Filmmaking as an industry has always used the technology of its time to the fullest. With the current state of computer aided imagery and the expansion of AI, we are zeroing in on a time where imagination really is the only limiting factor. With this runaway technology, we also need a counter product to balance things out.
We need stories that inspire, ones told in traditional ways with skill, care and finesse. They should feature an absence of visual technology and instead, an emphasis on character development and storyline. George Clooney’s The Boys in the Boat is just such a work.
It tells the true life story of the University of Washington eight-man rowing crew that was a surprise entrant to the 1936 Summer Olympics. Those were the games famously held in Nazi controlled Germany before the start of World War ll. That reality provides a backdrop to a study of the class system of the time.
Clooney adds to his directorial portfolio with this decidedly old-fashioned tale of athletic deeds and boys growing up to become men. He keeps the film trickery to an absolute minimum and lets the real-life story shine through. There is a high level of effort from all the cast and crew and that makes the film a joy to watch.
Rob Hudson
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