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From Formula1.com
The 1966 classic Grand Prix and the recent Senna documentary aside, there have been surprisingly few attempts to convey the essence of F1 racing to cinemagoers. That will be addressed this autumn with the release of Rush. Directed by Ron Howard, the man behind blockbusters such as Apollo 13 and A Beautiful Mind, it tells the tale of the epic duel for the ‘76 drivers' title between Niki Lauda and James Hunt.
Formula1.com spoke to Howard about bringing Formula One racing back to the big screen...
Q: Ron, after almost two years working on Rush, the movie based on the Niki Lauda/James Hunt rivalry of the mid-seventies, how do you see Formula One racing now?
Ron Howard: Now I am a fan! (laughs) I am watching, I am very curious. Before I also watched Formula One, but I watch it differently now. Before I used to watch the start, then got occupied with something else, then checked back once in a while to see who is leading, and watched the finish. Otherwise my mind would wander somewhere else. Now, when I watch a race I can't even get up to go to the toilet. Now I stay glued to the action - because now I understand it well enough.
Q: What's your idea about racing drivers after getting so involved with the lives of Niki Lauda and James Hunt? Are they heroes or madmen?
RH: Ha, I think it still takes a lot of courage to test yourself in that way. It is not only the risk of death or serious injury - although that still exists in their minds - but it is also the fear of failure that is sometimes more important to men than anything else. They are testing themselves constantly and they are willing to subject themselves in the most public way. You can say that about a lot of athletes, but it is a bit like golf and tennis: they are out there alone - even if they have a team behind them. So you could argue that they are half heroes and half madmen - but for sure one hundred percent world-class athletes.
Q: The last big Hollywood blockbuster about Formula One racing was John Frankenheimer's film Grand Prix in 1966. Why did it take almost 50 years for another Hollywood director to get interested in the subject?
RH: Well, John Frankenheimer was able to imbed himself in Formula One of that time and use the spectacle that was naturally occurring, captured it and put it into his movie. Nowadays it is much more difficult and no sport would allow that. There is too much at stake: there are too many sponsors, there are too many rights issues - it is too complicated. That means you have to create everything and that has been too expensive to do - until recently. Now digital technology allows you to use archive footage, create new footage, extend the set digitally, build up the number of cars...
Q: How satisfied are you with the result?
RH: My mantra was: if you know and love Formula One, I hope you feel that and see the sportsmen respected. And if you don't know Formula One, you realize what you've been missing! I hope that's what we have achieved.
The 1966 classic Grand Prix and the recent Senna documentary aside, there have been surprisingly few attempts to convey the essence of F1 racing to cinemagoers. That will be addressed this autumn with the release of Rush. Directed by Ron Howard, the man behind blockbusters such as Apollo 13 and A Beautiful Mind, it tells the tale of the epic duel for the ‘76 drivers' title between Niki Lauda and James Hunt.
Formula1.com spoke to Howard about bringing Formula One racing back to the big screen...
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| The movie's James Hunt and Niki Lauda (Photo: "Rush" Facebook) |
Q: Ron, after almost two years working on Rush, the movie based on the Niki Lauda/James Hunt rivalry of the mid-seventies, how do you see Formula One racing now?
Ron Howard: Now I am a fan! (laughs) I am watching, I am very curious. Before I also watched Formula One, but I watch it differently now. Before I used to watch the start, then got occupied with something else, then checked back once in a while to see who is leading, and watched the finish. Otherwise my mind would wander somewhere else. Now, when I watch a race I can't even get up to go to the toilet. Now I stay glued to the action - because now I understand it well enough.
 |
| Ron Howard and actor Chris Hemsworth, who plays James Hunt (Photo: "Rush" Facebok) |
Q: What's your idea about racing drivers after getting so involved with the lives of Niki Lauda and James Hunt? Are they heroes or madmen?
RH: Ha, I think it still takes a lot of courage to test yourself in that way. It is not only the risk of death or serious injury - although that still exists in their minds - but it is also the fear of failure that is sometimes more important to men than anything else. They are testing themselves constantly and they are willing to subject themselves in the most public way. You can say that about a lot of athletes, but it is a bit like golf and tennis: they are out there alone - even if they have a team behind them. So you could argue that they are half heroes and half madmen - but for sure one hundred percent world-class athletes.
 |
| Ron Howard with actor Daniel Brühl, who plays Lauda (Photo: "Rush" Facebook) |
Q: The last big Hollywood blockbuster about Formula One racing was John Frankenheimer's film Grand Prix in 1966. Why did it take almost 50 years for another Hollywood director to get interested in the subject?
RH: Well, John Frankenheimer was able to imbed himself in Formula One of that time and use the spectacle that was naturally occurring, captured it and put it into his movie. Nowadays it is much more difficult and no sport would allow that. There is too much at stake: there are too many sponsors, there are too many rights issues - it is too complicated. That means you have to create everything and that has been too expensive to do - until recently. Now digital technology allows you to use archive footage, create new footage, extend the set digitally, build up the number of cars...
Q: How satisfied are you with the result?
RH: My mantra was: if you know and love Formula One, I hope you feel that and see the sportsmen respected. And if you don't know Formula One, you realize what you've been missing! I hope that's what we have achieved.
 |
| Director Ron Howard and cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle on the set of "Rush" (Photo: "Rush" Facebook) |