Even if the events are well known, Ron Howard has fashioned a gripping and wonderfully-made movie about the rivalry of racedrivers James Hunt and Niki Lauda in the 1970s. Storytelling is tight and economical, and Howard applies the same energy and drive to both the race-track sequences and dialogue scenes to very good effect, creating a relentless and engaging pace. Although characters are drawn quite simplistically for movie purposes, there are a number of wonderful performances, but the two leads are exceptional: Chris Hemsworth gives the passionate and impulsive Hunt swagger and enough depth, and Daniel Bruhl gives the uptight, steely Lauda a crucial dose of humanity. The racing scenes are created superbly, with Lauda's horrifying crash and the insane Japanese season finale quite extraordinary. Whilst sold as 'The James Hunt Story', it is the clever interweaving of both Hunt and Lauda's stories and points of view that give the movie real strength, and the inevitable final shots of the men themselves are effectively poignant and a fitting pay-off to an immensely successful piece of film-making.
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