I love true-life stories. I love reading them and I'm always so excited when a movie is made based on it. Now, I and true crime series are in a very serious and committed relationship, so much that I will genuinely procrastinate work just to binge on a true crime series. However, this time I decided to leave the dark side a bit and watch "The Boys in the Boat" as it has finally been released on all online platforms. I have seen a lot of trailers and cast interviews about the movie, all really good so I thought I would give it a go.
"The Boys in the Boat" is a true story based on a book written by Daniel James Brown. It is about 8 boys who came from and had nothing in the great depression era, but through hard work and dedication, made the University of Washington's rowing team, and would go on to make a 8 man crew junior boat thrust into the spotlight to compete at the highest level possible---- the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, Germany and win the gold medal for the men's eight despite all the obstacles, disbelief and politics that wanted to bring them down.
The movie itself follows the life of Joe Rantz (Callum Turner) and through his eyes, we see how the great depression affected people. how it made his dad leave the state looking for greener pastures for his family, leaving him at 14 to fend for himself, how he would go to shelters for the old and less privileged because he didn't have enough money for food at the school cafeteria and just generally living a less than lifestyle. So, when his friend Roger (Sam Strike), tells him about the opportunity to not worry about food, shelter, or even tuition, he takes a chokehold on it and never lets it go.
As the movie progresses we see a lot of character development from the eight boys because at a point it wasn't even about reaping the benefits of being on the team, it was about the team itself. these boys soon realized a kindred spirit amongst them and all that mattered was them and the boat. finally, something was theirs, it gave them joy, a reason to keep going and soon it wasn't just a fight to win the gold medal, they rowed for all those who didn't have faith in them, for those who didn't believe they could ever make it, for those that abandoned them, for their coach and everyone who believed in them and they rowed for their love of each other and they rowed for their love of the boat.
This movie made me almost shed tears while watching because these 8 boys went through a lot. they practiced every single minute except when they had classes, had to eat, or slept. they rowed for hours on end, repeating the same thing again and again. they had terrible sores on their hands because of how much they had to row, and you know the athlete care in 1936 was not as good as today is. Apart from the practice, so many people wanted them to drop and opposition was coming from every corner, even their country wanted them to drop because they were the underdogs, and no one was ready to take the risk on a junior boat that had never raced national waters before this time, not to take of Olympic waters. But their coach and their town believed in them, and that belief as well as their trust in each other was the only driving force they needed to shut down naysayers and forever make history.
I love the attention to detail. The way the camera focuses on details when those boys are rowing is phenomenal. At a point, I thought the boat was gonna break or the things holding the paddles would fall off or one mishap would occur because it felt like I was in the moment with them cheering them on with the crowd. And the fact that these events were not just made up for script but happened in real life, just made it all the more heart-wrenching for me and more invested in their success.
The strength, vigor, and dexterity associated with the sport were so clearly depicted that you have no choice but to cheer for them and I loved every second of it.
All in all, "The Boys in the Boat" was a beautiful movie that me dedication consistency, and love. I cheered so hard for them, while still empathizing with them in their pain and moment of doubt. I don't know if it's George Clooney's directorial debut, but he sure chose a great story and shot one hell of a movie.