Rush Movie: The Eternal Battle of James Hunt vs Niki Lauda
Rush is a 2013 biographical sports film centered on the rivalry between two Formula One drivers, namely Briton James Hunt and Austrian Niki Lauda, during the 1976 auto racing season.
The movie was written by Peter Morgan, directed by Ron Howard, and stars Chris Hemsworth as Hunt and Daniel Brühl as Lauda. The movie received positive reviews from critics for Hemsworth and Brühl's performances, Howard's direction, the race scenes, and Hans Zimmer's musical score.
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On review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, the movie has an 88% approval rating based on 238 reviews with an average rating of 7.5/10.
Rush Movie Synopsis
James Hunt, a bold and confident individual, and Niki Lauda, a calm and calculative technical genius who relied on practice and precision, were exceptional race car drivers who first developed a fierce rivalry in 1970 in a Formula Three race in London, when both their cars spun before Hunt won the race.
Lauda took out a large bank loan from Austria's Raiffeisen Bank to buy his way into the BRM Formula One team, where he first met teammate Clay Regazzoni.
Meanwhile, Hesketh Racing, the new racing team in which Hunt raced, broke into Formula One. Later, Lauda joined Scuderia Ferrari with Regazzoni and won his first championship in 1975.
Hesketh closed after failing to secure sponsorship, but Hunt joined the McLaren team. During this period, Hunt married supermodel Suzy Miller, while Lauda developed a relationship with German socialite Marlene Knaus.
The 1976 season began with Lauda dominating the first two races while Hunt struggled to catch up. Hunt won the Spanish Grand Prix, but was disqualified after a post-race inspection concluded that the width of his car exceeded the permitted limit. McLaren struggled to comply with F1 rules, and Hunt's situation worsened when Suzy began a relationship with actor Richard Burton.
After the divorce, Hunt's competitive spirit returned, and when his disqualification in Spain was overturned, the restored points put him in contention for the championship.
Lauda married Marlene in a private ceremony but began to have concerns about the impact of his newfound happiness, worried that he had become vulnerable as a driver, as he now had something to lose.
On the day of the German Grand Prix, Lauda called a drivers' meeting, urging the F1 committee to cancel the race due to heavy rain on the notoriously dangerous Nürburgring Nordschleife; the vote was against the cancellation after Hunt argued that Lauda was trying to gain a personal advantage in the competition by reducing the number of races remaining at a time when Lauda already had a significant points lead heading into the season's championship.
Most drivers started the race on rain tires, which became an expensive tactic as most of the fast track dried out quickly. They all changed tires during the second lap, pushing Hunt ahead of Lauda; his final attempt to catch up ended with a broken suspension arm in Lauda's Ferrari, causing a loss of control and the car plunging off a cliff, where it burned to the ground.
Lauda was transported by helicopter to hospital with third-degree burns to his head and face and deep burns to his lungs. For six weeks, Lauda nursed his injuries while watching Hunt - who otherwise felt guilty about Lauda's condition - dominate the race in his absence. Despite being forbidden by doctors, he decided to return to driving his Ferrari at the Italian Grand Prix, finishing fourth while Hunt failed to finish.