Race (2016 film)


Race is a 2016 biographical sports drama film about African-American athlete Jesse Owens, who won a record-breaking four gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games. Directed by Stephen Hopkins and written by Joe Shrapnel and Anna Waterhouse, the film stars Stephan James as Owens, and co-stars Jason Sudeikis, Jeremy Irons, William Hurt and Carice van Houten. It is a co-production of Canada, Germany and France.
Principal photography began on 24 July 2014, in Montreal, Canada. Forecast Pictures, Solofilms, and Trinity Race produced the film, supported by the Owens family, the Jesse Owens Foundation, the Jesse Owens Trust and the Luminary Group. It won four Canadian Screen Awards, including Best Actor for James.

Plot

, a promising black American runner, attends Ohio State University, despite facing racial discrimination and slurs from the white athletes. He attracts the attention of coach Larry Snyder, who believes Owens has enormous potential but needs work on his form and technique. When Snyder suggests he is good enough to compete at the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games, Owens is interested, but hesitant because of racial propaganda in Nazi Germany. The U.S. Olympic Committee is already considering boycotting the Olympics over Germany's discriminatory policies, only agreeing to participate when Nazi official Joseph Goebbels gives personal assurances they will allow foreign athletes of any race to compete, as well as promising to rein in their propaganda.
As Owens struggles to support his girlfriend Ruth and young daughter, he takes a job at a service station, upsetting Snyder when his job conflicts with his commitment to train. When Snyder learns Owens has a family to support, he gets him a no-show job, allowing him to focus on running. Owens goes on to break several records, including some of Snyder's, and begins a relationship with a woman whose attentions he attracts with his newfound fame. When Ruth threatens him with a lawsuit, Owens becomes distracted and loses a race to runner Eulace Peacock. Owens decides to return to Ruth to reconcile, convincing her to marry him. As the Olympics draw closer, the NAACP asks him not to go to Berlin for political reasons. Owens is conflicted, but Peacock urges him to compete to defy Nazi racial ideology.
In Berlin, Owens wins his first gold medal in the 100 m dash, but when he is brought by International Olympic Committee member Avery Brundage to receive congratulations from Adolf Hitler, he is told the Chancellor has left the stadium early to avoid traffic.
Brundage warns Goebbels that Hitler must congratulate all winners or no winners, with Goebbels replying Hitler will not appear with "that".
Owens next qualifies for the broad jump after German rival Luz Long unexpectedly gives him tips on his technique. Owens wins another medal, and Luz publicly shakes his hand and joins him for a victory lap, privately expressing concern about national politics. Owens wins his fourth and final medal in the 4 x 100 m relay, filling in for two Jewish American athletes cut by Brundage, who is convinced by Goebbels to do so to avoid a scandal over a business arrangement Brundage entered with the Nazis before the games. Director Leni Riefenstahl films the event against Goebbels' orders, then asks Owens to repeat his medal-winning broad jump to get a few more shots for her next film, Olympia.

Cast

Production

Development

was initially set to star as Owens; however, he eventually dropped out to star in . and was subsequently replaced by Stephan James. German and Canadian distribution was handled by Squareone Entertainment and Entertainment One with Focus Features handling the distribution in the United States.

Filming

started on 24 July 2014, in Montreal, and on location at Olympic Stadium in Berlin.

Release

On 1 October 2014, Focus Features originally set a release date for 8 April 2016. However, in August 2015, the release date was pushed up to 19 February 2016.
On February 15, an advanced screening was shown at Mershon Auditorium at Ohio State University, Owens' alma mater. Jesse Owens' two daughters and Stephan James were in attendance and addressed the crowd. The President of Ohio State, Michael V. Drake, also addressed the crowd and spoke briefly about Owens' global impact and life at Ohio State. It was released by Entertainment One in Canada, Focus Features in the United States on 19 February 2016, Eagle Pictures in Italy on 31 March 2016, and SquareOne Entertainment in Germany on 5 May 2016.

Reception

Box office

Race grossed $19.2 million in North America and $5.9 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $25.1 million.
In the United States and Canada, pre-release tracking suggested the film would gross $4–7 million from 2,369 theaters in its opening weekend, trailing fellow newcomer Risen but similar to The Witch. It ended up grossing $7.4 million in its opening weekend, finishing in sixth at the box office.

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating of 62% based on 156 reviews and an average rating of 6.14/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Race is nowhere near as thrillingly fleet or agile as its subject, but the story—and a winning central performance from Stephan James—are enough to carry it over the finish line". Metacritic reports a score of 56 out of 100 based on 35 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews". On CinemaScore, audiences gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.

Accolades

Race received eight nominations, including Best Motion Picture, at the 5th Canadian Screen Awards.
AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryRecipientResult
Canadian Screen Awards12 March 2017Best Motion PictureLouis-Philippe Rochon, Dominique Séguin, Jean-Charles Lévy and Luc Dayan
Canadian Screen Awards12 March 2017Best ActorStephan James
Canadian Screen Awards12 March 2017Best Art Direction / Production DesignDavid Brisbin, Isabelle Guay and Jean-Pierre Paquet
Canadian Screen Awards12 March 2017Best Overall SoundClaude La Haye, Luc Boudrias and Pierre-Jules Audet
Canadian Screen Awards12 March 2017Best Sound EditingPierre-Jules Audet, Jérôme Décarie, Michelle Cloutier, Stan Sakell, Jean-François Sauvé, Mathieu Beaudin, François Senneville, Luc Raymond and Jean-Philippe Saint-Laurent
Canadian Screen Awards12 March 2017Best Costume DesignMario Davignon
Canadian Screen Awards12 March 2017Best Make-UpNatalie Trépanier and Réjean Goderre
Canadian Screen Awards12 March 2017Best Visual EffectsMartin Lipmann, Cynthia Mourou, Benoît Touchette, Jonathan Piché-Delorme and Frédéric Breault
Golden Trailer Awards4 May 2016Best Independent TV SpotFocus Features
Image Awards11 February 2017Outstanding Actor in a Motion PictureStephan James
Leo Awards2017Best Supporting Performance by a Male in a Motion PictureEli Goree
Prix Iris4 June 2017Best Art DirectionDavid Brisbin, Isabelle Guay and Jean-Pierre Paquet
Prix Iris4 June 2017Best SoundPierre-Jules Audet, Luc Boudrias and Claude La Haye
Prix Iris4 June 2017Best Visual EffectsMartin Lipmann, Cynthia Mourou and Benoît Touchette
Prix Iris4 June 2017Best CostumesMario Davignon
Prix Iris4 June 2017Best HairdressingRéjean Goderre