This Sunday, Melbourne will host the official Australian premiere of “Rush,” a feature film that centers around the clash for the 1976 Formula 1 World Championship between James Hunt and Niki Lauda.
Directed by American filmmaker Ron Howard, this movie stars Australian Chris Hemsworth in the role of Hunt and German actor Daniel Bruhl as Lauda.
For the Australian premiere, Bruhl will be present, and prior to the event, he will take laps around Albert Park in the Australian Grand Prix Corporation’s two-seater Minardi.
The film artfully contrasts Hunt’s whimsical playboy persona with Lauda’s methodical dedication.
The narrative primarily follows the intense 1976 season rivalry between the two, showcasing Lauda’s harrowing Nurburgring accident and his remarkable comeback to racing.
In pursuit of mass-market appeal, the film inevitably abbreviates certain elements of the compelling story, such as the red flag controversy that occurred during the British Grand Prix that year.
With a tight focus on the two main characters, viewers expecting to see additional depth beyond Hunt, Lauda, and Lauda’s Ferrari teammate Clay Regazzoni might find themselves underwhelmed.
Nonetheless, the addition of journalist and former BBC commentator Simon Taylor significantly enhances the racing scenes, which seldom fall into the typical Hollywood clichés of excessive gear-shifting focus and dubious accident physics.
The national cinema release of the movie is scheduled for Thursday, October 3, 2013.
