2023 film
Directed by George Clooney
Written by Daniel James Brown and Mark L. Smith
Recommend? YES!
Based on a true story, the movie is set in the 1930s and focuses on the University of Washington. This college is far from an Ivy League School. Their students are mostly from working class families who are dealing with the Great Depression (1929 – 1941). Many of the students are looking for jobs to pay for their college tuition, and that’s when we meet the main character Joe. Joe is looking for a job and discovers that the rowing team pays its eight-man rowing team as if it were a part-time job.
The movie then follows the rowing team – their challenges and triumphs, their sweat and their tears. The writing is stupendous, and the acting is amazing. I was immediately caught up in the characters, emotionally attached to them through the gorgeous story-telling. I also enjoyed getting to know the sport of rowing, something I’ve never had the opportunity to watch but am now a fan. The rowing team consists of eight men in those long narrow boats, being led by the only person not rowing, the coxswain. The coxswain – a word I only used in a crossword before the movie – is the guy who sits at the front of the boat and yells commands to keep the team working in unison. The need for team to work together is stressed throughout the movie and it becomes clear how very true this is. It also helps us as movie goers to root for the whole team and not just one or two of the characters.
The love story nestled into this underdog movie was absolutely lovely. It was done in a way that was perfect for the characters and the time period in which it took place. It didn’t take over the story and enriched the development of the characters.
Resource: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1856080/
Renee Montgomery 