Race (2016 film)

Race is a 2016 biographical sports drama film about African-American athlete Jesse Owens, who won a record-breaking four gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games. Directed by Stephen Hopkins and written by Joe Shrapnel and Anna Waterhouse, the film stars Stephan James as Owens, and co-stars Jason Sudeikis, Jeremy Irons, William Hurt and Carice van Houten. It is a co-production of Canada, Germany and France.

Principal photography began on 24 July 2014, in Montreal, Canada. Forecast Pictures, Solofilms and Trinity Race produced the film, supported by the Owens family, the Jesse Owens Foundation, the Jesse Owens Trust and the Luminary Group. The film was a commercial success and received mixed to positive reviews, winning four Canadian Screen Awards, including Best Actor for James.

Plot
In 1933, Jesse Owens attends Ohio State University; the first in his family to attend college. He faces racial discrimination from some white athletes. Coach Larry Snyder, a former Olympic-level athlete, believes Owens has enormous potential but needs work on his form and technique. When Snyder suggests he is good enough to compete at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin, Owens is interested, but hesitant because of racial propaganda in Nazi Germany. The U.S. Olympic Committee is already considering boycotting the Olympics over Germany's discriminatory policies, agreeing to participate only when Nazi official Joseph Goebbels gives assurances that athletes of any race will be allowed compete, as well as promising to rein in their propaganda.

As Owens struggles to support his girlfriend Ruth and young daughter, he takes a job at a service station, upsetting Snyder when his job conflicts with his commitment to training. When Snyder learns Owens has a family to support, he gets him a no-show job, allowing him to focus on running. Owens goes on to break several records, including some of Snyder's and begins a relationship with a flashy woman whose attention he attracts with his newfound fame. When Ruth threatens him with a lawsuit, Owens becomes distracted and loses a race to runner Eulace Peacock. Owens decides to return to Ruth to reconcile, convincing her to marry him. As the Olympics draw closer, the NAACP asks him not to go to Berlin for political reasons. Owens is conflicted, but Peacock, now injured, urges him to compete to defy Nazi racial ideology.

In Berlin, Owens sets a new record and wins his first gold medal in the 100-meter dash. When he is brought by International Olympic Committee member Avery Brundage to receive congratulations from Adolf Hitler, he is told that Hitler has left the stadium early to avoid traffic. Brundage tells Goebbels that Hitler must congratulate all winners, which Goebbels rebuffs.

Owens qualifies for the long jump after the German record holder Luz Long unexpectedly gives him guidance. Owens sets yet another record and wins the gold medal; Luz publicly shakes his hand and joins him for a victory lap, later privately expressing concern about the current state of Germany. Owens wins his fourth and final gold medal in the 4 x 100-meter relay, filling in for two Jewish American athletes cut by Brundage who is convinced by Goebbels to do so to avoid a scandal over a business arrangement Brundage entered with the Nazis before the games. Film director Leni Riefenstahl records Owens' victories despite Goebbels' orders; she asks Owens to repeat his medal-winning long jump to get a few more shots for her next film, Olympia.

Back in America, Owens and Snyder attend a banquet in honor of Owens, but the doorman regretfully tells Owens he must enter through the service entrance. Owens does so despite Snyder's protests, recognized by various awed observers. The elevator operator, a young white male, asks for Owens' autograph before taking him and Ruth up to the banquet.

Development
John Boyega was initially set to star as Owens; however, he eventually dropped out to star in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. and was subsequently replaced by Stephan James. German and Canadian distribution was handled by Squareone Entertainment and Entertainment One with Focus Features handling the distribution in the United States.

Filming
Principal photography started on 24 July 2014, in Montreal, and on location at Olympic Stadium in Berlin.

Release
On October 1, 2014, Focus Features originally set a release date of April 8, 2016. However, in August 2015, the release date was pushed up to February 19, 2016.

On February 15, an advanced screening was shown at Mershon Auditorium at Ohio State University, Owens' alma mater. Jesse Owens' two daughters and Stephan James were in attendance and addressed the crowd. The President of Ohio State, Michael V. Drake, also addressed the crowd and spoke briefly about Owens' global impact and life at Ohio State. It was released by Entertainment One in Canada, Focus Features in the United States on 19 February 2016, Eagle Pictures in Italy on 31 March 2016, and SquareOne Entertainment in Germany on 5 May 2016.

Box office
Race grossed $19.2 million in North America and $5.9 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $25.1 million.

In the United States and Canada, pre-release tracking suggested the film would gross $4–7 million from 2,369 theaters in its opening weekend, trailing fellow newcomer Risen ($7–12 million projection) but similar to The Witch ($5–7 million projection). It ended up grossing $7.4 million in its opening weekend, finishing in sixth at the box office.

Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, as of November 2021, the film has an approval rating of 63% based on 162 reviews and an average rating of 6.10/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Race is nowhere near as thrillingly fleet or agile as its subject, but the story—and a winning central performance from Stephan James—are enough to carry it over the finish line." As of August 2020, Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 56 out of 100, based on 35 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.

Accolades
Race received eight nominations, including Best Motion Picture, at the 5th Canadian Screen Awards.