Race

I clearly have a weakness for stories about the pursuit of justice, of what is right and the German Nazi regime during World War 2, especially when they are based on real events. Race combines brilliantly these two themes.

The long pursuit of real equality for blacks in the US, still in progress more than a century after the abolition of formal slavery, is punctuated by the appearance of these sports heroes who carry the burden of liberation of their people on their shoulders being the pioneers in their respective sport, besides having reached record highs.

Through cinema I have known the boxer Jack Johnson, the first black champion 1908-1915; the baseball player Jackie Robinson 1947-1956 whose exploits are commemorated by retiring his jersey number 42 in all major league teams today. My preference for these stories may be rooted in the empathy I have as a Québécois as we also have had our sports heroes in history: Louis Cyr and Maurice Richard.

In Race it is the story of Jessie (JC) Owens, the Olympic sprinter that during the 1933 Olympics showed to Hitler's face the flaws of his insane ideology based on the supposed superiority of the Aryan race, by eclipsing many world records.

The film is touching, very moving and visually beautiful.

A definite must see!