BLU-RAY REVIEW: RUSH
01/26/2014

OVERVIEW: Rush, the epic true story of the legendary sports
rivalry between freewheeling English Formula 1 racer James Hunt and his disciplined Austrian opponent, Niki Lauda, comes to Blu-ray Combo Pack including Blu-ray, DVD and DIGITAL HD with UltraViolet™ and On Demand on January 28, 2014 from Universal Studios Home Entertainment. The film will also be available early on DIGITAL HD January 14, 2014. Two-time Academy Award®-winning director Ron Howard (A Beautiful Mind, Frost/Nixon) once again teams up with two-time Academy Award®-nominated writer Peter Morgan (Frost/Nixon, The Queen) in this spectacular depiction of one of the most famous sports rivalries of all time.

SYNOPSIS: Two-time Academy Award® winner Ron Howard delivers the exhilarating true story of a legendary rivalry that rocked the world. During the sexy and glamorous golden age of Formula 1 racing, two
drivers emerged as the best: gifted English playboy James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth, The Avengers) and his methodical, brilliant Austrian opponent, Niki Lauda (Daniel Brühl, Inglourious Basterds). As
they mercilessly clash on and off the Grand Prix racetrack, the two drivers push themselves to the breaking point of physical and psychological endurance, where there’s no shortcut to victory and
no margin for error. Co-starring Olivia Wilde (TRON: Legacy), it’s the heart-racing, epic actiondrama that critics are calling “one of the best movies of this, or any, year” (Pete Hammond, Movieline).

FILM REVIEW: Famed award winning director Ron Howard teams up with Chris Hemsworth (Thor, 2011), and Spanish-born German actor Daniel “Bruehl” Bruhl (who happens to star in one of my favorite German movies called Good Bye, Lenin!, 2003 – Though most might know him from Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds and in a minor role in The Bourne Ultimatum), to bring us one of the year’s most powerful rivalry-centric bio-pics. From a distance, Howard’s take on the rivalry seems to be geared toward promoting Formula 1’s (F1) history and presences in the automotive racing world, however, as the two hour flick plays on, one quickly realizes that this movie is about more than just racing… it has a real human side to it and it’s a real story about real characters that had real life-changing rivalries.

Hemsworth plays extraverted playboy driver/race-icon James Hunt, while Bruhl (correctly spelled Bruehl), gives us an unglamorous by-the-book introverted Niki Lauda. Skillfully, they both give us a surprisingly balanced account of two men who make Formula 1 look like the most noble of gladiator sports. Lauda and Hunt are equally served by the story and it’s worth noting that neither man by himself would make a bio-pic you'd much like to see, but paired opposite one another, with opposing ideologies: one no-nonsense and the other very much pro-nonsense, they reveal hidden depths in each other that makes for a very satisfying narrative. Hemsworth has the playboy swagger of a man who genuinely considers his profession to be the modern-day equivalent of a knight in shining armor. He brings the cocky and brash, and makes one wonder what he’s really compensating for. While Lauda, has that typical German engineering focus that requires pure common sense and calculations for each and every decision made in his life, both professionally and personally. And unlike most Hollywood portrayals, there is no damsel in distress, to be found in this story. 

What took away from the movie for me was the cinematography and camera style. The Jerky camera style that sorta’ emulates on-screen action certainly did not do it for me and brought memories of 1999’s The Blair Witch Project. It literally made for a confusing set of sequences that became very frustrating at times. And unfortunately because of having to sit through such visually distressing scenes, I cannot give the movie more than four out of five stars. If one can imagine getting pass such a filming style, then it would make for a nice theater movie because the sound effects are a-must-experience.

Review By Movi-Man Stan 

BLU-RAY: The film is presented in widescreen in a 2.40:1 aspect ration preserving its theatrical format. The picture is just flawless. Not only the picture looks great in this release, also the sound it is good, a 5.1 Dolby Digital in English that provides a good complement to the picture. It also includes  English, French  and Spanish subtitles.

VIDEO:
Widescreen (2.40:1) 16x9

AUDIO:
DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1/DVS Dolby Digital 2.0 (English); DTS Digital Surround
5.1 (Spanish)

Subtitles - English Spanish French

SPECIAL FEATURES:

Blu-ray™ disc unleashes the power of your HDTV and is the best way to watch movies at home, featuring perfect hi-def picture and hi-def sound. 

DVD offers the flexibility and convenience of playing movies in more places, both at home and away. 

Digital Copy provides consumers with a choice of formats from a variety of partners, including options to watch on iPhone®,
iPad®, Android, computers and more.

UltraViolet™ is the revolutionary way for consumers to collect their movies and TV shows in the cloud. UltraViolet™ lets
consumers instantly stream and download to tablets, smartphones, computers and TVs. Now available in both the United States
and Canada.

Race for the Checkered Flag: The Making of Rush

Peter Morgan on Writing Rush— A look at the work of the Oscar®-nominated screenwriter (Last King of Scotland, The Queen) and how he creates screenplays knownfor exquisite drama, characters, authenticity and passion.

Finding James and Niki—Chris Hemsworth talks about researching his character using archival reports and footage, and Daniel Brühl reveals his real-life encounter with Niki Lauda as a guest on the Austrian driver’s private jet.

The Light of Speed and Filming F1—Oscar®-winning cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle discusses the intricacies of filming Rush and how he achieved the film’s breathtaking race sequences with camera technology and skills never before possible.

Around the World in One Location—Ron Howard and the filmmaking team explain how they created the illusion of filming all over the world while shooting almost entirely in the UK.

Fashion and Styles of the ’70s—The hair, the clothes and the colorful personalities of a glamorous decade shine as costume designer Julian Day and hair and make-up designer Fae Hammond take viewers back in time to the sexy ’70s.

The Real Story of Rush

Meeting James Hunt and Niki Lauda—Members of the cast and crew and intimate friends of James Hunt and Niki Lauda share their insights in a nuanced portrait of two complex men and their complicated relationship. This short documentary also includes a rare interview with Lauda himself.

F1 Take 1: F1 Racing and the F1 Car—Mechanics and pit crew from 1970s-era Formula 1 describe the intense rivalry, competition and camaraderie between the various racing teams of the time.

The Rock and Roll Circus—The glamorous F1 circuit of the ’70s takes center stage in a look at the races, the music, the clothes and the lifestyle during a time “when sex was safe – and driving was dangerous.”

Ron Howard: A Director’s Approach—A behind-the-scenes look at director Ron Howard and how his passion for filmmaking allows him to create extraordinary films time after time.

Deleted Scenes