Race – Blu-Ray Movie Review

Growing up in Cleveland, Jesse Owens becomes the first member of his family to attend college when he is accepted to Ohio State University. His reputation as a track and field star proceeds him but Coach Larry Snyder is unimpressed. Owens is a natural for sure but lacks discipline and focus. Snyder employs some unorthodox training techniques to bring out the best in his athletes. Once the season starts, it’s evident that Jesse is not only on top of the college ranks, he’s the United States’ best shot at gold in the upcoming Olympics in Berlin.

There is tremendous pressure from those who want him to compete and those that don’t. And the US almost boycotts the games entirely. But Owens goes to prove something to himself and to rise above the brutal politics of the time. With the entire world watching, he defies all odds and wins four gold medals.

Specifications

Universal Studios
2016, Color, Rated PG-13, 2 Hrs 14 min
DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, 2.35:1 Aspect Ratio
Starring: Stephan James, Jason Sudeikis, Eli Goree
Directed by Stephen Hopkins

Rating

Entertainment:

Video:

Audio:

Extras:

Violence: No
Sex: No
Language: Occasional use of the N-word

I thought I knew Jesse Owens’ story before I saw this film but there were several events that I was unfamiliar with. I was surprised at the NAACP’s attitude towards his participation in the games. One would think they’d jump at the chance to prove Hitler wrong but they actually discouraged him from going. I also didn’t realize that two Jewish members of the relay team were cut at Joseph Goebbels’ request. This of course only served to add a fourth medal to Owen’s accomplishments. And it was amazing to find out the US’s proposed boycott of the 1936 Olympics was avoided by just two votes.

The story is told with a high level of accuracy. Racism was rampant both in the US and in Germany and Owens had to compete under tremendous pressure. The film manages to depict this without resorting to violence or profanity. You will have no doubt about what’s going on however. Some of the attitudes portrayed are truly shocking, even to someone who is a student of history. While the dialog is mainly PG-rated, there are a few uses of the N-word.

Actors’ performances were a little uneven in my opinion. Stephan James does a superb job as Jesse Owens. But I found Jason Sudeikis’ portrayal of Coach Snyder to be somewhat wooden and one-note. I also scratched my head at the casting of Barnaby Metschurat as Joseph Goebbels. While he did a fine job creating an intimidating character, he looks nothing like the original. I mean absolutely nothing like. I could see actors filling the roles of Hermann Göring and Heinrich Himmler and without speaking you knew who they were. It’s just an odd flaw in an otherwise beautifully-produced film.

Small details aside, this is an extremely entertaining and educational movie. Highly recommended.

The image is rendered with rich color and detail. Contrast is deep with well-defined black levels and shadow detail. A little warmth is added to the palette to give a period feel but it never intrudes on the picture’s excellent dimensionality. Shot entirely on the Arri Alexa XT Plus digital camera, there are no artifacts to speak of; just a smooth clean look.

The audio encode is equally clean and takes place mainly in a wide front soundstage. The surround and sub channels will get the night off here as there is little for them to do. Dialog is clean and crisp without any chestiness or sibilance. Track meets are depicted with thunderous crowd noise that has a visceral impact. My only complaint is the entire thing is a bit polite and Jesse Owens is sometimes a little soft-spoken and hard to understand.

Given the significant history presented here, it seems that the lean bonus feature set is a missed opportunity. Three shorts total just over 11 minutes and include personal accounts from cast and crew, the casting of Stephen James as Owens and some information about Owens’ family.