Race (2016)

Race is a film that sticks out to me because while it details the life of athlete Jesse Owens it also includes the racism that occurred in relation to Germany not wanting African-Americans and people of the Jewish faith to compete in the 1937 Olympic Games.  Race is directed by Stephen Hopkins and was written by Joe Shrapnel and Anna Waterhouse.  The importance of the rise of Jesse Owens as an athlete should not be defined strictly by his accomplishments as an athlete and luckily this film makes a solid attempt at showing Jessie as a human being and not just a character in a story.

When we first meet Jesse Owens (Stephan James) he is leaving to attend The Ohio State University.  He promises his family along with his girlfriend and small child that he will getting an education to provide all of them better lives.  What is not told to audiences is that he was a runner in high school and also has his eyes on being the best track and field athlete the university has ever seen.  Jesse is coached by Larry Synder (Jason Sudeikis), a man who once strived for the same goals that Jesse now hopes to attain.  In the background of Jesse’s growth is the fact that the Olympic committee is attempting to convince Germany to set aside their obvious hatred for African-Americans and people of the Jewish faith.

First and foremost, I acknowledge that this film is nothing without the conflict the committee faced in getting Germany to set aside their dislike for people of color and those who are Jewish considering that Hitler was in power at that time.  My difficulty with that specific plotline comes from the fact that it slows the pace of the film drastically and mostly feels like it should be its own separate movie specifically when the documentarian gets involved while Jesse is competing at the Olympics.  The film is over two hours long and it feels like it.  The scenes involving the discussion and resolution of whether Germany will be involved in hosting the Olympic games also feel deeply villainous and in some ways change the hope and inspiration filled tone of Jesse Owens accomplishments.  This is by far the main reason the film is not as strong as it could be.

The main positive of the film is in the casting.  Stephan James has very few credits to his name but excels at showing determination through impossible circumstances.  I love the James has a level of charisma that instead of making him cocky and self-assured allows him to become likable and engaging.  He does the absolute best he can to portray Jesse Owens accurately.  Another positive was Sudeikis as Synder.  He really sells the idea that this coach is filled with regret about what he failed to accomplish and it makes the audience really root for his overall success as he coaches Owens to one victory after another.  The real beauty of these characters and perhaps the film overall is that while the story is well known the people who helped Owens defy Hitler are flawed and human and that level of relatability definitely rang true for Race as a film.

Overall, Race is a great history lesson for those entirely unfamiliar with the accolades of track and field athlete Jesse Owens but many will not care for the political intrigue surrounding his journey to achieve greatness.  I hope a different biography is made on Owen’s career as I have since learned there are many other aspects of his life that weren’t touched on in this film.