Tuesday, July 5, 2016

Reel Talk: Race




Director: Stephen Hawkins

Release Date: February 19th, 2016


Synopsis: Jesse Owens' quest to become the greatest track and field athlete in history thrusts him onto the world stage of the 1936 Olympics, where he faces against Adolf Hitler's vision of Aryan supremacy.


Review: For so long, the name Jesse Owens has been regulated to Black History Month trivia cards or an endearing bookend inserted in the conversations of our elders engaged in the recollection of the champions of yesteryear. For this reason, 
anticipation and excitement was on full display with the release of Race.

Finally, this unsung hero would receive his just rewards. The results though, is a film that
squeezes in rousing moments of triumph between by the numbers exposition and climate/culture construction. In doing this, intricate details of the man and the times are glossed over or are presented in vignette fashion. Here we have a conflict  between being appreciative that such individuals are being exposed to an audience that have vague recollection of such icons and execution that comes off marginally satisfying and ultimately unmemorable. So instead of a victory lap, we'll have to settle for for silver linings(B-) -CgN







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