Being released by Criterion in 2009
Looks like an interesting film. Looking forward to checking out the Criterion disc!
shareMe too!
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MovieChat Forums > Downhill Racer (1969) Discussion > Being released by Criterion in 2009
This certainly could use the Criterion treatment. The fullscreen VHS doesn't give you the full picture.
shareWhat did you all think? I hadn't heard of the film before i looked at Redford's filmmography recently. The reviews on Amazon convinced me to see it. After first viewing, I think it's one of Redford's best films. It's executed like a European/avant garde film at times, though with American actors/acting. Kind of like 'The Graduate', with its subtle variations in camera distance and lighting, although the detached tone was very consistent, as were Hackman and Redford, whose expressions don't change much anyway. Visually, it still looks stunning. The pre-credits sequence is one of the best i've seen, and it emphasized the main theme particularly well. I expected a different ending, though on reflection, it's not too different. The only part i didn't like was Hackman's dig at Redford before the Olympics. I was hoping for a bigger ticking down. What's striking is the similarity between the two. It's not a conventional tough coach/arrogant player combo. They were both callous bastards. I can't end without mentioning the ski footage. The POV shot of Redford racing downhill rivals and for a moment exceeds the 'behind the wheel' action in 'Bullitt'. Like all else in the film, it left me wanting more, and was more exciting for it.
"We must get beyond passions, like a great work of art. In such miraculous harmony."
I liked this film much more than I expected to chiefly for the reasons you gave: It is amazingly filmed and breathtakingly beautiful. It gives you a true "you are there" feeling on the slopes.
I generally have a bias against films about sports and athletes (probably the result of always being the last chosen for the team as a child), and I expected to be bored with "Downhill Racer." Truth be told, I found the plot rather pat, similar to most films about competition (good guys, bad guy, dirty tricks, fawning fans), but the cinematography was so gorgeous I didn't mind. In many ways, it's like a documentary or travelogue. Your comparison to "The Graduate" is very perceptive.
But I also appreciated, as you mentioned, the European feel to this film. In that regard, I have a French film to recommend: "Two Seconds," about competitive bicycling (with a rather surprising lesbian subplot). Again, I'm not much for the competitive aspect, but the racing sequences were filmed much more dramatically than any cycling film I've seen ("Breaking Away" comes to mind immediately). Check it out, if interested:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0158446/
It's now listed on Criterion's website for a November 2009 release.
shareThat's good to hear. Thanks for the update.
shareDVD Empire shows a release date of 11/17/09:
http://www.dvdempire.com/Exec/v4_item.asp?item_id=1490928
I've now seen it. Thanks for the recommendation.
Competitive bicycling? Hmmm. I found that it was more about the irrationality of the sub-human workplace contrasted with life's vagaries on the outside, which are mulled over with self-analysis, memory and philosophy. 'Downhill Racer' was more about the drives of talented individuals on the cusp of life who are alienated from understanding and the wider world. I prefer the latter for its ability to accommodate the visual and psychological subtlety of European cinema into a cause and effect Hollywood structure. It has just as much to say as the other film and does it with tauter and more emotionally satisfying results.
"We must get beyond passions, like a great work of art. In such miraculous harmony."
I'm amazed and impressed that you sought out "2 Seconds." It's certainly less of a "sports film" and more about seeking and escaping identity through bicycling, and after a point the sport becomes secondary to the relationship. But I loved both aspects of it, mainly because I'm more interested in human interactions than competitions. Both are very good films, though.
shareDownhill Racer (The Criterion Collection) (1969)
DVD Release Date: November 17, 2009
MSRP: $29.95.
Amazon Price: $19.99
http://www.amazon.com/Downhill-Criterion-Collection-Robert-Redford/dp/B002M36R1Y
Criterion Store Price: $23.96
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Downhill Racer Disc Features:
New, restored high-definition digital transfer
New video interviews with Robert Redford, screenwriter James Salter, film editor Richard Harris, production manager Walter Coblenz, and former downhill skier Joe Jay Jalbert, who served as a technical adviser, ski double, and cameraman
Audio excerpts from a 1977 American Film Institute seminar with director Michael Ritchie
How Fast?, a rare 12-minute promotional featurette
Theatrical trailer
PLUS: A booklet featuring an essay by critic Todd McCarthy
http://www.criterion.com/films/20391
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