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.
