Is it worth watching the film “The Great Race. Audi vs Lanci"
On January 18, “The Great Race” was released. Audi vs Lanci." The film was directed by a little-known Italian director Stefano Mordini, inviting into the cast equally little-known European actors and, suddenly, two-time Golden Globe nominee Daniel Brühl. Did The Great Race manage to tell a worthy story?
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What is the movie about
How did the film turn out?
Is it possible to compare the film with other films?
What is the movie about
The hour and a half film tells the story of the rivalry between the teams of the German automaker Audi and the Italian Lancia in the 1983 World Rally Championship.
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As the story progresses, participants will have to overcome twelve stages of competitions taking place around the world. The Lancia team and its head Cesare Fiorio are in a difficult position, because their main competitor is Audi, which has entered the all-wheel drive Audi Quattro into the competition. The Italian manufacturer does not have a car with four-wheel drive. The team is forced to look for a way out to compete on equal terms with an opponent who is clearly superior in both technology and budget.
Still from the film “The Great Race. Audi vs Lanci"
Photo Still from the film “The Great Race. Audi vs Lanci"
In search of a way out, Cesare decides to take a risky step, choosing as a competition car the light and fast, but rear-wheel drive Lancia Rally 037, created on the basis of the Montecarlo. These cars may give the Italian team superiority on asphalt tracks, but are completely outclassed by the Audi Quattro in harsher conditions.
Hoping for victory, Cesare turns to two-time world rally champion Walter Röhrl, who is tired of speed and now works in an apiary. Having found out which car he will compete in, the driver agrees to only half of the stages - sunny southern tracks. Röhrl refuses, for example, the rally stage in Finland, where the Lancia car could not compete with its rivals.
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How did the film turn out?
Bland storytelling
In "Audi vs Lancia", despite the fast start, the narrative is fairly smooth, in which no tension is felt. The conversations, the races, the interaction between the heads of the two opposing teams look toothless and insipid. However, you can look at this from another angle: not all conversations and conflicts in reality are full of emotions. Moreover, the direct intersection of heroes often occurs at official events or directly during races.
Photo Still from the film “The Great Race. Audi vs Lanci"
The rally stages are shown uninterestingly
“The Great Race” tells the story of the confrontation between rally teams, but the filmmakers failed to convey the uniqueness of this sport. It was not possible to put the spirit of this particular competition into what was happening. After all, the spectators are not watching ordinary circuit races like Formula 1, where everything is decided by speed, or endurance races like Le Mans, where it is easier to show the intensity of the confrontation. This film depicts multi-stage races against the clock, where participants don’t even have to outrun each other - everyone competes with themselves.
Photo Still from the film “The Great Race. Audi vs Lanci"
By the way, the tape skips through most of the 12 stages of the rally, showing a couple of the most striking confrontations and controversial moments. This wouldn't be a problem if the film had paid more attention to the dynamics of the narrative or at least explaining the decisions. In fact, the film simply pronounces the features of each race through the mouth of the main character in scenes separated from the main narrative.
Characters not revealed
One of the film's failings is that it doesn't actually tell the story of any of the characters. Neither the formal protagonist of the film, Cesare Fiorio, nor the head of the Audi team, Roland Gumpert, nor the first ever two-time world rally champion Walter Röhrl are widely known personalities, despite all their services to the world of motorsport. In the film, the characters are also not developed enough, and the intensity of passions and the spirit of competition in the film is not shown. So a viewer uninitiated in rallying is unlikely to be interested.
Photo Still from the film “The Great Race. Audi vs Lanci"
However, one positive aspect cannot be taken away from the film. Unlike Ford v Ferrari, Audi v Lancia tries to show the work of the entire team during the race. Although modestly, the directors highlighted the activities of mechanics, doctors, engineers and their interaction with the racers.
Factual inaccuracies
It may seem that the on-screen confrontation between Lancia and Audi is intended for connoisseurs of the history of rally sports. But in fact there are many differences from real events. Inaccuracies begin almost from the very beginning: during the presentation of the Lancia car, even the history of the name was changed. However, the authors recognized the shortcomings of the work and inserted
at the end of the tape there is a caption that everything that happens on the screen is only inspired by real events and in no way tries to repeat them exactly.
Photo Still from the film “The Great Race. Audi vs Lanci"
Lack of heat
Spectators who came here for emotions also don’t have much in store: the film shows a calm story, in which even the tragic moments are demonstrated crumpled and poorly. Car confrontations here are not very exciting. “Audi vs Lancia” is inferior in intensity even to the recent “Ferrari” by Michael Mann, the plot of which is not dominated by the race track.
