*”RACE” opened in theaters over the weekend, taking in $7.4 million at the U.S. box office on a $5 million budget.
The biographical sports-drama centers on African American athlete Jesse Owens, who won four gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games.
Owens is yet another moment in black history that reminds us why celebrating our triumphs are important to help nurture, heal and advance our culture.
The tile of the film obviously has multiple meanings, and in this digitally fast-paced, instant gratification society that we live in, the story never bores by lingering on remedial plot filler. It gets to the point. Most of us know the point, but if you don’t know the point, here’s a clue: A black man kicked Nazi a**, and the script highlights the essential moments – and influential people – in Jesse’s life that lead to his record-breaking four gold medals in Nazi Germany.
Jesse’s daughters were instrumental in bringing their father’s story to the big screen, and the filmmakers opted to focus on his gifts and goals and not rape the psyche of the audience with too many soul crushing moments about the burdens of being black, while being great – in America. Any one of us can imagine what life was life for African Americans in the 1930’s. While much has changed, much has remained the same. Still, I applaud the filmmakers decision to not use race as a strike against Jesse, but rather a blessing that he gifted to the world in order to break stereotypes.
Stephan James stars a young Jesse Owens, who becomes a track and field phenomenon while attending Ohio State University in the early 1930s. With guidance from Olympic-training coach Larry Snyder (Jason Sudeikis), Owens gains national recognition for breaking numerous records. James gives a tender yet passionate performance, and there are moments where his vulnerability transcends the screen, making it feel quite personal for this reviewer. It’s also refreshing that Sudeikis doesn’t come off as the magical white hero who saves the poor negro male. You feel the sincerity from which he channels Synder, and his choices reflect why Owens once described his track and field trainer and mentor as an “accidental non-racist.”
Directed by Stephen Hopkins and written by Joe Shrapnel and Anna Waterhouse, the film also features Jeremy Irons, the legendary William Hurt, and Carice van Houten. Hurt portrays Jeremiah Mahoney, president of the Amateur Athletic Union, who led efforts to boycott the 1936 Olympics. Irons plays the conniving Avery Brundage, the head of the American Olympic committee who fought to have the 1936 Olympics take place in Berlin. Hopkins filmed in Montreal and at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin, where Owens crushed Adolf Hitler’s vision of Aryan supremacy.
Most fascinating is the backstory between Jesse and Aryan poster-boy Luz Long, the German Olympic long-jumper who crossed racial barriers to help rival Owens qualify for the long jump final at the 1936 Olympics. The two men ridiculed Hitler’s claims of Aryan superiority after Owens beat Long in the finals, and they embraced in front of Hitler. The men developed a close friendship and remained friends until Long was killed in action serving in the German Army during World War II.
“RACE” offers an enlightening snapshot of 1930’s American politics and international relations that will surprise you at times, and fill you with anger and disappointment – such as knowing that the U.S. government refused to acknowledge Jesse Owens dominance at the 1936 Berlin Olympics simply because he was a black man. On March 28, 1990, Owens was posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by President George H. W. Bush.
The film is relatable because we all have a dream and we have all struggled with doubt, and so many of us can attest that determination, coupled with a strong support system, can help us overcome any obstacle to make our dreams come to fruition.
What’s important about “RACE,” is that it depicts how blackness inspired the world and shaped professional athleticism at the height of global White Supremacist propaganda. The story speaks to the human condition and Jesse’s journey should serve as inspiration for modern heroism and ingenuity.
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