Rush - Analyse how a character(s) helped you understand a key idea in the visual text PDF

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Rush - Analyse how a character(s) helped you understand a key idea in the visual text. In the film Rush directed by Ron Howard, the characters of Niki Lauda and James Hunt helped me understand the key idea of courage. Through these characters, Howard shows us that there are different types of courage. We see this through Niki and James putting their lives on the line every time they race, when Niki goes through extreme pain in hospital to get back racing after his crash, and when Niki pulls out of the Tokyo race due to dangerous conditions. Rush is set in the 1976 Formula One season. It follows the true story of the rivalry between the calculating and diligent Austrian driver Niki Lauda, and the charismatic, passionate British driver, James Hunt. Niki Lauda and James hunt helped me understand the key idea of courage in that it takes great courage to risk your life every time you do your job. We learn at the beginning of the film through Niki’s voiceover that Formula One driving is a high risk profession: “25 people start Formula One, and each year, two of us die.” Furthermore, when we first meet Hunt, who loves the risk of racing, he tells us in a voiceover “It’s the only way to drive, as if each day is your last.” Although Lauda has the courage to drive in Formula One, he is more careful with risk than Hunt, which is shown through the dialogue “I accept every time I get in my car there is 20% chance I could die and I can live with that. Not one percent more.” Howard also emphasises the danger of Formula One through a fatal crash at the American Grand Prix and through Niki’s horrific and fiery crash at the German Grand Prix. We admire the courage these characters gave to risk their lives each time they race and Howard tries to show us the motivation to do this; for some, such as Niki, it is because they are good at it and they can make money. For others, such as Hunt, it is for the adrenaline rush of being close to death. There are many thrill seekers around the world who take part in extreme sports to feel this rush that Hunt describes. For example, every year motorbike competitors flock to the Isle of Man TT to race at an average speed of 208km/hr around narrow roads, despite there having been over 200 deaths in 110 years. They do it for the thrill, and to conquer the most dangerous motor race in the world. Whether we agree with the choices these people make or not, they show a similar type of courage that James and Niki demonstrate in Rush; the willingness to look death in the face. Niki also helps us understand another type of courage. The courage to overcome immense pain and near death in order to return racing just 42 days after his crash. This was seen in the hospital scene when Niki demands the doctor to continue to vacuum his lungs even though he was in extreme pain. He says “Do it again.” This made it clear to me as a viewer how desperate Niki was to get back in his car, and more importantly defend his title by defeating his rival James. In addition to Niki’s dialogue, Howard emphasises his courage in the hospital through the use of dark lighting and the foley sound of the vacuum hissing, creating a sense of sickliness and horror. This represented the extent of the pain that Niki was willing to overcome to recover. This is inspiring for viewers because it shows us how courageous Niki’s character is as he is prepared to put himself through immense pain to recover faster. Finally, when Niki decides it’s time to get back in the car after only 42 days, Howard uses an out of focus point of view shot from Niki. This emphasised the significance that the crash had on Niki. The out of

focus shot suggests that it is too soon for him to be back. This made me consider how in society today we see people’s courage lead them to overcoming obstacles just as Niki does if they want to achieve something badly enough. We see that Niki can’t stand watching James win all of “his” points so his courage forces him to demand the doctors put him in pain to recover, and he is prepared to race while he is undoubtedly in agony. This shows us how important it is for us to be courageous if we want to be successful. Finally, Niki shows us a third type of courage when he makes the decision to pull out of the Japanese Grand Prix due to the dangerous conditions. He shows courage as he refuses to make excuses for the decision, telling his mechanic to tell the press the truth, that “it is too dangerous.” This made me respect Lauda and his decision. It takes great courage for a successful Formula One driver such as Niki to pull out of a race simply because of the weather conditions. Niki’s mechanic offers to lie for him about why he pulled out, suggesting that Niki should be embarrassed of his decision. Howard uses cut shots and flashbacks of Niki’s wife, Marlene. These show how limited Niki’s vision is because of the rain, and he realises that there are more important things than winning if it means risking your life. We respect Niki’s decision to pull out of the race as it took great courage because he knows that he will be judged for his decision by some and he is willing to accept that. This made me realise how significant small acts of courage are in modern society. Little things such as apologising or standing up for what you believe in can be difficult at times, but also take a lot of courage. In conclusion, the characters of Niki Lauda and James Hunt demonstrate the key idea of courage in different forms. We see the courage to risk your life, the courage to overcome extreme obstacles, and the courage to make personal decisions, no matter what others think....