I am not a fan of F-1 by any means. I didn't even know who Niki Lauda and James Hunt were (I am young, sorry) before today. However, this movie is not about F-1 or racing - it is about two guys who have an uncontrollable passion for what they do... and as a straight guy, I can say that this movie is downright sexy.

Seriously, I was impressed by everything about Rush - the acting was superb, the cinematography was spot on, the script was well-written, and directing was top-notch. No wonder why Rush is ranked as no.189 on IMDB. I was pumping with adrenaline throughout the movie. Also, it is fascinating how this is a true story... I cannot stop to admire how two people can sometimes be the biggest protagonists and friends at the same time. You should also watch that documentary about Lary Bird and Magic Johnson if you liked Rush. I love sports in general, and I love this kind of movies.

Also, it helped that I didn't know the real story... Actually, I even fooled myself:

I forgot that Niki Lauda was not Ayrton Senna, and was expecting him to die throughout the movie... I even had tissues ready, in case I got emotional! haha

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The Plot

It is a movie about the relationship of two F-1 protagonists, Niki Lauda and James Hunt, in the 70's.

Niki Lauda (Daniel Brühl), a pragmatic, strict and genius Austrian, pushes his way straight to Ferrari team, the best team in F-1, after showing some pure talents in driving and setting up racing cars. In his personal life, Niki Lauda is pretty cold-blooded and only focused on results instead of enjoying the process. However, he manages to seduce and marry Marlene (Alexandra Maria Lara), some random girl whom he met at a random party. Even though Niki Lauda claims that loving Marlene and being happy is wrong and only makes him weak, we can see that behind all the cold masks, he cares for Marlene with all his heart.

James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth), in contrary, is a playboy, who loves drinking and spending his time with different girls every night. He is a loose cannon, so despite his undeniable talent in racing, no one is actually bold enough to give him a deal in F-1. However, one thing leads to another and James Hunt finds himself in McLaren, the main competitor of Ferrari in F-1. Naturally, James Hunt gets even cockier. On top of that, he divorces his wife, Suzy Miller (Olivia Wilde)... the fun part of James' life begins.

James Hunt and Niki Lauda meets more and more often, and they start hating each other even more. However, it feels that those guys feel a mutual respect for each other as they understand that there are no better F-1 drivers in the world. This love-hate relationship evolves everyday and media seems to love it. Half-way through the 1976's season, Niki Lauda finds himself in a driving position to win the title. However, James Hunt is determined to steal that title from Lauda if he makes even the smallest mistake. The tension keeps building until those guys decide to take even bigger risks in order to win. The crash happens, and Niki Lauda almost burns alive.

And still, Lauda proves himself to be a true fighter and gets back to racing in no time against all odds. He manages to stay 3 points ahead of James Hunt before the last race in Japan. That is when shit gets crazy, and drivers risk their lives just to win the trophy. James Hunt goes all in on the last lap and... you'll have to watch to learn if he becomes a loser, a winner, or a dead man.

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My thoughts

1. First of all - the acting was perfect. I especially enjoyed watching both lead actors. I could feel the chemistry between them, and that was important for a movie like Rush.

2. You can only become the greatest if you risk it all at some point in your life. Probably Karma makes us place our money where our mouths are before letting us achieve anything of greater value.

3. Noble people respect even their fiercest enemies; noble people care for their protagonists.

4. We do need to have something to chase. For James Hunt, it was Niki Lauda (and vice versa), for some people it is themselves, and some are chasing things instead of people. However, we always have to have that something to chase because it keeps us trying.

5. Consistency and determination are the keys to success. People so often stop trying or don't try hard enough because they get distracted and depressed... However, those who are determined to achieve their goals by any means, are the ones who finally succeed.

6. People's relationships can never be only black or white - they are always colorful. We could see how much Lauda and Hunt hated each other, but eventually, we learned that they also loved each other.

7. A real rivalry has to be based on respect and fairness, otherwise, it is just a stupid egoistic game of some immature people. Rivalries like Hunt's and Lauda's go down in history because we learn how to be humans from them.

8. When you know your life's goal for sure, there is nothing in the world that could stop you except death.

9. Cold people often feel the deepest feelings. However, they don't know how to show them, so they chose to play it cool just to save themselves from any unwanted problems.

10. Rush is worth to see even for a person who has no idea what is a racing car and how to even start a freaking engine because this movie is not about the racing cars, but about people, racing for their dreams.

Real Niki and James