The Boys in the Boat

A film about a rowing crew on its way to the Berlin Olympics of 1936. The Great Depression. Trials are held for the crew at the University of Washington, and most of the students who turn up are there not for the sport but for the work and lodging given to those who make the team. Joe is one of them; his father has left and he lives in a half-built car. The crew is assembled from working-class boys, against the established universities of the east coast. The narrative follows the road from the trials to Berlin. The technical side of rowing is inside the film: the balance of the shell, the rhythm, the crew's coordination and the coxswain's role are shown in detail. The source is Daniel James Brown's book. The Berlin section includes the historical context: the races were part of the Nazi regime's propaganda display. One of George Clooney's films as director. Joel Edgerton plays the coach and Callum Turner plays Joe. A well-made example for anyone who likes sports drama and narratives drawn from record. For a viewer looking for surprises, the film does not disturb the genre's template at all and the outcome is already known.