and very inspirational, but not as impactful as it could have been. James makes Owens' struggle suitably personal, but his portrayal lacks the emotional depth that would have really driven the movie's messages home. SNL's Sudeikis is effective at playing it straight, but is a little shallow as Owens' coach-mentor-friend. The screenplay, by Joe Shrapnel and Anna Waterhouse, does a great job at balancing Owens' story with the surrounding historical drama and spares us the full ugliness of the Nazis' treatment of their own people and Americans' treatment of Owens, but fails to go far enough into the story's most important issues. Stephen Hopkins' direction is even-handed, but antiseptic. "Race" is appropriate for families, but should have explored the parallels between the racial issues of the 1930s and those of the 2010s. While we do see a reflection of the ongoing argument over whether it's more important to take a stand than to overcome adversity through accomplishment, the theme isn't sufficiently played out. Overall, the film effectively tells the dual stories implied by its title, while it educates and inspires, and it has its thrilling moments, but it runs past issues that would have been better served by a deep dive (if you'll excuse the mixed sports metaphor). "B+"