Post 1, Group A--Focus on Eye Movement in Rush-Alex Giangreco

   In 2013 Ron Howard’s Rush was released to much acclaim. The film depicted, rather accurately, the rivalry, and later friendship, of Formula One champions James Hunt and Niki Lauda in the 1970s. The relationship between the pragmatic and often emotionless Lauda and Hunt, the consummate playboy, was the main focus of the film and the subject of many of Formula One’s grandest legends.

   The two drivers were total opposites, in life and on track. Lauda, an Austrian, drove for Ferrari, while Hunt, an Englishmen, for McLaren, helping cement the foundation of one of motorsport’s greatest team rivalries. Lauda was a devoted husband. Hunt famous for once having relations with an entire airline cabin crew. Hunt would prepare for a race with a six-pack, a joint, and a few lines of cocaine. Lauda spent the week leading up to events obsessing over technical reports and telemetric data. Lauda was a master of strategy, and Hunt was a loose cannon. Niki was infamously fearless. James was famous for racing to an early grave, while trying to outrun his own mortality.
   While this story relies heavily on the true relationship between the two, it faces two big roadblocks in bringing it to screen: speed and confinement. The bond between the two formed on track, at speed, within the context of competitive decisions made in split seconds. Second, the actors, Chris Hemsworth and Daniel Bruhl, are strapped into vintage race cars under five point harnesses and helmets. Body language is highly limited. Also, this takes place in the era before car-to-pit communication, so they are also confined in how much dialogue can be used.
   The way Howard chose to hurdle this obstacle was to focus on the eyes. This is not solely an artistic decision, either. From experience, I can tell you that a driver’s greatest tool is focus. The eyes of the characters do not only serve as a vehicle for emotion and communication, but serve just as equally to enforce a sense of realism and immerse the viewer into the visceral, extreme experience of teetering on the edge of control in a race car. Two scenes stand out in this regard. One, the scene depicting the  crash at the Nurburgring that nearly killed and severely burned Niki Lauda, and second, the scene depicting his return to Monza just forty-two days after suffering extensive burns to his face, hands, chest, and legs.
  In the beginning of the crash scene, we see James and Niki lined up side by side at the starting grid. Both drivers are locked in, and we see shots of both intently focused on timing the green light. The eyes are low, looking forward, and neither driver acknowledges the other beside them. As the scene progresses through the opening lap of the race, Lauda overtakes Hunt, only to see Hunt return the favor. During both moves we see numerous shots of both drivers’ eyes. The raw emotion and determination is visible and palpable, using no other conveyance than eye movement. There is frustration, desire, shock, and arrogance on full display in rapid time. However, that is not all that is happening. When Hunt reclaims the lead, we do not see the move initially. We see Daniel Bruhl’s eyes tracking from behind and to the left, then directly to the left, and finally to the left and front of the vehicle. We do not need to see the whole pass, because Ron Howard showcases the subtle eye movement of Bruhl to clue us in to the whereabouts of Hunt’s car.
   Furthermore, in every shot of the eyes throughout the race, you can notice subtle changes of focus. The actors mimic this eye movement nearly perfectly. The eyes do not just react to other vehicles around them, notice that there is a subtle vertical movement, as well. This is a simulation of the eye movement that occurs when drivers take their attention from the middle of one turn into the entrance of the next. You never look at where you are, you look where you are going to be. The attention to detail is incredible, as you can see the eye movement shift rapidly in all directions, accurately depicting the subconscious actions of trained drivers. Another example would be the later pass on Mario Andretti, in which Bruhl’s eyes do not even track the car he is passing, but rather look from corner-center to corner-exit, and we never see any exterior shot of the overtake. Howard did this deliberately to bring the viewer into the cockpit, to help them understand how subconsciously a driver performs.
   The drivers come into the pit lane shortly after, and the eyes of both characters are key for this scene to be effective. Hunt arrives first, and Lauda right behind, with a stall in between. Hunt arrives to his pit to admonishment from his car chief about tire choice, and we can see Chris Hemsworth respond with an arrogant glare and a curt “Where’s Niki?” This is a wonderful example of the use of the eyes to convey emotion and realism. It is a twenty-five second pit stop, any use of dialogue in this scene that is not needed is simply detracting from the realistic portrayal of the organized chaos within a pit crew. It also helps solidify Hemsworth’s character in the film as brash and unwilling to take advice, solely concerned with beating Lauda his way. Hemsworth shoots multiple glances to the side-pod mirror, reminding us of his concern of Lauda behind.
  Hunt leaves the pit lane and Lauda’s team suffers a fault. Here we see the eyes of Bruhl change wildly. He is at first staring at the rear of Hunt’s McLaren, and when the stop begins to take too long, the eyes are overcome with a clear expression of concern. As the stop drags on, the passage of time reinforced with shots of Hunt back on pace, the eyes become furious and erratic.

  Lauda leaves the pits and pushes his Ferrari to the breaking point. We are treated to many shots of Lauda’s eyes, filled with fire and fury as he navigates slower cars, with more wonderful attention to the eye movement reacting to cars, apexes, and even elevation change in the track. To contrast Lauda’s attempts to chase down Hunt, there is a brief moment where Howard gives a look at Hemsworth’s eyes under the visor, showing how calm and in control Hunt was at the time.

  Lauda then breaks an A-Arm in the suspension and careens into a barrier. The car erupts in flames only to be rear ended by two more vehicles. The fire worsens and spreads to the cockpit, consuming Lauda and preventing attempts by others to extract him. The previous focus on eye movement takes new meaning here. Yes, it is communicative and helps immerse us into the experience of Hunt and Lauda. It also served to set the stage for portraying the agonizing pain and debilitating fear that Lauda suffered as he burned. We see shots of him writhing in pain, pleading with his eyes for help from fellow driver Guy Edwards, who burned his hands badly trying to evacuate him from the wreckage. We also are given the horror of reliving this tragedy through Lauda’s eyes. The screen goes blurry and bright from Lauda’s point of view, scattered and shifting rapidly. This gives the viewer a sense of how traumatic this incident was for Lauda, while bringing a human aspect to a sport that is often seen as mechanical.

As stated above, Lauda returned to the cockpit of his Ferrari at the Italian Grand Prix at Monza only forty-two days later. Here, Howard makes the audience Niki Lauda. You are in first person, with most of the environment blurred and light refracting strangely. Shakes and sudden movements of the camera are to signify moments of excruciating pain as he walks down the grid to his car. He arrives and stares right at his name on the side, in a moment of unbridled destiny, he recognizes that he must overcome and race again. One last moment before starting the car, he looks to the side of the course and sees his wife, Marlene, and quickly looks back upon noticing the obvious fear in her expression. This reinforces Bruhl’s character as fearless to the point of disregard.

This final example of eye movement conveys exactly what Ron Howard needed every shot to accomplish. The realism of the film is felt in everything from the choice of location to the vehicles used, but these are things that tangibly exist. Even the impact of the fire on Niki’s vision was recreated using his input. Capturing the emotions of motorsport, the motivations of competitors, the skill in racing, and the pain of crossing the boundary between speed and death, could only be properly communicated by using the eyes of the cast. This is not only due to artistic constraints of having to film actors that are seated and covered, but also because it is the most effective way to put us into the realm of speed and competition like never before.