The Boys in the Boat
The Boys in the Boat is playing in theaters at the time of writing. Rated PG-13. Common Sense says 13.
STORY: D
It’s a powerful story, but the storytelling is not.
It’s a classic underdog story; the American dream come alive. A scrappy, blue collar crew from the West coast outworks the moneyed, elite crews of the Northeast all the way to the Olympics.
It’s an extraordinary feat. One that was chronicled - thoroughly and entertainingly - in Daniel James Brown’s 2013 book of the same name.
This movie isn’t nearly as entertaining or engaging as the book. Its vibe leans more toward “newspaper article” than emotional cinema. The movie seems solely concerned with conveying the story’s facts and information.
Movies can (and should) be informative. But they should also move us. They should move our imaginations to a place we haven’t been before. They should move our spirits toward new ideas of what it means to be human. Unfortunately, this movie doesn’t take advantage of all the wonderful things movies can do.
PEOPLE: D
Several dry performances make it hard to connect with the characters.
Most films would love to be compared to Star Wars. Unfortunately, The Boys in the Boat resembles a galaxy far, far away in only one way: its acting.
Star Wars is infamous for its flat, occasionally hokey performances. We get more of the same here. I understand that the 1930s were a very different era. The Great Depression crushed millions of Americans. Stiff upper lips were as necessary as Vitamin B.
But accuracy does not always equal entertainment. The characters’ stony, stoic exteriors prevent us from connecting with them on any deep level.
Two characters feel like real human beings. The boat’s coxswain, played by Luke Slattery, and the boat builder, played by Peter Guinness, breathe much needed life into the film whenever they’re on screen.
FILM NERD STUFF: B
The cinematography makes the rowing scenes soar.
What soul the movie does have comes largely from its excellent cinematography. The rowing scenes look absolutely beautiful. The camera movement (and editing) infuses the races with vibrancy and tension. Some creative angles and camera placement make us feel we are in the boat.
It’s also interesting how the filmmakers use blocking to illustrate Joe’s journey. When he first meets Joyce, she is always above him in the frame. She’s got money, he doesn’t. She has a clear future, he doesn’t. As rowing takes him places he never dreamed, Joe literally rises higher in the frame. By the end of the film, he’s either above her or at her eye level. It’s a neat example of how the camera can help tell a story.
TIME TO CATCH THE TRAIN (Elective Class): F
This historical drama is missing an essential ingredient: the drama.
It’s not always easy to keep an audience’s attention when they know the end of the story. Most people will either already be familiar with this story or figure out how it ends pretty quickly.
In stories like these, a filmmaker needs to create smaller moments of wonder throughout the film. If we’re consistently placed inside interesting scenes - ones where we don’t know how they’ll turn out - we stay riveted. Even if we know how everything ends up.
Sadly, we can predict how nearly every scene in this movie will turn out once it begins. I think I saw the film’s tension on the back of a milk carton. It’s missing from this movie, and even the characters seem to know this.
An example: Joe gets off a departing train to kiss Joyce. The train begins rolling away from the station. Coach leans his head out the doorway, screaming for Joe to get back on the train. Joe finally pulls his lips away as the train chugs speedily along and … WALKS … his way back to the train.
I’m glad they didn’t have him sprint, dive, and grab onto the rear guardrail by his fingertips. But the lack of urgency - symbolized by his laid back stroll - is a perfect example of the film’s lack of dramatic stakes. Which is disappointing when one thinks about the dramatic stakes these boys faced in real life.
FINAL COMMENTS:
The story of the University of Washington crew is an unbelievable and inspirational one. It’s one that should be told. But it should be told better than this. Perhaps an older audience, one who can identify with the generation portrayed in the film, will find more to love about it.